7. Hue, very wet

Our room in Hue

Hue was raining most of the time we were there. Luckily when we first arrived it was just finished raining for the day so we did a little exploring. Our room at the Jade Scene was nice and spacious. The front desk greeted us with watermelon juice and explained all the cool things to do in Hue, including the market and the bridge that is lit up at night with different colors that change. The market was huge and filled with everything you can imagine. I heard a woman telling us about dried mango and stopped. She gave us a sample which was really good, then we bargained to $4 for half a kilo (1.1 pounds). Of course just around the corner, multiple people had them marked for $6/kilo so we bought another half kilo.

buying dried mangos in the market for less than $4/lb

Dawne and I on the lighted bridge

One the way back the bridge light show was on. These bright LED lights shone on the bridge illuminating it in different colors. It transitioned through various solid colors, then did two-color and multi-color combinations. It was spectacular! We watched it for awhile taking many pictures, then crossed it taking more pictures, finally taking some more on the other side.

the changing lights on the bridge

Dawne and I in the rain at the Citadel though I had an umbrella

The next day we set out to see one of the tombs (Tu Duc) and the Citadel. It was raining solid and steady most of the day. The tombs were pretty cool with a koi pond and some nice buildings. The Citadel would be much better in clear weather, but was still good. It is huge, and I mean HUGE. We walked through the middle and part of one side so didn't even get to the other side. I walked 4.5 miles that day and most of it was in the Citadel. My favorite part was this secret little island in the back that all the ducks and geese had retreated to to escape the rain. I had an umbrella and Dawne had her rain jacket but we still ended up very wet by the end, especially our shoes as some puddles covered the entire walkway.

ducks sheltering from the rain

breakfast Jade Scene Hotel

We also did laundry, ate food, and got massages but the two notable events were breakfast at the hotel, which was excellent. They had a huge variety of foods (hot, American, Vietnamese, baked goods, fruit, juices, plus they made some dishes to order as well). The other notable event was the place down the street has creme brulee coffee. This is a variation on egg coffee which is condensed milk with sugar and some coffee. It is thick, creamy, sweet and has been compared to a drinkable tiramisu. I wish I had found these sooner! Crazy good.

foot soak before my massage

creme brulee coffee