Hanoi - Sapa - Lao Cai - Halong Bay - Hue - Hoi An - Da Nang
河内 - 沙坝 / 萨帕 - 老街 - 下龙湾 - 顺化 - 会安 - 岘港
20 October 2012 (Day Seven - Hue to Hoi An)
October 20th happened to be the national Women's Day in Vietnam. We woke up early and took our turns for shower. Looking outside from our hotel room, we noticed that the houses are built very close to each other. Breakfast was American style with ala-carte menu: eggs, toast and fruits. Our hotel was very near to the Perfume River, which was named after pleasant smelling flowers planted along the river bank. A downpour put out our Perfume River plan, leaving us stranded in the hotel lobby. After discussing with Mr Vu, we decided to visit the nearer Tu Duc Tomb instead of Khai Dinh, which is much further away. On our way, we got a glimpse of French architecture in a few historical buildings like school and public committee hall.
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| Worshiping temple at Tu Duc Tomb |
Tu Duc was the 4th Emperor of the Nguyen Dynasty. The greatness of the majestic tomb could be seen from the vast remains at the area, including resting house, lotus flower lake, worshiping temples, burial grounds and even small islands once dwelled by animals. The burial grounds were arranged to resemble the emperor's life. First the courtyard filled with horses, elephants, soldiers and mandarins sculptures (time in throne/power). Second a stone relic with writings of his sins and mistakes. Then a lake acted as a reflection to his sins and mistakes, before his final resting grounds. Many buildings were destroyed by tomb raiders and the French as Tu Duc was known to have killed many French missionaries. No photography was allowed in the worship area. It was built to worship the emperor, his queen and his mother. The building stood on 5 columns (or 5 fingers) supporting 3 beams (resembling Heaven, Earth and Hell). All columns had been restored except one, which is now more than 400 years old.
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| The emperor's resting house |
Our next stop was the Imperial Citadel of Khai Dinh. We entered the imperial enclosure through the South Gate. Signs of French colonisation could be seen from the huge flag pole outside the gate. There were 5 doors of different sizes meant for various hierarchy class: soldiers/horses, servants, mandarins, royal family and the emperor. We passed the gate and enclosed walls to the Main Hall 太和殿 (again no photos). Outside the hall is an opening where the mandarins used to line up according to their ranks. We visited the Museum on Traditional Royal Dress situated at the left flank. Deeply influenced by China, the emperor's robes were engraved with dragons and golden linings, while the queen's dresses in phoenixes. We couldn't understand why there's a wishing pot inside the citadel, so we made a wish with the only coin in hand: 5cents. Across the main hall is the Royal Theatre 阅是堂, where traditional court dances are performed at night. The Imperial Citadel spreads across huge grounds and the restoration works co-funded by Vietnam Government and the UNESCO may take 20 years to complete! The last structure built during the dynasty, by Khai Dinh's son Bao Dinh, assembles French modern architecture to an extent it standouts itself distinctively among other imperial buildings.
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| The South Gate into the Imperial Citadel of Khai Dinh |
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| The wishing pot outside the Main Hall |
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| The Royal Theatre with traditional court dances at night |
We had a heavy lunch at nearby Y-Thao Garden Restaurant, serving in-house specials: spring-rolls on peacock, green bean cake on plant, steamed shrimps, Hue special pancake and mixed fig salad. After lunch, at 1pm, we took a private car from Hue to Hoi An through the Hai Van Pass 海云关, using the longer mountainous winding-road instead of Highway AH1 through the tunnel. Needless to say, we slept most of the way until the guide woke us up for a bird's-eye view of Lang Co Beach. We stopped by the roadside for some photos. Standing on top of the mountain, Hai Van Pass is just a short drive away. A strategic defense point during the war, we could still see remains of bunkers left by the Americans, besides the ruins of the gate and stone structures. The panoramic view of Danang City from afar was a bonus.
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| Delicious steamed shrimps for lunch |
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| The view of Lang Co Beach from the mountain top |
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| The gate of Hai Van Pass |
Hoi An is located further South from Hue than Da Nang, which means we reached Da Nang first. The many bridges connect the city of Da Nang to the peninsular, where the long beaches are. We had a glimpse of the iconic GuanYin Statue overlooking the sea and the sandy beaches of My Khe.
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| The scenic view looking outside from the restaurant |
Upon arriving in Hoi An in the late afternoon at 5pm, Mr Vu took us to a local tailor shop known as Blue Tailor and Cloth at Tran Hung Dao. According to him, it is ranked No.2 in TripAdvisor and is reasonably priced, cheaper than the other tailor named A Dong Silk which is ranked No.1. We needed to first choose the type/style from a catalogue, then the fabric/cloth and finally body measurements. In conjunction with the national Women's Day, every lady got a dress each. Finishing with the tailoring and paying the deposits, we had dinner at a nice restaurant fully decorated with lanterns at the riverbank. The pancakes were specially wrapped like spring-rolls.
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| The landmark bridge of Hoi An |
After checking-in to our rooms at Sunshine Hotel, we took a stroll to the Hoi An River. The roads were closed at night except for cyclists and pedestrians. The view by the river at night was magnificent with colourful lanterns hanging along the riverbank. We enjoyed walking along the shopping street and passed by a church, where there were children rehearsing their performance on an outdoor stage. We bought five magnets for VND80,000 at the night market before returning back to our hotel. Overnight in Hoi An.
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| Colourful lanterns decorating the riverbank |
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