The overnight bus journey here wasn't one of the better ones. I didn't sleep all that well, but it was a nice big comfortable bus so it wasn't too bad. I got in at 8 am and ducked in somewhere for a coffee while all the hotel touts buggered off. They're always there in every town and city but I've learnt that they are usually employed by the over-priced places in poor locations, i.e. the places that need to literally drag you in, in order to get any business. After 10 mins I walked off by myself and found a decent little place for only $4 a night.
Since it was early morning which I don't usually see I thought I'd start sightseeing early for a change. It was already really hot at that time of day but I cracked on anyway and went for a walk around the City's famous Citadel, where the Emperor used to live. Unsuprisingly it is an absolutely massive place and it took ages to walk around. By the time I'd finished it was the middle of the day and I think possibly the hottest temperature I've ever experienced. I went and chilled for a bit before heading out for a much needed cold beer.
I went to the DMZ bar and got talking to an English guy over the traditional travellers meeting dance, a game of pool. I didn't sink many pool balls but I did manage to sink quite a few of the local Huda beers at 30p a pop. Which reminds me, I think Vietnam is the cheapest country I've been to on my travels, which is weird as everyone I spoke to previously seemed to think it was more expensive than the other SE Asian countries.
Later on in the evening I bumped into a Kiwi I'd met in Hanoi. Bumping into people from previous locations is happening more and more now as a lot of people are on the same trail so I'm forever catching people up or vice versa. I went on with the Kiwi to another bar but it was empty. Hue being a nice and peaceful place doesn't have much of a nightlife. Still, there were a few people in there and we still managed to party until dawn!
The next day was non-existant for me, after the bus and late-night partying I didn't actually wake up until 4pm! Bit bad really as I had to have an early night to get up at for 5am the next day for my tour of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).
I miraculously managed to get up bright eyed and bushy tailed at 5am for the day trip. It was an OK day, there's not really much to see anymore as the Vietnamese have tried to remove as many traces of the war as possible, so basically we saw where things used to be. For example, the Ho Chi Minh trail is now the Ho Chi Minh highway. Great, I have a picture of a random road! There was one saving grace though and that was the tunnel system we visited. The local people stayed on to help defend the DMZ and used the tunnels for shelter when the Americans bombed the area - which was quite often! The tunnels go 15 and 23m underground and are really thin and low, built for tiny Vietnamese people. I also met a few people on the tour bus who I went for a few beers with in the evening.
The day after was a quiet day of wandering and sitting in cafes. Mostly sitting really as it was just too hot to do anything else. It's a constant 40 degrees in Hue. Next morning was another early(ish) start for the bus to Hoi An, a little town 4 hours down the coast. I'm hoping to get to the beach there as well as take in some of the historic sights.
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