First a few last photos of Hoi An. This
is a fountain in a Chinese meeting hall in Hoi An.
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And here, Julie is filling out the epic forms
for mailing a package out of the country from the Hoi An post office.
It took us about 90 minutes to send one small package and 2
letters. And it cost about $48.
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Ahhh, here we are in Hue, the ancient capital
of Vietnam. We arrive in town by bus from Hoi An. This is a
picture of a bit of the Citadel that is part of the Purple Palace in the
Forbidden City. I guess that is an indication of the extent of
Chinese influence on Vietnamese culture: they built a copy of the
Forbidden City in Beijing.
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The Forbidden City in Hue was bombed heavily.
I'm not sure if the French did more damage or the Americans did
the most, but both bombed it heavily. Bits of the Citadel have
been rebuilt and they are magnificent.
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The Citadel was home to emperors and
presidents. This is a garden used by the emperor to "enjoy the
moon and declaim poetry" according to one of the interestingly
translated plaques.
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The repaired and unrepaired bits of the
Citadel make for stark contrasts.
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I'm sure if I understood Feng Shui better I'd
understand why there is a beautiful wall in front of this doorway.
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We tried to sneak up to other tour groups to
eavesdrop on their guides, but it didn't work to well. As a result
we, probably didn't get the most historical context out of our visit.
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Love those colorful architectural details.
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