Hue, Vietnam
June 21, 2014
We set ourselves up nicely to leave Phong Nah for Hue. Up early, with everything packed on the bike and ready to roll we rode down the street to grab some breakfast and coffee before heading off. Then as we came to leave after breakfast to start our days riding we went nowhere. The throttle on the bike just span and span, we had a broken throttle cable. So thirty yards down the road I found the local bike shop and pushed it in to get it sorted. The fix was pretty quick and in true Vietnam style was a reliable bodge job of modifying one of the cables they had available to fit our bike and it cost buttons yet again. 70p and 20 minutes later we were ready to head off.
The road to Hue from Phong Nha was pretty average really and if anything a little disappointing compared to the roads and scenery we have been privileged with lately. No hills to climb or amazing scenery to take in but at least it was downhill all the way towards the coast so we covered ground at a rapid rate. Several hours later and we had traversed from the Laos border in the West to the Vietnamese coast in the East and were heading South down the coast towards Hue. The roads were fast and a better quality than those we had ridden so far but eventually we hit the dreaded 1A. The one road in Vietnam you want to avoid if possible. It’s an absolute death trap. It’s the main highway between Hanoi in the North and Ho Chi Minh in the South. As we turned onto it, it was easy to see why. It was dusty with rubbish flying everywhere and big trucks and coaches scrapping past each other at high-speed. We were only on it for about ten minutes when we needed to sort out some more running repairs. The make shift metal luggage rack at the back had snapped and everything was starting to head South at the rear of the bike. We pulled to the side of the busy main road and before we had time to decide what to do or where to head a young lad on a bike pulled over to help and pointed over the road at a metal work shop.
Really? Yet again we had a problem and were only 15 yards from somewhere that could help solve it. Vietnam is ridiculous, or maybe our luck is I’m not sure which but once there was a small gap in the traffic I rode over and sure enough the guys were able to help out. They stopped welding together the garden gates they were working on and went about fixing and strengthening the rack at the back. Ten minutes later and all of 60p and we were ready to crack on to Hue.
I had checked the map and Hue was only about 50km away now and it was still mid afternoon. Great I thought, we would be there nice and early in the late afternoon and get ourselves sorted for the England v Uruguay match that night. Off we went along the busy highway. We didn’t stay on it for long though, it was horrible. Road works either side as they are expanding it so it was down to one lane either side with dust blowing everywhere and massive 18 wheeler’s coming at you head on flashing their lights…as if that was going to stop them plowing straight into you. Not good so we headed back to a junction we had just passed and re checked the map. We decided on a route using much smaller roads near the coast to take us into Hue a different way and it seemed like we had plenty of time on our side so off we went.
The roads we hit were a welcome relief and much more beautiful than the crazy highway. Tiny beautiful little villages and paddy fields all around were what we got and it was great. I was happy again. We had a general sense of direction, South, and that was it. The two of us, the bike, small settlements and some of the friendliest people I have come across so far. We trundled along like happy souls with an amazing amount of people waving and at us and bidding us hello. It was unbelievable. We felt like celebrities or somebody famous. I swear at least one hundred people easily smiled and said hello as we rode along, it was flattering, heart warming and ridiculous at the same time.
It was almost to the point when you wanted it to stop just so you could crack on but this is what it’s all about. The warmth from the locals in Vietnam has been staggering at times and at the same time it was all massively put into perspective as we rode past some of the biggest cemeteries I have ever seen. Cemeteries that stretched for miles out of sight and over the horizon. Cemeteries for many people lost during the Vietnam war. What struck me is that the people we rode past who waved and smiled and shouted hello did not know where we were from. We were white, we were western and we could easily have been from America. When you think about how recent that war was and read up on what America actually did here this warmth was staggering beyond belief. This mid section in Vietnam is where some of the biggest losses to the Vietnamese population occurred and the people still offered their friendship and goodwill. Occasionally you would ride past older folks who had obviously lived through the war and some of them had missing limbs and you really wondered what had happened to them and how they could still smile at you and wish you well. An amazing and humbling experience to say the least and certainly a lasting memory I will take away from this place. Before we knew it one hour had turned into three and it and the sun was starting to lower. We had spent three hours creeping all of 30km towards Hue and enjoying what we found. Time to crack on.
