Tag: Hue

Asian Adventure: Hue Sights

JWF Leave a comment

Today was very hot and humid and the sun was out–almost for the first time since we arrived in Vietnam!  This morning we boarded one of the smaller colorful dragon boats that ply the Perfume River here in Hue.  It was just us and our guide plus the pilot of the boat and a woman vendor who also assisted with docking the boat.  She had an array of goods for sale—bookmarks and small prints, wooden carved items and clothing and handbags, all ostensibly hand made.  Each boat seems to have a vendor on board and they can be very persistent in trying to get you to buy something. The river was a greenish brown and very calm and the riverbanks lush and green.

The boat pokes along very slowly and it was about a half hour to an historic pagoda complex set up on a hill overlooking the river. Surrounding the pagoda are a series of buildings all related to the Buddhist monks who live here.  Our guide told us that about 60 monks make this monastery their home.  Wandering about was pleasant as it was still only mid-morning and there was a slight breeze.

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We then boarded another dragon boat and cruised along the river for another hour to reach the tomb of Emperor Tu Duc, who reigned for 35 years, the longest of any of the Nguyen family, from 1848–1883.  Upon docking, we scrambled up the grassy bank and then walked a few hundred yards past souvenir and concession stands to the entrance to his palatial and expansive grounds.

 

 

 

It is a place of great serenity, beautifully landscaped and very quiet.  And there were no tour groups in evidence during our visit.  The complex has a series of pavilions and halls lined up one after another and leading up to the actual tomb itself. I loved all the red decor especially the many many red doors!

Compared to the lavish red and gold temple-like buildings, the mausoleum building is gray stone with a round stone wall encircling it and rather forbidding looking.  This building is no longer open to the public and one source states that the emperor was not really buried here, but in a secret location.  He had a hundred wives and concubines and they lived both during his lifetime and after his death in some of the other buildings here.  Despite the heat, definitely worth the visit!

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Asian Adventure: Road from Hoi An to Hue

JWF Leave a comment

Yesterday we traveled by car from Hoi An to Hue via the Marble Mountains and the Cham Museum.  From Hoi An, we drove through Danang and along the coast passing many ocean resorts with new ones under construction.  Tourism is big business for both Danang and Hoi An.  As any of my generation will recall, Danang was the site of a U.S. military base and also the scene of intense American and North Vietnamese bombing during the Vietnam War.  Much of Hue was destroyed although the hotel we are staying in escaped damage. It was built by the French in 1930 and is stately and elegant.  About 10 years ago, two additional wings were added.  Today the U.S. base in Danang is a Vietnamese army facility.

Our road trip today involved more stops with the local people selling their goods and we encountered bunches of tour buses.  But you have to admire individuals who are motivated to try to make a buck.  That said, we decided that buying a large marble statue and arranging to ship it home was not the best idea.  The marble carving shop’s array included everything from tiny animal figurines to larger than life size smiling Buddhas (generally in yellow gold marble), tigers, zebras, swans and the like.  Colors were peach, melon, gray and pure white.

In Danang itself, we admired the yellow dragon bridge and made a brief stop at the Cham Museum to view the sandstone sculptures of gods and goddesses made many centuries ago. The Cham people ruled this area of central Vietnam from the 7th century into the 19th century until they were taken over by the Vietnamese.

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IMG_8889We then went on to the Marble Mountains which are also in Danang and a popular tourist site. We explored the Huyen Khong cave which consists of a series of altars, grottos, and sculptures depicting heaven and hell and the judges who decide where you will spend the afterlife.  Animal heads like this cat line the walkway leading to the entrance.

The cave opened up on several levels with stone steps of varying depths and only spotty lighting here and there on the altars and shrines.  It was very dim!

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After snaking our way over and around the mountain, we had lunch at a large casual restaurant on the ocean and enjoyed the view.  After dodging an earlier attempt to induce us to buy, we surrendered and purchased two packs of postcards.  Good salesman that the young man was he tried to persuade us to buy the other variety packs as well.

The remainder of the drive was less scenic, some scruffy rice paddies here and there, and we happily arrived at our hotel in Hue around 2 pm. We spent the rest of the day unwinding and sampling dinner in the hotel restaurant. Today we will explore Hue, an important royal city located on the Perfume River.  It is where the Nguyen family ruled under French protection from 1802 to 1945.