26.12. After exploring Hanoi and Halong Bay I travelled down to Central Vietnam with destination Hué - ordained by Unesco as a World Heritage in 1993. Gladly I found a nice place to stay (my budget really likes it!), located south east of Song Huon - the Perfume River.
The weather is ok - won´t complain at all. Warm and cloudy during the day, chilly in the evening. Many people told me that Central Vietnam is covered by clouds this time. South should offer more sunny days and beaches as well. Looking forward to it!
Hué is naturally divided by the Perfume River. On the south east one finds busy streets, hotels, restaurants or natives following their businesses. The north east is dominated by the Citadel that includes a citadel-into-the-citadel. One finds the Tu Cam Tanh , the so called "Forbidden Purple City". Hué also has Vietnam´s highest flag, which was destroyed three times but rebuild every single time (people seem to love it). Entrance fee was bit expensive (55,000 Dong / 2,75 $) but it was worth it. It is quite funny withdrawing "1 or 2 million dong" from an ATM ;)
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| Entrance Gate of the Citadel |
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| Vietnam´s Highest Flag (37m) |
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| Inside the Forbidden Purple City |
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| Thai Hoa Palace |
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| Ngo Monh Gate (to Forbidden Purple City) |
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| Imperial Enclosure |
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| Imperial Enclosure |
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| Side Gate |
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| Rudiments of Vietnam War |
After checking out the historical places it took me to Da Bang, a market where one finds almost everything. The smell of tropical fruits, oriental spices and the supply of every kind of appareal was a great experience.
Late afternoon and evening offered a recreative time with some friends I met here.
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| Playing pool with Lee & Bob. |
So far there is a huge cultural difference between Northern and Central Vietnam. The more you approach the South the more open-minded people appear. Anyway, I am having a wonderful time. Taking life easy, watching the world go by and exploring the culture of Vietnam is so recreative.
