Hue

February 11, 2019

Hue was one of my favorite historical day trips. This was the former capital of Vietnam until 1945, but also one of the cities most affected by the Vietnam War (or as they say here, the American War). We had the chance to tour the Thien Mu Pagoda, the Royal Citadel of the Imperial City, and the impressive Tomb of Dong Khanh.

We also visited a pearl farm, as Vietnam’s pearl industry is burgeoning, and I learned how to tell the differences between fake and real pearls and how the pearls are harvested over a multi-year process.

One of my favorite parts of the trip was a traditional music group that played in the Citadel. I’ve never seen such instruments put together in an ensemble like this, but the result was a beautiful lullaby-sounding piece.

Lighting pearls on fire to confirm authenticity