Feb 22 Da Nang

We aren’t actually in Da Nang but at Chan May port. Today we went on a tour to the ancient capital Imperial Hue. 

At the dock we saw some round boats, look like hugh half coconut shells that have been hollowed out. They are fishing boats, some with as many as 4 people in them. To propel the boats a rower stands at the front (no pointy end, so anyplace on the boat can be the front). We were told these boats are used to set the nets.

For about an hour and half we passed rice fields. There are many workers in the fields, most have on the traditional conical hats, their pants rolled up above their knees and are barefoot. We passed many water buffalo some just grazing and others pulling plows. Just like all the pictures we have seen over the years. At this time of year they are planting the young sprouts. They start the rice and then plant in rows in the flooded fields once they reach the seedling stage.

The farmer visits his field 3 times during each of 2 plantings. First to plant the seedlings (don’t know where those are started), second to  tend the baby rice and last to harvest. All this is done manually. To harvest they grab a few stalks and cut off the tops, looks like grain stalks with a “flower” at top. This is then dried in the sun for 3 or 4 days. Most fields have scarecrows to keep the birds away.

The other thing we see a lot of are cemeteries, they appear to be scattered all over. Some very elaborately decorated tombs. There is a lot of ancestor worship practiced in this area. We are not in North Vietnam yet but see more evidence of the communist regime – large signs, the communist flag.

We pass a large lagoon, which we are told is the largest in Asia. Brackish water with many fish farms. They are farming shrimp and prawns. The rice fields go right to the edge of the lagoons and there are dams to keep the brackish water out of the fields.

Another sight we pass is a monk who is walking from the south of Vietnam to the north. After we get back on the ship we learn that there are various storied about his trek. Putting it all together is seems he was a physician, he made some error that resulted in people dying and this trek is his penance. People line the road to see him pass. He is in the traditional robe (however, I think the wool hat is not part of the original dress). Some one walks before him and puts cloths on the road for Hume to walk on. Every 3 steps he gets on his knees and bows his head to touch the ground- this will take awhile! He started sometime in 2007. He stops each night and stays at the nearest pagoda. Behind home in a line are 20 or so women, in grey robes who follow him. I don’t  know how far each group follows him. He is barefoot. One story is that he will kill himself by setting himself on fire when he reaches the end of his journey. People along the way bring him food and water.

The road we are on is a two lane basic road in need of repair and is the only highway connecting the north and south. We go through village after village. Many with the daily market in progress. When one vehicle is passing another they blow their horn. Still at lot of motorbikes, more motorbikes than cars. The ride itself is an adventure. At one point our bus pulls out to pass a truck, it seems there is barely room, especially when you consider the oncoming motorbike traffic. As we are beside the truck another local bus passes us! There are the usual lines on the road to mark lanes, but they appear to be there for decorative purposes only.

Most people we pass and our guide are all bundled up. Our guide has on a long sleeve shirt, a turtle neck and a parka with a fur lined hood. It is about 75F and they are all complaining of the cold! 

We stopped at an embroidery factory. All hand work. Several women work on one piece at a time. The silk is stretched over a work area and as many as 4 women work on one piece at a time. They are making large scale wall hangings. The work is beautiful and they appear to be working winging a pattern. There is a design sketched onto the silk, but they will draw new lines or adjust the design with a pencil as they go. The stitch is different from the embroidery stitch I was taught.

The whole area is dusty and dirty with garbage everywhere, the only cultivated areas are the rice fields, so the dust in the towns and along the roads is thick. The usual pollution, so people still often wear masks over their nose and mouth.

We are told 20% of the population are Buddhists, most are ancestor worshipers, some Catholics and communique make up the remainder. In order to get a government job such as teaching you have to be a member of the communist party.

Our second stop is the Lovely Lady Pagoda. The name comes from a story that a lady once lived at the top of a palm tree at this location and predicted that a temple would one day be built there. She disappeared every night and reappeared in the morning. Inside a small chapel a man in regular suit was kneeling before the alter, behind jim was his family. He was holding a large bunch of indents in his hands. He would chant, a boy in his monks outfit would hit a large gong and everyone would bow their heads to the ground.

The pagoda is home to a group of monks, some young boys. They tend the pagoda and teach the boys living there. One of the sights we were shown was the car the monk drove to Saigon to burn himself in the centre of the city. I remember seeing that image on TV at the time. He was protesting the lack of religious freedom.

Our next stop is the large citadel. A large area enclosed by a high 10 kilometer concrete wall. Inside is the Imperial palace that housed the monarchy for a thousand years. To get into the citadel we had to cross a narrow bridge on foot and go though an opening in the thick wall. On this one lane bridge was 2 lanes of walkers, one on each side of the road, motorbikes about 3 or 4 across, the occasional car and bicycles. Our guide told us to cross a road you must walk slowly, don’t stop, don’t change pace so the motorbikes could go around you. Any change in your pace resulted in the bikers getting confused and this caused accidents. Pedestrians had no right of way even on the crosswalks.

Inside the palace the first section is a large outdoor reception area. He the king would receive his mandarins, they would assemble according to their rank. Nine ranks and a total of 500 mandarins. Gary had his picture taken beside a row of statues of the mandarins – he is about twice their height! The next area is the forbidden city where only the king and his family could enter. There is some French influence seen in the architecture. After the last king left there has not been any attention paid to the facility, although they are now starting to restore it to promote it as a tourist area. The last king lived here until 1945 when he abdicated.

We had a Vietnam lunch at a modern hotel. We were greeted by some dragon dancers and were entertained by traditional music during lunch.

The last stop was at the tomb of King Tutuc. It was more of a summer palace. He spent the summer here, he was the last king and was unreality a puppet king as the French ruled Vietnam at that time. He was not skilled at war and came here to fish, hunt and write poems. He wrote 4000 poems during his lifetime and moved to       Paris when he abdicated.

The grounds are extensive, including the family’s living quarters, their temple and burial grounds. The Chinese ruled what from the first to tenth century, then the Chinese retreated and there was a monarchy in place until 1945. It was ruled by the French from 1802 until 1945. What is now called South Vietnam was part of Cambodia or Laos for much of the time.