Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
Whee in Hue (whey)
It is probably best to draw a veil over our night train from Hanoi to Hue. It left on time and arrived on time but we would rather have been on a Thai train and been 2 hours late.
Hue is a lovely little city which was a little too close to the DMZ during the war. Consequently, many of it's centuries old sites were bombed flat by either side. Only a few buildings are left of the Imperial City were the Kings of Vietnam held their courts and concubines. An attempt is being made to restore it but at a very slow pace and probably without the richness that the original buildings would have had. We also had a look at a monastery with chanting monks, big bells and gongs etc. The ancient tombs of the kings were also very interesting and in a beautiful garden setting.
Then the real fun began. We had enrolled for a motorbike tour of the city, villages and countryside for the afternoon. Each of us was the passenger with our own driver. Most of us hadn't been on a motorbike / scooter before and were a bit apprehensive. Straight away we went off road into the woods to visit Bunker Hill and get a view of the perfume River. The trees whizzed by at close range and we went up and down steep slopes and over bumps at a great rate of knots. The view of the river was impressive - the bunkers having a command of anything moving on the river for miles. Then it was whizzing through the narrow streets of the villages, scattering chickens and running over ducks, to find the arena where the Kings staged fights between tigers and elephants. The arena had massive internal walls (as you would imagine) and tiger claw marks could still be seen in the tiger holding pens. In case you were wondering, the elephants always won.
Then it was back down into the city at rush hour. Traffic signals are advisory only and no self respecting biker pays them any heed. Just like at home. When you come to a junction the traffic just keeps on going in a mass hooting of horns. We crossed the city at high speed over bumpy roads - a little uncomfortable for the gentlemen passengers. Back into the countryside we raced along beside vibrant paddy fields, through villages and then the wrong way up a motorway for a distance. Back into the paddy fields we went to a rice museum which had unfortunately closed early. There was an elderly lady there who had been married to an American soldier and who now made a living telling fortunes. So a few fortunes were told and some Vietnamese coffee was sipped before we made our way back to our hotel in the gathering dusk and a rain shower.
Hue was great fun and we will remember it fondly.
- comments