Huế
Huế is centrally located on the coast of Vietnam and was the capital during the Nguyen Dynasty.
Where to Sleep
It is now a popular tourist destination and very Westernized city, boasting a college of tourism and very impressive hotels, including Imperial Hue, a 5-star hotel across the street from where we stayed at Amy’s hostel.
Perfume River runs through the city and is the epicenter of activities and buzz, including night markets, restaurants on the water, hotels and more! Our hostel was one street away from the water and walking distance to all things, Huế !
The biggest “stand out” of this city is the Imperial Enclosure, which is surrounded by a moat-like feature. The Imperial Enclosure takes approximately about a half day to explore and is rich with unique history, buildings and temples.
We spent a day wandering around the enclosure, snapping photos and looking like complete tourists.
As we worked our way under doorways, through emperors’ homes, and across botanical garden bridges, we tried to imagine what life would be like in that exact location, 200 years ago.
What to Eat
Huế is the first city where we saw the food trends really start to change as we work our way from North to South. Seafood was abundant and readily available. The fruits changed (although bananas are always a staple).
Another street food delicacy, for a cheap 5,000 dong or 25 cents USD, was the Banh Bao (Steamed Pork Bun) filled with pork, hard-boiled quail egg, & roasted veggies. Street food vendors litter the streets selling this scrumptious treat in front of schools, hostels, bars, you name it! Hard not to buy when this any-time-of-day snack is readily available and affordable.
We tried a local “sweet soup” snack called Chè Huế (an assortment of random jello-like jellies, topped with ice and roasted peanuts) and a few other snacks including fried rice pancakes, sweet potato fries, pork on a lemongrass stick and more!
Bún Bò Huế
On our way out of town, we stopped at a local restaurant called Bún Bò Huế 19, known for a sweet rice noodle soup – featuring meatballs, thin slices of marinated beef, diced onions, cilantro, lime and spicy chilis. This soup originates from the imperial courts of Huế and is associated with the cooking style of the royal court. Therefore, this meal is only available in this city and further South.
Shopping
Of course, any proper city visit wouldn’t be complete without a small, local, handmade purchase to remember our experiences:
“When I say I want to travel I don’t mean I want to stay at resorts and go on tours with tour guides or buy key chains from souvenir shops. I don’t want to be a tourist. When I say I want to travel I mean I want to explore another country and become a part of it. I want to discover small coffee shops in Germany and Italy and France. I want to walk on beaches in Australia and browse the book stores of England. I want to hike the Great Wall of China and go cliff diving in Hawaii. I want to meet people who are not like me, but people who I can like all the same. I want to take pictures of things and places and people I meet. I want my mind to be in constant awe of life on Earth. I want to see things with new eyes. I want to look at a map and be able to remember how I was transformed by the places I’ve been to, the things I’ve seen, and the people I’ve met. I want to come home and realize that I have not come home whole, but have left a piece of my heart in each place I have been. This, I think, is what is at the heart of Adventure and this is why I plan on making my life one.”
-Chris Rigoni
