The Vietnamese do not still hold a grudge against America

Even though I did get some sleep, it felt like I was awake the whole night on that train. Still, it was an exciting experience. We were quite tired but we still had a whole day ahead of us. We got very lucky with the weather (sunny day) and it is even the midst of typhoon season.

Got a tour of the imperial city of Hue. It was built up by the French in the early 19th century. However, many buildings have been ruined due to the war with the French and later the Vietnam war. It was cool because we could see where bullet holes hit the walls and saw dilapidated buildings hit by bombs.

Even though these historical buildings got destroyed, the tour guide said there were no hard feelings. He says that there is a philosophy in war for Vietnamese that you either kill or be killed. In other words, soldiers aren’t necessarily worried about preserving historical sites when their head could be blown off in any minute.

I was also surprised to hear that the Vietnamese do not still hold a grudge against America. He said that Vietnam is a very forward thinking country that doesn’t dwell on the past. They just want to live in peace. I wish more countries had that same mindset.

The Barcelona inspired castle (the king at the time liked that style) from the early 20th century was fully reconstructed thanks to funding from other countries. It was cool to see how Asian and Spanish influences blended together to make such an eye catching palace.

Went off into Hue later in the afternoon, the city definitely had a different feel. There were virtually no tourists and it was also more spread out. Got a really good smoothie at a cafe, the combo of avocado and coconut was on point!

There was The Perfume River that divided Hue into 2 sections. We walked to the other side to check out a market but it was a very very local type of market. Let’s just say that we stood out… everyone was staring at us. There was countless farmers selling fruits/vegetables, fabric shops, and tables with bowls of raw meat soaking in a mysterious liquid… so we went elsewhere for dinner 😅.