On To Hoi An

The next stop on our Vietnamese itinerary was Hoi An, further down the coast. We had read that the train ride from Hue to Danang was scenic--the coast--and from there the hotel in Hoi An would send us a cab for the remaining few miles. Unfortunately, the hotel in Hue booked us seats on the wrong side, so we got a good look at rice paddies, mountains, the usual pastoral squalor, and so forth, not the coast; but Vicki did manage a few pix. Danang is of course a major modern metropolitan area which we got to see from the cab and also from the air a couple days later...

Hue train station; closed for renovation

So we boarded here

Aboard car #2; wrong side

For much of the 2 hour ride, we were subjected to Vietnamese  "stand-up"
comedy; not in English too

Coastline; not all that great

We've seen a lot of coastlines

Danang in the distance

The one thing we wanted to see in Danang, the dragon bridge

Thus

Driving through Danang

And its miles-long beach

Hotels, condos, everything, all down the beach

Marble Mountains; and what's left of them

Thus; mile upon mile of statuary, formerly mountains

Upon mile

Our hotel in Hoi An

More of the French colonial style Vicki likes

Nice room, nice staff...

Hue Imperial Tombs: Khai Dinh

Khai Dinh was not the last of the Nguyen dynasty, but very close. His reign, certainly a mere puppet of the French, lasted nine undistinguished years. He died in 1925, at the age of 40. His tomb is not nearly the size of Minh Mang's, but it employs European building materials and techniques along with its more traditional Vietnamese flourishes.

A hillside construction, three terraces, many steps

Thus

Guard statues

The usual stele

Main "palace"

Much intricate carving

Main altar

In the ante-hall

Khai Dinh's tomb

On a hill nearby, Our Lady of the...wait, no

Last look at the tomb of Khai Dinh

Hue Imperial Tombs: Minh Mang

Our Imperial Palace tickets were good for two of the several Imperial Tombs up the river, and another day we hired a car and driver to take us to see the tombs of the emperors Minh Mang and Khai Dinh. The former dates from the first half of the 19th century; the latter was completed just a decade before I was born. Not exactly ancient, but interesting. Two were plenty for us.

In a Zen trance, still back at the Imperial Palace, I am seeking inspiration about
which two of the several imperial tombs to visit; turns out they were printed on
the tickets

Independence--Freedom--Happiness...Socialism

Excellent signage all over, befitting a World Heritage site; and in English too

Moat

Guards

Many buildings, courtyards, stages of the visit/pilgrimage; not going to show
them all here

Stele celebrating the accomplishments of Minh Mang

One of two flanking buildings for housing Minh Mang's surviving concubines
and eunuchs; he is reputed to have had some 500 concubines...it would be
interesting to know how many eunuchs were required...

Lots of bonsai and other ornamental plants

One of two large obelisks at the final pavilion

Bridge to tomb

And across the bridge, the tomb itself

A huge stone tumulus, 285m in circumference, 3m high; the tomb is opened once
a year on Minh Mang's death anniversary

Tree vs. stone episode #28,956

Our set is complete

Spring arriving