Hue Off The Beaten Path

1 more image

Rising somewhat incongruously along the north side of the massive Celadon Palace Hotel is the newest Cao Dai temple. Outside of temples erected in the US, this is the northernmost Cao Dai temple to be erected. I am not sure what kind of following the religion has this far north from its roots in Tay Ninh on the northern edge of the Mekong Delta next to Cambodia, but I do know that the temple in nearby Da Nang is the second largest Cao Dai church.

As I walked from the Bao Quoc Pagoda to the Notre Dame Cathedral, I came across this pillar-box type battlement that must have been a remnant of the Vietnam War. I think it's located along Nguyen Hue St where it has a junction with Hai Ba Trung St or somewhere near here.

1 more image

Founded by the Hainan Chinese Congregation in the mid-19th century, Chieu Ung Pagoda was rebuilt in 1908. It was built as a memorial to 108 Hainan merchants, who were mistaken for pirates and killed in Vietnam in 1851.

D Chi Lang
From the Dong Ba Market, follow the road over the canal and it's on your left.

There are several places in Vietnam to see the smaller minority villages (some 54 minorities exist in Vietnam). Day trips from Hue often include them, particularly the DMZ tours.

Many of these villages live daily lives with the barest of essentials. Despite the fact that they do not have running water, many of them still have the paradoxical satellite antenna for their TV's.

They often still speak their own dialects and live self sufficiently by their own harvests. Many of them live by the farming practice of slash and burn. They burn portions of the forest. The burnt vegetation adds nutrients to the soil which will in turn fertilize their crops on the steep hills.

You can get to these by browsing the DMZ tour pamphlets.

Hue itself does not have a beach. The banks of the Perfume River are muddy. But, less than an hour's drive, 50km to the south, on the road to Danang, is Lang Co Beach, an unspoilt stretch of golden sand.

There is a luxurious, 4* resort here, with villas and bungalows from $59 upwards, if you want to stay for more than a day. But, the almost empty beach is open to the public.

If you really want to get away from the crowds, this is the place.

If you walk along the river in the old part of Hue after crossing over the bridge from the new part, you will see some vendors displaying their antique (or supposedly) wares along the sidewalks.
I even saw some war articles among the items.

Our van driver stopped at a resort along the way from Hue to Hoi An and when we were allowed to walk into it to view the beach and sea. It was a wet day with strong winds, and we saw huge waves crashing onto the shore. A mesmerizing sight although I didn't have the skill to get them on my camera.

4 more images

The Thien Mu pagoda, located on the Perfume River is a beautiful (and free) place to visit of historical importance. It was founded in 1601 by Nguyen Hoang, the governor of Thuan Hoa province, because of a prophecy he had had: a 'fairy woman' (Thien Mu) had told him that if he had built a pagoda there, the country would have had a long properous time.

The first thing you'll notice is a spectacular octagonal 21-meter tall tower built in 1844, you will also see some smaller pavillions and statues, as well as a huge bell. There are also the living quarters of the monks residing there and a shrine dedicated to the now deceased monks... and a rusty Aston martin car. Why? because in this car a monk from the temple, in 1963, drove to Ho Chi Minh and set himself on fire to protest against the government.

The pagoda is located four kilometres from Hue.

though I was only about five years old at the time, the image is one that I still remember.