Hué, Vietnam

From Phong Nha, we continued on the legendary Ho Chi Minh Road to Hué. The road used to be just a trail that the North Vietnamese used during the war against the USA to secretly move to the south. Nowadays, it has been expanded into a pleasant road, but it still goes through the middle of nowhere.

After two days of riding the motorcycle for 200 kilometers each day (at an average speed of 40 km/h), we finally arrived in Hué. We were exhausted, but relieved.

The city was once the seat of the Nguyen Dynasty. From that time, the impressive Citadel with its buildings and walls is still preserved. In addition, Hué was the capital of Vietnam from 1802 to 1945.

We took it easy, explored the city, and mainly sweated a lot. It was around 36 degrees Celsius, which we were no longer used to after the cold north. ;)

A highlight of our stay in Hué was visiting the abandoned water park. The park was built in 2004 but went bankrupt shortly afterwards. Since then, it has been left to nature. At some entrances, Vietnamese people try to make money by charging entrance fees or parking fees. Fortunately, we entered through an abandoned back entrance. It was amazing to see how quickly nature reclaimed everything. The water slides, pools, and the arena are still standing, but anything of value has long been removed or destroyed.

After two nights, we continued to Hoi An. According to people who have been there, it is a highlight.

Text by Oli

Image processing by Rahel