Danang/Hue/HoiAn 2025 - Hue Day Tour Mausoleum of Emperor Minh Mang (1/3)

The clouds slowly started to clear as we drove closer to our destination. And when we finally got off the bus/van, it was just a slight drizzle. The floor was still wet, and the surrounding smells of rain. We were surrounded by greeneries though. There weren't any tourist around either, probably due to the heavy rain that just happened. I guess that's a good thing for us! 

We needed tickets to enter the grounds that lead to the mausoleum of Emperor Minh Mang, so our tour guide went to settle that for us. I think this is my very first time visiting a Vietnamese Emperor's mausoleum, so I wasn't exactly sure what to expect. But so far the walk in and the surrounding was so peaceful and green, it was very refreshing.

We still have to had our umbrella open as drops of water was still falling from the sky, probably from the leaves of the trees all around us. I didn't really minded. 

 

Soon we entered the ground of the mausoleum, and our tour guide told us that traditional tombs for the royals have three sections: the first hall for the ancestors and guardians, the second hall for prayers and the Gods, and the third would be the tomb of the Emperor itself. We were about to enter the first section.

The ground area was larger than I expected. There was a super large pond there as we walked past!

Soon we reached a courtyard, and surround it were stone statues of what looked like generals of the imperial courts. I take it that we were about to enter the first hall.

There was a gate with three doors facing what looked to be just a forest. Perhaps like some religion, doors needed to face a certain direction for the spirit to rest in peace? I really liked the gate, and took a few photos of it. It felt very mysterious and dark and solemn. There was just something spiritual about it, from the walk in through the trees and the wet path, to this courtyard surrounded by forest.

At the center of the courtyard, directly facing the gate, was a building that looked like a hall with stairs leading up to it. This was probably the 1st ancestral hall. 

Here is our group walking up to it, still carrying our umbrella. 

Inside was a giant stone tablet with words carved into it. Kinda like those ancient notice board I saw in Beijing. Perhaps on it were listed all the descendent of the deceased. That was actually basically it. It was an opened hall, so you could looked out from it as you stood there. 

This is the view when you looked back after climbing the stairs. The three door gates and the trees behind it looked so majestic in this weather. I love the ambiance of this place. And on the other side of the hall if you walked straight through it, was the 2nd hall for the Gods. You could tell cause it was red in colour, like a temple. The distance between the two hall was so wide! Perhaps this is to show the richness of the empire such that they could built such a tomb for their emperor?

Between the 1st and 2nd section, I still like the 1st better :)

Danang/Hue/HoiAn 2025 - Hue Day Tour Incense Shop and Hat Shop

 

After lunch, we took a slightly longer drive to our next stop. From the tour itinerary it stated as Incense and Hat village, so I thought we would really be visiting a small village just like when I was tracking in Sapa. Ends up, we were just stopping by a road side shop, probably situated near the village, that was selling hats and incense. I say it's near a village cause inside the shop ground itself I could see graves like those that are around the village I used to play at when I was staying with my aunt in Penang, lol.  Above is our van parked next to the shop. It started the rain while we reached. 

My idea of taking photos with a field of incense was sadly reduced to just instagram-able corner for photo taking. Initially I was also thinking of buying some incense to support the locals, but it cost around 5sgd a packet, which was kinda high for me! Plus, I couldn't really see the scent that I wanted, which I think was agarwood? So I ended up empty handed. 

They also sold it in such big bags! Maybe it's more for locals? 

The instagram-able corner I was telling you about. They do look nice, but too cheesy for me to take a photo with it. 

I mean, look at all those love pattern!

We couldn't leave the shop as it was a typical Vietnam heavy rain, types that flooded village! But it was really nice standing inside the shop looking out with these lovely lanterns, and the sound of the rain just outside. I was wondering if the rest of the tour would be cancelled cause I knew the last two stops on our tour were opened air area.....  

Here's a video of how heavy the rain was, and the water were actually just flowing along the road! But luckily, it did got slightly lighter, and our tour guide told us to jump into the van so that we can drive off and hope the rain stopped by the time we reached our next stop, which was 30 minutes drive away.