As we entered the edge of the city and the rice fields gave to small streets and buildings the darkness was closing in. By the time we reached the city center it was pitch black and I had to negotiate night-time riding through the city. Great! It wasn’t too bad though and I quickly adjusted to the fact that despite I couldn’t really judge exactly where other bikes and traffic was due to the glare from the head lights, the locals could and that was good enough to see me through. I’ve been to Vietnam before and thankfully to Hue so knew the general area where we could find accommodation and once I had found a few familiar land marks it wasn’t too hard to navigate ourselves there and roll up outside a bar where we could stop for a beer and find somewhere to stay.
Within an hour we had somewhere sorted and had our bearings and started to get ready to head out for the England v Uruguay match. For some reason Jim Beam is ridiculously cheap here even though Jack will set you back twice the price so a bottle later we were ready to head out at 1am. The match was horrible as I am sure you all know and probably the less said the better or this blog will turn into war and peace. A couple of buckets later and several beers we suddenly found ourselves stumbling home at 6am in the broad daylight. It had been one very long day and somehow I staggered in to bed and woke up in the right place.
I did not wake up well though. Neither did I wake up at a reasonable time either. I surfaced at about 3pm in a sweaty mess feeling like I had been out for a week and hadn’t drank any water for a month. It was horrible. Especially in the 38 degrees heat that was belting down that day. The day was pretty much a write off. We got as far as a few streets for some food and drinks and unfortunately that it was it. We did not see any of Hue at all other than round the doors.
The following day we needed to make the most of it so set out on a mission to cram in as much as we could. The Citadel was up first and it’s probably the single thing that Hue is most famous for. I’ve been here before but Dani hadn’t and I thought we could cover it in maybe an hour. But I was wrong. The place is massive and it’s impressive as well so well worth spending some time here. The grounds are 2km x 2km with a moat surrounding and the Citadel and grounds inside are known as the Imperial City. It’s impressive inside but not as impressive as it once was. It was attacked in 1969 by the North Vietnamese and out of 160 buildings only 10 survive in all their glory. It is part of the Nguyen dynasty and was started in 1804. It’s also been known as the Purple forbidden city similar to that in China but on a smaller scale, non the less impressive though. In the baking heat it took us three hours to get round and eventually work our way out of the labyrinth inside the walls.
From the Citadel we wanted to go and see something a little less on the tourist trail. A place called the Tiger Arena where up until the early 1900’s the locals used to go and watch Tigers fighting against Elephants. A little bizarre I know but I wanted to see this arena. They used to remove the claws and teeth from the tigers in order to let the elephants to win. Eventually we found the place tucked down some tiny back lanes and I was disappointed with it. It was small and going to utter ruin now, surrounded by houses and we were unable to go in as it was barricaded up with metal fences and barbed wire. Disappointing but still interesting to imagine that thousands of locals used to cram in here on the walls above to watch such a beastly and grotesque spectacle.
From the Tiger arena it was only a short ride to the Tự Đức Tomb. In Hue we were a little spoilt for tombs really so hoped we had picked the best one to go and visit and indeed it was fairly impressive and a nice place as well. As with the Citadel it was from the Nguyen Dynasty and as well as being a tomb for Emperor Tự Đức it was also a second Royal palace in addition to the Citadel. Story has it that Emperor Tự Đức was not even buried here and that he was laid to rest in a another secret location in Hue. There is still quite a bit of restoration work going here as it was bombed by the Americans during the war but what remains is good and the restoration work looks like it is being carried out slowly and precisely so once complete it should be a really nice place.
We managed an hour there before it was time to go and see one more thing. The Thiên Mụ Pagoda. Yet again this is another piece from the Nguyen Dynasty constructed in 1601. There is an interesting story behind the Pagoda and quite a lengthy history to various events held there and also objects within grounds. Emperor Hoang heard of a local legend in the area. A lady known as the ‘celestial lady’ who would sit at the site and talk of a lord that would come and erect a Pagoda to bring wealth and prosperity to the country. Hoang acted on this and hence the pagoda was built. It was a nice enough place with a Buddhist temple behind the pagoda and the monks who live there were having a game of football. They were better than England to be fair. It was a great spot just on the bank of the perfume river to take in the sunset before heading back to grab some food and start packing for the next day.
Tomorrow should be interesting. Not a long ride as we are heading down the coast to Hoi An which is only about 150km but the road takes us over the famous Hai Van pass. Quite a few deaths have happened there mainly due to the fact it is steep-sided and quite often there is sea fog that creeps up the hillside making visibility poor. It’s the stretch of road that the guys from Top Gear were all gawping at when they pulled over and took in the scenery by the coast, with the guy trundling along in his little boat so I’m interested to see what it’s like compared to the sights we have seen so far.
