January 18th - Across the DMZ

At 6.30 a.m. our cabin door is flung open and two breakfast trays are delivered. Yesterday Dinh had told us there would be no food on the train and anyway it would be awful. His parting gift to each of us was a carrier bag containing two huge vacuum packed brioche, a small baguette and a banana. Dinh was right. Who wants beef(?) and sticky rice for breakfast? Despite a night in the cabin above one of the bogies and the fact that about 90% of the line from Ha Noi to Hue is jointed rather than welded track, we slept quite well. R whinges about the beds being narrow and the temperature being too low but we have come to expect this.

On the plus side each coach has a boiling water dispenser at the end of the corridor so we are able to make ourselves a cup of tea. Individual ISB charging sockets at each berth mean the we have been able to keep devices topped up and run a WiFi hotspot using D's phone and SIM card. The loos are a bit small but the sinks positively ritzy compared with the ones on Indian trains. Staff are smartly dressed, plentiful and actually clean things as they go. Our group occupies all of the cabins in coaches 7 & 8 so we have plenty of opportunity to compare experiences.

Morning rituals complete we settle down to enjoy the scenery. This is straight out of the movies with paddy fields and misty topped mountains. The corridor window opposite our compartment has a droplight, which means there is the chance of some photos. R is happy as well as there are a lot more birds to see in this part of the country including lots of egrets, pond herons, drongos and even a kingfisher. There is a display in each corridor which tells us which station is next, when we are due there, what the indoor and outdoor temperature is and what speed the train is travelling at. We are barrelling along at around 80 kph most of the time and the temperature outside climbs steadily into the mid 20's. The mist and cloud starts to break up and there is a lot of blue sky.

There are no vendors onboard but the staff pass through selling different things such as fresh fruit and green bean fudge which is much more palatable than it sounds. From time to time the bar trolley is wheeled along the train. When the have nothing else to do the staff walk along the corridor closing windows so th It becomes apparent that we are running 30 minutes late. Not too bad on a trip of 660 km.

The sun is shining on the approach to Hue station and D zips off the lower half of his trouser legs. Isn't technology wonderful. We are met on the platform by our new guide Do, pronounced Joe. He counts us then leads us to the coach. The day's program is explained and we set off for the Imperial Enclosure. We are now south of the DMZ (demilitarised zone) and in a city where the was heavy fighting in both the war of Independence against the French and then the war of the 1960's and 70's when the American Marines fought the VietCong who had seized the heart of the city during the Tet Offensive of 1968.

We have been admonished for using the word debus. Hopefully the following sentence passes muster. As we descend from the coach, aided by a strategically placed mineral case, a flock of rather shrill lady hat vendors close in. Most of the group are bare headed but the sun is of an intensity that demands headgear and we have donned our Tilleys. The remains of the Imperial Enclosure are undergoing restoration but it will be a long job. What survived the wars and has already been restored is impressive. There is a massive enclosing wall and imposing Gatehouse as well as the tallest flagpole in Vietnam. The  Palace of Supreme Harmony has been largely put back together and contains the golden throne.  Nearly every building is decorated with nine dragons on the roof as 9 and its multiples are considered to be lucky numbers.

Some parts of the complex are little more than foundations but work is continuing and there appears to be the will to get it done. Our ninety minutes visit doesn't do the place justice but Do is keen to keep moving. On the way out we walk along the moat and see a colony of Chinese Pond Herons roosting in the trees on an island. D manages to get a wild bird picture at last. We transfer by minibus to a place that we are told is a Mandarin restaurant.  Another huge lunch of Vietnamese specialities is notable mainly for the spectacular presentation of the spring rolls. For those who keep tabs on these things still no pho.

After lunch we take a 12km coach ride to the tomb of Minh Mang, second emperor of Vietnam. Some of the group opt to stay on the coach and sleep. This was built in the 1840's and somehow survived the ravages of war despite battles occurring all around it. Apparently the area is still recovering from the effects of Agent Orange defoliant. We follow up with a visit to the Thien My Buddhist Pagoda, built high on the banks of the Perfume River. We are surprised to see a light blue Austin Ambassador on display and attracting a lot of attention. It had been the last transport of a monk who hit worldwide headlines in 1963 by self immolating in Saigon as a protest against the South Vietnamese regime.

By now we are all feeling tired and grubby and are delighted to be delivered to a smart hotel with an unpronounceable name on the Riverside in central Hue. D makes the mistake of handing the room key to R while he attends to the luggage. She manages to finish up in the wrong building not once but twice. Eventually she makes it to the room and we have time for leisurely showers and a cocktail before gathering for dinner. While we wait in the lobby the background music plays favourites from the 1950s including Tell Laura I Love Her just to cheer us up. The restaurant is a short walk away in what seems to be a very touristy area. We are the only diners and the staff appear incapable of getting the drinks orders right. The meal is notable for including three different spring roll courses. R decided to try to use chopsticks and declared it to be an effective diet plan.  We are tired and turn in early after supper.