Hue and DMZ area

The last part of my trip was to Hue.  The main thing I'll say about Hue is this: it has crappy weather. Apparently the city is known to have the worst weather in Vietnam. I didn't know that before I went, but now I can assure you it's true.

                                          overcast Hue

Hue was the capital of Vietnam for a while...I forget the exact dates, but it was mainly during the 19th century.   The city is basically split into two parts: the old part which mainly consists of the Citadel, and the modern part which is across the river. The citadel is an enormous area hemmed in by huge walls, with only a few entrance gates on each side. Tons of people live within the citadel, and once you're inside the walls you wouldn't know there was anything historic about the area (because almost all of it was bombed during the war).  That is, until you come to the inner citadel which surrounded by a moat and another huge wall...you have to pay to get into that part, and of course foreigners are charged twice as much as locals.


The other main thing I did in Hue – well,  near Hue to be exact – was go on a tour of the DMZ area, or demilitarized zone. That was the dividing line between North Vietnam and South Vietnam during the war, and the few kilometers that separated the area was no man's land.  We left Hue at 6:00 AM (ugh) and got back around 6:30 PM.  We basically spent a lot of time driving around with the guide pointing things out, but we also got out 4 times to see actual sights. But even when we were just in the bus, the scenery was quite beautiful, and there were lots of cows, water buffalo, and chickens all over the place so that was cool.  At one point we passed a long stretch of the road where there were rusting U.S. tanks and abandoned military outposts (some were bombed, others were intact)...when the Americans left no one ever moved or cleaned up that stretch of road so it's all just sitting there today. The coolest part of the tour was going into the Vinh Moc tunnels.  These tunnels aren't as famous or as touristy as the Cu Chi tunnels near HCMC, but I actually prefer it that way.  The tunnels were dug by hand(!) over a two year period, and then over 200 people lived in the tunnels from 1966 – 1972. I have no idea how those people were able to live in the tunnels for six years...after ten minutes I was dying to get out.  But, I guess people will do whatever's necessary to survive.  Overall, I really enjoyed the tour and thought it was very informative.

                               entrance gate to the citadel

                                traffic exiting the citadel...

                             entrance to the inner citadel

    most buildings were bombed during the war(including where I'm standing)

DMZ tour...beginning of the Ho Chi Minh trail, Northern Vietnamese smuggled supplies south to infiltrate U.S./Southern Vietnamese areas 

  former location of Khe Sanh command center and battle field, now a museum

                               remains of a crashed helicopter

                     entrance to Vinh Moc tunnels

Oh, and I also attended a Vietnamese wedding for a bit...this was actually the second time I've been at a Vietnamese wedding totally impromtu. They seem to love inviting foreigners to celebrate with them!  The place we ate lunch was also a wedding hall, and when we were getting back on the bus, the groom (who was totally wasted) invited us to celebrate and he wouldn't take no for an answer. So, we went up on stage and sang and danced for a while, and beers were forced into all of our hands....as in, they were literally pushing beers at us the entire time and if we didn't take them they seemed to get a little upset so we all took the beers. It was so random but fun!

                           Vietnamese wedding...

  the groom waving goodbye...he didn't want us to leave!

The next day, Sarah and I met up with Lynn at the train station to catch our overnight train back to Hanoi.  We got back to Hanoi around 7:00 AM and I totally crashed.  It's sort of nice to be back in Hanoi, but our dorm and the location is so terrible that it's hard to actually be excited to be living here again. The hotels were so much nicer than Peace House, and we were only paying $5 per night!! 

Celebrating Tet

Beach Resort Near Hoi An

Tet holiday is beginning... families leave offerings for their ancestors in the doorway

I'm currently still in Hoi An, but we plan on leaving for Hue on Thursday. Tet was nice, although not much different from 4th of July celebrations in the U.S. (think lots of sparklers, fireworks, food on the grill, etc) for non-Vietnamese since the holiday is all about family and worshiping ancestors. Still, I had a lot of fun and enjoyed watching the locals celebrate. One thing that always surprises me is how public most things are here – for example, almost all the aspects of worshiping ancestors are performed in front of the house, where everyone can see...e.g. burning paper money, leaving out food, lighting incense, etc. Of course while the locals are performing these important rituals all us tourists are standing approximately 10 feet away snapping tons of pictures...and the locals don't seem to mind. I guess they're probably used to it by now.

