Day One in Hue

An exhausting day to say the least. With only one flight a day to Hue from Saigon, we were up at 4.15am to get our game faces on for the trip to the airport and subsequent flight to Hue. Our driver arrived smack on 5am as ordered for the usual 25-30 minute trip to the airport, however one feels that he was on a promise if he could get home in time and we made record time to airport in 12 minutes at speeds of over 80km/h through the city streets. Who says you need coffee as a heart starter in the morning!

The flight to Hue was uneventful however whilst we all admit we have little knowledge of the Vietnamese language, we are positive the on-board announcements mentioned something about copulating and cleaning with Domestos!! Upon arrival, we were a little surprised at the size of the city. It is like a country town that has grown up and has similarities to Saigon, however it is a lot quieter. The weather is a little more fickle with a downpour or two during the day. We arrived early at the Orchid Hotel and were warmly welcomed by staff and invited to have breakfast in the restaurant whilst they sorted our room. About 20 minutes later we were taken to the spacious family room on the 6th floor overlooking Hue.

 The Orchid Hotel, Hue

Origami towels on the king sized bed 

Plenty of nice touches in the hotel

We decided to take a walk and headed along the Huong River towards the bridge to the northern side of the city where there was a large supermarket to grab some essentials from. Whilst we try to avoid western food over here, there was a KFC next door and so we decided to try as it was a different but pleasant experience on our way out of Vietnam last trip. As with that trip, dining in at KFC was a little more civilised that Australia. The chicken and extras are served on a plate and drinks come in glasses! Trying to think the only difference between dining in and takeaway at KFC in Australia was the box was put on a tray or in a bag....

After lunch we started to fade which led to us spending the afternoon relaxing and generally lazing about at the hotel. Murray has managed to display symptoms of a cold which is probably a result of outside temperatures of 34-35 degrees and having the A/C running at maximum overnight.

View from the 6th floor. Here comes the storm

One of the locals prepare a meal

We spent the early evening roaming the local blocks surrounding the hotel and found a small cafe for dinner. Michelle indulged in the local version of Cau Lau, traditionally a Hoi An dish but it was on the menu and she couldn't help herself. Unfortunately, she was a little disappointed in it. Phil had Bo Luc Lac (Shaking Beef) again and was suitably impressed whilst Murray tried Bo La Lot (Beef in Betel Leaf) which had a unique flavour. Our host mingled with everyone in the cafe and made us very welcome. He even had some very quick comeback lines which had us all laughing. all in all, a great night out.

 Bo Luc Lac - Shaking Beef

Bo La Lot - Beef in Betel Leaf

The night finished wandering the streets browsing at what the locals were offering from their shopfronts ending in an early night for all after a long day's travel.