Day 15- took a 4hr ride via minibus to Hue- Not so bad!
Hue was the imperial capital of the Nguyen emperors. It was the political center of Vietnam from 1802-1945. Emperor Gia consolidated the country after several 100yrs of civil war and constructed the citadel. This was the first time in Vietnamese history that a single court controlled the country from North to South. During the 2nd indochina war, Hue backed neither North nor South and still remains a 3rd political force.
We took a motorbike tour soon after arriving which, for 4-5 hrs, took us through the Vietnamese countryside and ended with a mountain top panoramic view of the stunning perfume river that runs through the city. This was a former US base during the Vietnam war. Along the way we saw: incense making, rice making museum and an old elephant and tiger fighting arena (see photos!). We came back, had an awful dinner and had an early night.
Day 16- We went to see the imperial tombs and citadel in the morning. Emperor Tu Duc's tomb is located to the south of Hue, modelled on the tombs of Chinese emperors. He reigned from 1847-83. The tomb is enclosed by high walls and features pine woods and a lake-side pavillion where the emperor fished, listened to music and wrote poetry. He had tombs made to represent both his life and death and for his wife and son also. I have to saythese were pleasure gardens more than they were tombs! Why one needs a tomb for life and death i do not know. To Duc used one as his 2nd residence and I could definitely se why! The delicate sounds of the Mandolin from days gone by, floating across the lilypads and lotuses, could just about be heard if one tried hard enough- anice lifestyle indeed!
Next stop, the CITADEL. This was modelled on Beijing's forbidden city while the ramparts followed the French military architecture. There were 3 walled enclosures, each within the other. The exterior moated enclosure encompassed the Yellow enclosure and within that the Forbidden purple city stood. It rained en route to the citadel so it was wet and muggy outside and not that visually pleasing either. The citadel had been destroyed during the war but forgive me for being impatient- note to Vietnam: a fair bit of time has passed since then to "do the place up"! It would do wonders for tourism if they worked on it a tad. I guess that's the downside to communism for you. Local people could be seen engaging in the odd bit of rejuvenation and maintenance work but for the most part, they looked bored and unmotivated. With no incentives, no opportunity for profit and corruption, it's little wonder this country is stuck in a rut. A real pity considering this part of the world is so beautiful and that a massive 60% of Vietnam's population is under 27- that's a lot of manpower and opportunity wasted! This is the generation that carries the force to propel the country forward- hopefully when i next visit (whenever that will be) things will have changed!
