HUE VIETNAM

CRAWLING FROM THE WRECKAGE 

The CItadel, Hue

There are no visible scars remaining from the torturous history of Hue, at least in the new city on the south side of the Perfume River. The central Vietnamese city of Hue was the capital of the country until 1945 and on the north side of the Perfume is the Citadel with thick walls surrounded by moats fed by the river. Within the fortress’ massive walls are the Imperial Palace and within that is the Purple Forbidden City where only the ruling emperors resided.

Because of the propaganda value of capturing this historically important city a coordinated surprise attack by the North Vietnamese (NVA) and Viet Cong (VC) now called the Tet Offensive led to fierce urban fighting on both sides of the river.

South of the Perfume River, Hue was leveled in the fighting but has since been rebuilt. The southern portion of Hue is now an urban landscape of hotels, restaurants, coffee shops and bars that has a youthful vibrancy and over our two days in Hue as part of our three-week tour of Vietnam we walked streets closed off for pedestrian traffic for raucous pub crawls, had Salt Coffee and joined countless other Vietnamese getting in an early morning jaunt along the river before the day heated up.

pockmarked walls, the Citadel

The Citadel today is a very popular tourist draw for locals and foreigners. Chinese nationals like to come to Hue in period dress because the Forbidden City was fashioned after the Forbidden City in Beijing and tours of the complex offer views of a world that once was prominent in Vietnamese culture. 

The Citadel is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but it was decimated during the Tet Offensive. Though there was an effort by the Americans to avoid targeting historical buildings in the Citadel, as the month-long battle progressed and casualties mounted, more and more buildings in this massive complex were shelled. Of the 160 significant buildings in the Citadel, only 10 survived the battle.

Gaining its UNESCO designation in 1993, the complex is being rebuilt, though some of the walls are still pockmarked by bullets.  We had a sobering tour of the Citadel and the Imperial City, especially when we passed a meager monument commemorating the victims of the Hue massacre.  

THIEN MU PAGODA

Inside the Imperial City, Hue

The tallest pagoda in Vietnam survived the war without damage. About 5km from the Citadel on a hill on the north bank of the Perfume River, the Thien Mu Pagoda towers 7 stories. First erected in the early 1600s one can stroll the grounds and lovely gardens and read about Thien Mu’s history.

There is also a sobering display of the automobile that transported the Buddhist Monk Thich Quang Duc to his death by self-immolation in Saigon. He and others who followed him later were protesting the persecution of Buddhists by the Catholic South Vietnamese government of Ngo Dinh Diem. Discrimination against Buddhists by the government led to a massacre of 9 Buddhists in 1963 and Duc’s ultimate protest. Photographs of his suicide stunned the world and later that year a U.S. led coup toppled the Diem government.

Yeah, you can’t ignore the history of Vietnam. Reminders are everywhere of the carnage that the country suffered for decades under the French and subsequent wars. The past is there, but throughout our trip to Vietnam we could see how the relieved Vietnamese are crawling out of the detritus of their history.

Thanks for reading.

Love, Janet and greg

© 2024 by Gregory Dunaj

 

HALONG BAY

HOW LONG? TAKE YOUR TIME  

Halong Bay view from Sung Sot Cave

We went on a 20-day tour of Vietnam and saw much of the country, from Hanoi to Hue to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). It was a comfortable pace and not a frenetic sprint through the beautiful country. The distance between the capital to Saigon is over 1,000 miles and to try and cram it in over a shorter time span would be difficult. There’s much to see in Vietnam and the tour group that we traveled with, Overseas Adventure Travel, basically broke up our travels into three sections: the north, the middle and the south, taking nearly a week in all three locales.

That’s the way to do it….except HALONG BAY

UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE

In my humble opinion, we could have spent more time at Halong Bay. Many of the members of our tour group readily agreed.

Visiting the bay is a popular tourist destination and there are several outfits offering day, overnight and multiple night trips along the 600 square miles of Halong Bay.

