Dalat
Nha Trang
After a great couple of days we left in our minibus for Nha Trang some distance away. We saw remains of the Cham era that are of historical value and passed by lots of fishing
villages as well. The trip was quite hilly at times and our driver was very tired by the time we arrived in late afternoon. Nha Trang is an idyllic fishing town which has some of the country's finest beaches and cleanest waters. The seafood
is fantastic here and we ate crabs and prawns at a seafront restaurant. Our hotel here was the Que Huong Hotel and it was very
modern and comfortable. It seemed to cater for large weddings and we were lucky to see 2 during our stay. The streets are full of cyclos and so we
hired 3 and went to explore. The markets were busy and we were intrigued by the local hairdressers! There was a stunning buddha
some way away and we found the local children a little challenge here.
Hoi An
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Off to Hoi An today and not a long trip as it is about 30kms south of Danang. Hoi An is a city seemingly stuck in time. In the early 17th century it was a major trading port.
Reflecting the diversity of the traders that stopped, it has a heritage of ancient architecture that is a mix of Chinese, Japanese and Vietnamese. We stayed at the Hoi An Hotel and were very central
to the main areas. Wonderful tailors here and Trang's shop just across the road made many clothes in a short time for us all.
The Japanese Bridge is a heritage site not to miss as well as the Chinese Temple. At night the main shopping street is lit up with beautiful lanterns! A highlight of this city is
China Beach - just the place for a cool off after riding a bike down to the sea. We also did a cruise out to an island from here and visited a wood carving factory. The next day
we drove down My Son at Amaravati. This is a world cultural heritage site which is incredibly historical. It is equal to Borobodur (Indonesia), Angkor (Cambodia) and Pangan (Mianma).
Hue
The Huong Giong Hotel in Hue was the next place to stay on this trip. We had 3 nights here and the weather was very humid and hot which is typical for the area.
From 1802 - 1945 Hue was Vietnam's political capital and today is regarded as one of the country's most important cultural and religious centres. The Perfume River which divides the city has, for centuries been the inspiration of poets and artists alike.
Hue reflects the former glory of the nation of Vietnam. One of the main reasons to visit Hue is the Citadel of the old capitol but unfortunately, it takes quite a bit of imagination to picture the buildings that once occupied what is now a grassy expanse.
What wasn't destroyed by a fire in 1947 was bombed in the 1968 Tet Offensive. Here we took a river trip and visited the Linh Mu Pagoda and many other temples of interest.
We saw the famous resting place of the Monk who burned himself and looked at his car that was still preserved in the temple area as a mark of respect. A beer in the afternoons here was very much in order and appreciated.
At the end of our stay we went to the local railway station to catch the overnight S2 train to Hanoi. What a great experience! We had a six berth carriage that had to accomodate many
of the other passengers on the train as we were very popular. Children sang us french songs, others wanted to learn to play cards and many just wanted to talk. What a grand time! An early morning arrival saw us
meet our new guide Hai at Hanoi Station.
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