Danang/Hue/HoiAn 2025 - Hue Day Tour Vietnamese Lunch and Foot Massage

After getting back on our bus/van after exploring Dong Ba market, we were taken on a short drive slightly out of town, and into a residential area. Our guide told us that we were going to have lunch at the company's boss house, which also happens to be a homestay. Interesting indeed! There, we were served a three course lunch, and other interesting activities.  The meal of course featured some of Central Vietnam's famous dishes like the steamed rice cake we kept seeing during our hotel breakfast.

So let me start with the first course. The meals are included as part of the tour fees, but drinks are charged additionally if you want to order any. We were served a traditional tray, and slowly the rice cake snacks were placed before us. The difference between these and the ones we got from the hotel was, the ones served here were pipping hot, and that kinda makes all the difference. The rice cakes were also soft instead of those that were hard from the hotel buffet breakfast. I could see after eating them here why the locals would love them. They were pretty nice and savoury. Of course the ones wrapped in banana leaves were the nicest and most fragrant.

Next we were served Vietnamese spring rolls. Before coming to Vietnam, I always thought spring rolls were just like those I ate in my hometown. I thought all spring rolls were Chinese spring rolls except the fillings are different. It was not until I visited Sapa and wondered into local markets that I finally understood that Vietnamese spring rolls are very different. For a start, most were wrapped in rice paper and fried, while some are not. Chinese spring rolls are always fried. And the fillings inside are also different. And the fish dipping sauce that it garlicky and vinegary was so lovely too!

Lastly, we were served the famous Bun Bo Hue along with a pile of raw vegetables each. I finished mine up, but I thought Madam Thu's version was a lot nicer. This one was a lot more local, and the taste was lighter and noodles raw-er.

After we finished eating, a lady came around and offered us in dessert in the most unique way. She carries a bouquet of flowers, and sticks of candied fruits. The fruits are traditional dessert made of mung beans, and we actually got to try our hands at making them later on!

While we were having dessert, the foot bath area was being prepared for us! I was amazed. I mean, when I saw lunch was included in the tour, that was value for money enough for me! But the lunch experience we got here was really over the top!

Yes, we were all given a foot bath. A foot bath here just meant a herbal hot water soak for your feet in a wooden bucket. To be honest I was a bit worried over hygiene of such foot bath. But since nobody seems to care, I also went along with it and hope that my foot skin are strong enough to protect me from whatever germs that might be swimming in those water or bucket! 

While soaking our feet we also got to try making those fruit candies from mung beans, and get to paint them in fruit colours.... I wish the two activies could be done separately, cause I wanted to relax and enjoy my foot bath, but making those candies were kinda stressful! It's like making Japanese wagashi, but easier since we have to finish them before our water gets cold. Lastly we were served a very nice soothing tea before our feet got wipe dry. Just for the experience we got during this lunch hour alone really blew my mind, and i would give a 5 out of 5 star for this tour without a doubt! 

Danang/Hue/HoiAn 2025 - Hue Day Tour Dong Ba Market

 

Our tour includes a lunch, and I thought for sure we would be having lunch at Dong Ba Market. I mean, surely that would be a nice touristy experience? Besides, market food are authentic and cheap, great for a food tour. Sadly I was mistaken. We were dropped off at the front of the local market with a brief introduction, and were given around 30minutes to walk around before meeting back at the same place. 

Dong Ba market was found in the centre of Hue city, but by the time we reached it, it was around 11am or so, so it wasn't busy with the morning local crowd. Traffic here was still surprisingly easy going for me as compared to other parts of Vietnam.

The antique clock hanging at the market entrance was our meeting point. After the briefing, we were off on our own, hopefully not getting lost in the maze of the market. 

There was around 3 storey for us to explore, so I told my friend let's start at the top. We went up the stairs all the way, and the whole place kinda reminded me of Ubud market in Bali, but a lot more modern and spacious. There were proper shop lots on every floor, and they were selling mostly local products. 