After a 100-mile bus ride from Hanoi we boarded a traditional Vietnamese Junk and plied the waters of Halong Bay for an overnight trip. There are nearly 2,000 islands and islets in the bay that rise dramatically from the emerald-green waters. These soaring karsts are the result of dissolving limestone bedrock over millennia leaving behind these dramatic monoliths, all topped with vegetation. The tallest karst island towers 1,300 feet above the water. Halong Bay’s karst islands are the most famous example of this process, and it has earned the bay a UNESCO World Heritage Site designation. Found on the islands are sinkholes, streams, springs and caves. On some of the islands, lakes have formed as a result of the sinkholes.

Halong Bay is on the Gulf of Tonkin (where the “American War” began), and near the Chinese border. its name translates to "Descending Dragon" and in Vietnamese lore a mother dragon and her children helped defeat an attack of the country in the Eastern Sea (South China Sea). Enemies were incinerated with fire and emeralds shot out from the mouths of these protective critters further bludgeoned the enemy. The emeralds became the islands of Halong Bay.

There were once several floating villages on the bay with the locals fishing and farming for mollusks. There is a large pearl farm on the mainland, which we visited. The government moved the villagers inland, in part because of UNESCO regulations and to offer better health care and education. The villages are still there, but only for the locals to maintain their fish and shrimp farms that are eventually sold to market, and as a sightseeing destination for tourists. The inhabitants need to return to the mainland overnight.

SURPRISE

Near the end of our first afternoon at Halong Bay we took a tender to Sung Sot (Surprise) cave. It is the largest limestone cave in the bay and has stunning stalactites and stalagmites, grottos and fascinating rock formations. There are two chambers. The first is smaller, but then opens to a massive cavern. There is a footpath throughout and water pools in areas. Many of the rock formations are lit by colored lights and animals like turtles and horses were pointed out. Janet was particularly intrigued by the phallic rock formation that was bathed in pink lights.

from the deck of our Junk

It can get crowded, but Mai, our OAT tour guide timed our visit near the end of the day to avoid the crowds. The hike up the steep steps was worth it and the views of the bay were spectacular.

HALE AND HEARTY

We remained on our Junk the rest of our visit to Halong Bay. The rooms were air-conditioned and comfortable and the crew served us very good meals. We anchored at night and watched the shimmering lights of other boats dance on the gentle waters of the bay.

a night scene on Halong Bay

In the morning with the Junk nestled in amongst stoic karst mountains the captain conducted a Tai Chi class. It was an incredible, beautiful experience and had us yearning to remain.

Thanks for reading!

Love Janet and greg

Surprise! at Sung Sot Cave

© 2024 by Gregory Dunaj

COFFEE IN VIETNAM

A NECESSITY

Egg Coffee, Hanoi

To say we are coffee snobs is an understatement. We have Diamond Head Roast from Lion Coffee shipped in from Oahu monthly. When we travel, we like to visit coffee plantations.

Janet is comatose without her daily cup, and I’ve given up trying to move her along first thing in the morning. Personally, I have drunk so much coffee in my life I’m practically immune to the effects of caffeine. I’ve been known to drink a cup of coffee at night and then go to sleep.

Part of the joy in traveling is drinking coffee like the locals, whether it’s a strong bitter Italian espresso standing at a café bar, or a Barriquito while relaxing at a Tenerife seaside café. At home we have a milk frothing device and a chorreador from Costa Rica and a cold drip glass contraption. We can roast our own beans. Of course we have a French Press…please.

LION COFFEE, HONOLULU

HISTORY

Vietnam is the world’s largest exporter of Robusta coffee and the second largest producer of coffee in the entire world after Brazil. The first Arabica coffee plants were brought to the country by French missionaries in the mid-1800s and thrived in the warm humid climate. At the turn of the century the Robusta coffee bean was introduced and in the central Highlands coffee became a cash crop and spurred a thriving industry, especially after the Doi Moi reforms began in 1986 and the Communists allowed private enterprise coffee.   

JITTERY?

a phin hard at work

But enough of history! The Vietnamese love their coffee as much as we do, and it is impossible to get a bad cup anywhere. The most popular way of drinking the elixir of the gods is Cà phê sua dá, or Iced Milk Coffee, which doesn’t sound any different than what we get at home. It is in the preparation though that makes this Vietnamese ambrosia stand apart.

