Central Vietnam

From Ho Chi Minh City, we decided to head north to the central part of the country where the temperatures have been much cooler. Unfortunately, what we did not realize, is that it is also rainy season here which put a bit of a damper on things, but we still were able to make the best of it. Prior to heading to Vietnam, I had inquired with a dive shop about the possibility of scuba diving from Hoi An and they said it was not possible due to the weather. I now understand why! Anyway, we visited the cities of Da Nang, Hoi An and Hue, each of which had their own unique charm.

Da Nang

The highlights of Da Nang included the dragon bridge, the cool lights in the evening and the Marble Mountains. There was another mountain to the north called Monkey Mountain, but we opted not to go because of the weather. Regardless, it was a nice stop for a couple days and was a chance to rest a little bit after having been on the go for so long.

The Marble Mountains is a series of five mountains that represent the elements of metal, wood, fire, water and earth. They are hollow and house several Buddhist sanctuaries. During the Vietnam War, there was a US helicopter base located very close to the mountains, but unknown to the Americans, the Vietcong had been using the inside of the mountains as a hospital for fallen soldiers. As one person put it, ‘the enemy was hidden in plain sight’. Although there were a ton of tourists there, it was a cool place to explore and climb around.

Hoi An – A rainy medieval paradise

I really enjoyed Hoi An! Even though it was raining off and on all day every day that we were here and it is overrun by tourist shops, it made you feel as if you were transported back in time. You could see the elements of several different cultures all blended together, it was smaller and it was just really cozy. We stayed at a wonderful homestay where the woman took good care of us for the whopping price of $6 each per night.

The Old Town of Hoi An is a UNESCO world heritage site. Despite the annual flooding, many of the buildings are several hundred years old! This location used to be a trade hub between the Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese and Europeans dating back to the late 1500s. We went on a walking tour and were shown some of the most famous sites in the Old Town.

Our walking tour included a stop at a local theater where we saw a short musical performance. We also played a bingo-like game where we were given paddles with images and if they drew our image, we’d win a lantern. Unfortunately, we were not winners.

Hoi An is also known as the ‘Lantern City’ which is an apt nickname considering there are lanterns everywhere you go. They offered inexpensive lantern making classes, so we decided to try it out.

It is amazing what can be done with bamboo. Besides being a structural material used for buildings and furniture, it can be manipulated to make all sorts of crafts. We stopped by a bamboo workshop and saw some artists at work.

There was one season of the Amazing Race when the contestants went to Vietnam and had to do some sort of challenge in these round basket boats. When we stumbled upon advertisements for boat rides, it was something we just couldn’t pass up. Although it is super touristy (they have karaoke, dancing and a fishing gimmick to get you!), it was a fun experience overall!

The final thing we did in Hoi An was check out the art gallery of a French photographer, Rehahn, who had visited the 54 ethnic groups of Vietnam (some of them incredibly remote), seeking to preserve their culture by creating a display of their traditional clothing. This was a really moving gallery, as he had information about each of the groups, a sample piece of their traditional dress and a photo of the outfit being worn by one of the members of the group. Some of the groups are down to the last remaining members and are in danger of their culture being lost because the younger generation is not interested in preserving it. Often, the people he had posing in his photos were in their 80s-90s and had never seen foreigners before, so it was very important to him to first build a relationship with them, then explain his mission and take their photos. He returned to the villages of most of the people, taking them a copy of their photo which they were so pleased to receive. It was just a really cool gallery and leaves one thinking about the importance of preservation of culture.

Hue – The Imperial City

From Hoi An we took a three hour bus ride north to the historic city of Hue. This was the location chosen as the capital of the Nguyen Dynasty, the last dynasty to rule Vietnam, from 1802-1945. Its former Imperial City and many monuments and tombs are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site. These old buildings, the Perfume river running through it and the many rice paddies that surround the area, really make it a beautiful place to visit.

Though it is hard to stomach the animal cruelty that happened here, my favorite thing we visited in Hue was the Tiger Arena. This small arena was used by the Nguyen dynasty as a training facility to prepare their elephants for fighting. They would put them in the arena with tigers who had been declawed and defanged and let them battle to the death. It was believed that the elephant represented good and the tiger evil, so it always had to be that the elephant came out the winner. The emperor and other elites would stand around the top of the arena and watch as the fight was happening, doubling the event as entertainment.

The Imperial City was built within the citadel of Hue, next to the Perfume River. Within these walls are the palaces, shrines and gardens used by the Nguyen family during their reign. At the end of the dynastic period in 1945, it became neglected and suffered damage caused by the weather, termites and, of course, humans. As part of the Tet Offensive during the Vietnam War, the Imperial City sustained major damage when parts of the citadel were occupied by the north on one side and the south on the other. Only 10 out of 160 buildings remained after this battle. Since 1993, these remaining buildings have been being restored and preserved.

And now it is off to the north where the temperatures will be even cooler, but at least it won’t be raining!