Hue

It was dull and humid, but not unreasonably hot, which was a blessing. The Citadel and Flag Pole are an important place to visit in the history of the Kings and past dynasties of Vietnam, so we went there first. Much of the Forbidden Purple City was destroyed by a combination of the Franco-Viet Minh and the Vietnam/American Wars, but I found that bits of it had been restored or rebuilt since my last visit in '98. We then went to the famous Pagoda, the highlight of which is really the exibit of the Austin car that was used by the monk who drove into Saigon in 1963, got out of the car and burnt himself to death in full view of the cameras in protest at the mistreatment of Buddhist Monks by the then Catholic President of South Vietnam. There is evidence of restoration here too. Then a quick trip down the Perfume River and a stop for lunch (compliments of the tour company as compensation for the no-show driver earlier). After lunch, we checked into a new chalet complex that is rather good and a place to relax. But, the Burleigh Tour schedule doesn't really lend to much more than a little of that before we were off to visit the Khai Dinh and Tu Duc tombs. The tombs are in need of some TLC, but it is unlikely that Vietnamese money will be found for this, given the past excesses of the dynasties, so it will be UNESCO or other international funding that will be needed. A good day on the whole and enjoyed by those who kept the pace!