PHIN ME

Each cup is individually brewed with a Vietnamese Phin drip filter that sits atop a glass with condensed milk. Ground Robusta coffee is put in the Phin, pressed down to compact it and then hot water poured in and allowed to drip slowly creating a strong brew. The ratio of coffee to condensed milk is personal to taste. Add ice! On a hot day this is quite refreshing. It’s great even without condensed milk, or without ice.

SPECIALTY COFFEE

Cà phê sua dá is used as the base for specialty coffees, and nearly every town we visited during our recent trip to Vietnam had their own twist on this very very necessary divine nectar. Here’s a list of the coffees we tried.

Hanoi:

Egg Coffee –

Invented by the bartender at the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hotel in the mid-40s. Fresh milk was scarce then, but he discovered that whipped egg yolks created a delicate froth that combined well with condensed milk and coffee. The concoction was a hit, and he left the hotel to open Café Giang that is now run by his son.

The egg yolks need to be thoroughly beaten and are “cooked” by the hot coffee reducing any food concerns.

Coconut Coffee -

Coconut coffee

Brain freeze! This indulgent drink combines strong Vietnamese coffee with coconut milk and a splash of condensed milk to make this a tropical flavor that you will gulp down on a hot afternoon (we did). Topped with toasted coconut shavings! Oh my.

Hue

Salt Coffee -

This is very popular in Hue, the former capital of Vietnam. At first this strong coffee combined with condensed milk and topped by a salted cream seemed like an odd combination, but on a hot sweaty afternoon in Hue it was surprisingly refreshing.

Salt coffee, Hue

Hoi An

Durian Coffee -

a Durian

In this UNESCO heritage city, the city of lanterns, we had coffee mixed with the notorious Durian fruit. Durian has a strong, noxious smell, but combined with coffee was okay.

Nha Trang

Flan coffee-

Flan coffee,
Nha Trang

Across the street from the Em Oi Hotel, where we stayed while visiting the very touristed town of Nha Trang is the Café Here. It was here we had Flan coffee which is literally a flan floated atop a creamy strong coffee. Vietnamese flan differs from Mexican in its firmer denser consistency but makes a surprisingly wonderful coffee!

Black Iced coffee at the Birdwatching Café  

A stop during our tour of Nha Trang, a popular resort with Russian and Chinese tourists, was the Birdwatching Café. No more than an empty lot where men would come with their pet birds and hang the cages so the birds could chatter as they had a coffee.

Black coffee at the
Birdwatching Cafe

We were offered coffee with or without condensed milk, over ice. I chose black.

THE REAL SHIT

Dalat

The Asian Palm Civet is like a weasel, and it shits out coffee beans. Back during the colonial times coffee became a cash crop for the French and the Vietnamese working the farms were not allowed to drink the profits. These workers discovered partially digested coffee beans in the poop of the civet. Rinsing them off and preparing them the workers found the coffee was better than beans taken directly from the plant. Turns out the civet has a very discerning palate and will only eat the ripest coffee cherries. Unripe beans or even beans from a sick tree will not be touched.

The actual coffee bean is in the middle of the cherry. As the beans pass through the digestive tract they are partially fermented and altering the taste.

Weasel shit coffee

Shit-faced?

The coffee is rich and smooth, but only if you can get beyond thinking about the processing of the bean. Collecting weasel poop is labor intensive and the cost reflects this. We visited the Ca phe chon in the central highlands near Dalat to see their 5-acre organic farm with 150 captive civets in massive enclosures to witness the first step in this coffee adventure. We then got to sample the end product with our own phin.

The people of Vietnam have been known to eat Civets and poaching is a problem. There is also a process of fermenting the beans without the use of civet’s GI tract, mimicking closely the flavor.

I bought a small bag of coffee from Ca Phe Chon Dalat to bring home. It was the most expensive item I purchased in my entire trip to the country.

CA PHE CHON DALAT

Time for a coffee break.

Thanks for reading.

Love Janet and greg

© 2024 by Gregory Dunaj