We arrived in Hué today where we'll spend the next two days. The sun was out today and we were glad we had set off early to make the most of the cooler morning for the 110km journey.
(Leaving Ben Quan shortly after sunrise)
We set off from the guest house in Ben Quan, feeling surprisingly good after the previous day's ride. 10km out of Ben Quan, we stopped for breakfast at a lovely little family run restaurant where we had the best noodle soup yet! The father sat near us and tried to make conversation with a few English words. The grandmother was sitting in the sunshine on the verandah chopping chillis and coriander for the kitchen. She was bundled up in warm winter clothes and was amused to see us applying sunscreen to our bare legs and arms. We watched as the mother piled her two small children onto her scooter and took them off to school.
30km later we reached the main highway which we would remain on for the rest of the journey. Like yesterday, the highway was busy with trucks, buses, cars etc. It was hot and dusty so we stopped for an early lunch to break the journey. An elderly couple were running the restaurant we stopped at. They were very welcoming and, again, we had a fantastic, filling lunch of rice, fish, barbecued pork, an omelette and vegetables.
(This man was carrying a fire on his bike, with a pot cooking on top of the fire)
(Our lunch stop, with the lady cooking in the kitchen)
Once we were back on the road, it was just a matter of trying to get to Hué as quickly as possible so we could escape the traffic. Another drawback of the highway is all of the broken glass along the side of the road which resulted in another puncture. Fortunately we were near a shaded spot when it happened so we could at least get out of the direct sun.
(A bride and groom greeting their guests outside the wedding marquee on the side of the road)
We arrived into Hué mid afternoon and our initial impressions were of a busy city with a pretty riverside area and an abundance of cafes and restaurants to try. Hué was once the capital of Vietnam and we caught a couple of glimpses of the walls of the old citadel as we made our way to our hotel.
Once settled in our hotel and cleaned up, we went to a popular Vietnamese restaurant serving vegetarian food for dinner and tried some dishes that were new to us. It was a great meal but despite that, we were surprised at how busy it was, as we understood having meat with each meal was typical of the Vietnamese culture.
Tomorrow we plan to explore the old citadel. The forecast is for a sunny 29 degrees! Looking forward to it.
(Another great balancing act)
(Arriving into Hué)
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