The upper floors mainly sold tourist souvenirs, or local used non-food item. There were the usual Vietnamese hat. I don't really get these hats, and why people would buy them for souvenirs. Would people actually wear there no matter how practical when they are back in their own home? It would make you stand out like a sore thumb! Yet they are sold almost everywhere, and tourist seems to like them. 

Tourist T-shirts and ladies' traditional Ao Dai are also sold here. I've never worn one before. They looked very tight fitting! Maybe I should try a dress up one of these days? So far I've tried Korean and Japanese traditional costume, and I've also worn my own Nyonya Peranakan Baju Kebaya. I would very much like to try a Chinese QiBao one day, and a Malay Kebaya one day too.

On the ground floor are where all the food products are. There was a section selling just fruits, which the Korean ladies in our group seems to love as they bought so much fruits to eat there. There is a section that sells all the Vietnamese cooking ingredient. I love wandering around markets and 30minutes just isn't enough for me. Just to look at all the ingredient sold here would probably take me 30 minutes or more!

I always think it would be so nice to stay in a country for a few months, so that I can actually try and experiment with all these local products. I've yet to do that yet. Hopefully, when I become an orphan one day, I would get a chance to do this. I would love to live in Japan, Italy, France, and maybe Scotland for a start, in an accommodation with full kitchen utensils so that I can just cook and try all the local produce on the cheap. I would love to try it in Korea too, but I don't really feel comfortable with the language and people there. I think Vietnam or Indonesia is also doable for me. I tried staying in an apartment in Melbourne before, right next to Victoria Market. The meals that we were able to cook up was amazing! We even had uni (sea urchin) every morning for breakfast!

I mean, look at this red marinated or fermented prawn. Aren't you curious what they taste like? How the locals eat them? What do they go well with? I know I am!

It was a very vibrant, yet not crowded market. Looking at it makes me want to go back there and slowly walk through those aisle again. I told myself that if the sandals I got from Vietnam lasted more than 2 years, I would go back to Central Vietnam again to get another pair. It's been 1 year now and still going strong. 

The last section we walked through was the food section, where ready food and snacks are sold, and you could sit down and eat them here. Again, I wish I wish I wish I had more time to explore here. I remember how I had such lovely meal in the market of Siem Reap when I was visiting Angkor Wat. The local dishes looked so tempting. I love South East Asian dishes very much. Its a food with multiple dimensions. 

Danang/Hue/HoiAn 2025 - Hue Day Tour Hue Citadel and Imperial City (8/8)

There wasn't really that much to see inside of the palace. So after a while, we decided to venture outside to take photos and see the exterior of the palace up close. Some parts of the palace looked more well maintained than others. And I can't really tell some part was French influenced or Vietnamese. It was all very overwhelming in terms of design and colours. 

One of the corridor leading to the outdoor. I did like the simpler red and white themed of this area, and the lovely greeneries visible from the open windows. Lovely!

 

Once outside, the yellow and red colour scheme really stands out loud! There were very oriental designs and calving on the rood area too, which makes it look very asian. 

I instantly fell in love with the windows outside. They looked postcard made with it's vibrant orange colour. Ok, you see orange too, right? Or was it meant to be yellow?

I tried to take a few photos of the whole window for souvenir. Maybe one day I can draw and paint them :P  I always have grand plans for all the photos I take. They are a way to bring me back to places I've visited before. 

One of the more elaborated windows. I am pretty sure someone is selling a postcard version of this in some museum shop or souvenir stores somewhere in Hue!

There is also a small European style garden at the back of the garden.  I guess it's European because it has a lion headed fountain as it's main feature. Again, it wasn't that well maintained in terms of flowers and upkeep. But you could tell it was meant to be a western garden.

All too soon, our time was up, and our guide slowly guide us out of the palace ground to head to where our bus was waiting for us.

But not before we managed a few selfie with the lovely windows of the palace!

As well as some close up of the building itself.

Sometimes, the last minutes changes to the plan creates the best memories of a trip. I have totally zero regret in coming to Hue. It was one of the most beautiful places I've visited in Vietnam, and we haven't even reached my main reason I'm here yet!