| We arrived in Hue at about lunch time after the ride on the sleeper bus and walked over to the Imperial Hotel about a half mile away. It was a very large place built on a traditional, massive scale and was almost empty. The staff were very pleasant and the accommodations and view were excellent.
We went to a local,Japanese restaurant for lunch and ate vast quantities of sushi which required an afternoon nap to follow. We had a wander around down town that evening a needed an early night.
Next day, we visited the citadel and the forbidden city and some of the associated museums which were very interesting. We met a very engaging and enterprising young fellow during our walkabout who wanted to take us on a motorbike tour of the local area and even though we had planned to do this by bus, the admiral took a shine to him and we signed up for his tour on the following day.
We then found out that the business was a family concern and they did the usual bait and switch maneuver and instead of the guy we spoke to, we got his uncle and aunt.
Despite this, they did give us a very good tour and we hit all the high spots over the next six hours. It was, I think much better than the bus tour as you could take your time wandering around the sites and also see the countryside.
There is a great deal of history in this area of the American War as they refer to it here. The Perfume River was, after all, the border between north and south Vietnam with the DMZ immediately to the north..
The population seemed to bear no ill will towards Americans and they all seem too busy trying to make a buck to be resentful.
That evening we went a vegetarian restaurant that was recommended to the Admiral. At least they served beer there so it wasn't a total waste.
On our last day we walked down the boulevard on the south side of the river to the Ho Chi Minh museum. Uncle Ho was born in Hue and spent his childhood there and the museum was full of photos and memorabilia of his life. Lots of outrageous propaganda but it is always interesting to see contemporary events from a different point of view. We spent the afternoon posting photos and then it was off to the train station to catch the night sleeper train to Ha Noi.
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| The Imperial Hotel, Hue |
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| The moat around the Imperial City |
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| Flag Tower , Imperial City |
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| Imperial City |
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| gateway to the Imperial City |
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| Museum, Imperial City |
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| Theatre, Forbidden City |
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| Throne room, Forbidden City |
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| Water Lily |
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| Peaceful place where the Emperor Tu Duc used to write poetry |
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| Tu Duc's Tomb |
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| Gateway to tomb of Tu Duc |
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| Tu Duc |
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| View from Vong Canh Hill |
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| Vong Canh Hill, note derelict American installation |
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| covered bridge dating back to 1776 in village of Thanh Toun near Hue |
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| lady washing clothes in river |
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| Ancient door at the Tu Duc tomb |
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| local baby |
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| family temple near Hue |
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| Bonsai frangipani tree. Would look good on the patio in San Diego |
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| Water lily |
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| Rice drying on the road in village near Hue |
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| Family temple near Hue |
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| Perfume river looking east, Hue |
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| Turong Tien Bridge, Hue |
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| Working boat, Perfume River, Hue |
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| View from the Imperial Hotel, The Perfume River looking west |
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| This was this car , in 1963, a Buddhist monk drove himself to the center of Hue and then immolated himself to protest the South Vietnamese President's policies |
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| The steps at the Khia Dinh Tomb |
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| Thien Mu Pagoda |
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| View of the river from Thien Mu Pagoda |
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| Thien Mu Pagoda |
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| Khia Dinh Tomb |
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| Man having a snooze on the Thanh Toun bridge |
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| Khia Dinh tomb |
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| Statues Khai Dinh tomb |
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| moat Minh Mang tomb |
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| gateway, Minh Mang tomb |
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| Minh Mang tomb |
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| Minh Mang tomb |
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