New Year's Eve (Tet) - Out at Before & Now w/Jessie and Sarah

Lanterns floating down the river

More lanterns on the river

Fireworks at midnight

Offerings in front of every doorway in Hoi An on the way back to the hotel

The past few days Sarah and I have spent relaxing and sightseeing around Hoi An. We've rented bikes twice (to go to the beach), but unfortunately I forgot to take a picture both times...it's the first time I've been on a bike in at least five years. Yesterday we also rented a motorbike (Sarah drove) and went to see My Son which are ruins from the Champa Kingdom. Motorbike was great...a lot of fun and the roads here aren't as crazy as in Hanoi. We got lost going to and from My Son...the map they gave us was terrible, but we didn't really mind since we got to see more of the countryside.

Tomorrow I'm signed up for a Vietnamese cooking class!!! I'm so excited...I miss cooking like crazy, and the dishes we're making are some of my favorites. Hopefully my food will come out well, since I'm pretty sure what we cook is what we eat for lunch...I'll let you know how it turns out!

Tet Holiday, Hoi An and Da Nang

Tet holiday has been good so far. Took the overnight train from Hanoi to Da Nang...about 14 hours which was fairly tedious but I had a soft sleeper so at least I was comfortable. Sarah, my travel companion, was still somewhat sick and couldn't travel on the planned date so I was solo. I arrived in Da Nang and Lynn (one of my roommates in Peacehouse, parents are Vietnamese but she grew up in Canada) and her uncle picked me up. We went to her family's house and relaxed there for a while. I was quite the novelty, not only to her family but to the neighbors as well. They kept coming out of their houses to peek at me.... Lynn's family was so nice and welcoming...even though they didn't speak any English, Lynn told me a lot of what they were saying. In the evening we went out...her uncle wanted Lynn to see some of the newer development in the city so first we went to a new mall, then a night market, then a nice cafe by the river, and finally dinner at a street vendor. It was quite a busy night, and her whole family went with us, including young kids. That's just the culture here...saying “my family” pretty much always means extended family, and often they go out in huge groups just to do mundane things like grocery shopping (which explains why Big C is always a complete madhouse).

Lynn and I

Huge Buddha on Marble Mountain... the ladder gives you perspective as to how huge it is.

Anyway, the next day I left Da Nang proper and got a room at Hoa's Place...a little guest house right on China Beach. The room I was given totally sucked, but the actual place and the way it's run was awesome. Totally chill atmosphere, family style meals every night at 7:00 PM, super cheap beer, and the owners (Mr. Hoa and his wife) are such cool people. Had a great time there, but they closed for Tet after my second night so everyone had to leave. I had met a group of Americans teaching English in Beijing while staying at Hoa's Place. We were all going to Hoi An, so we got a minibus there and then got hotel rooms together.

China Beach... Specifically My An Beach...

Fisherman

Chinese characters outside a store in Hoi An... legacy of Hoi An's history as a major trading town.

One of the best parts of traveling is meeting new people... and then drinking with them

Hoi An is a cute little town, the most tourists I've seen so far in Vietnam, but it doesn't really bother me. A lot of people bash it for that reason, but here's the thing: this town was a major trading port for hundreds of years, so it long existed before the tourists were here. It has tons of history. Hoi An was not a town built to cater to tourists; tourism just happens to be the main economic force behind the town in the current era. Sarah (and Christian, another volunteer with VPV) finally arrived in Hoi An today, and it's great to finally have them here. Since in Hoi An I've basically done a lot of walking around...there's a great market here, loving the food and the architecture. Tomorrow we're planning on renting bikes and going to the beach which I figure is perfect...I'll get some exercise on the way to the beach where I have to wear a bikini.

One of Hoi An's most famous dishes... wheat noodles, sliced pork, broth, fresh herbs and lettuce, wontons and chili jam (I got it without pork)

So happy Sarah is finally here!!

Hoi An, Sarah in front of one of the Chinese Assembly Halls

For an old woman rowing a boat, she was going surprisingly fast

Looks more like Spain than Vietnam...

Caught Unaware

Festive Street Lighting

Lantern Bridge

That's all for now...pics are up on my web albums, feel free to check them out.