25 September 2017
I decided to spent a couple of days in Hue, a UNESCO World Heritage city well-known for its historic imperial city (Citadel) and imperial tombs.
We went to see the Citadel on the day of our arrival, leaving the whole of our second day in Hue to explore the famous Thien Mu Pagoda and a few of the imperial tombs.
A total of 13 Nguyen emperors ruled Vietnam from 1802 to 1945, with Hue being the capital city. The site for the Citadel was chosen by the first two rulers of the Nguyen dynasty (Gia Long and Minh Mang) based on Chinese geomancy or Feng Shui principles. It is modelled after the Forbidden City in Beijing but also includes military principles to offer greatest protection. It is located on the north-western side of the Huong (Perfume) River, with its main entrance facing the river. Water from the river fills its defensive moats.
We crossed the Perfume River via the Truong Tien Bridge, in front of the Saigon Morin Hotel where we stayed. We met up with our guide for the Citadel tour at the Lac Thien restaurant at 2 PM. From there, we entered the old Hue Imperial City through a narrow arched stone gate, barely wide enough for a big truck to pass through. The road through the gate is shared by pedestrians, motorcycles, cars and other vehicles. This was one of the many gates that provided access to the huge 520 hectares Imperial City.
After passing a waterway which I later found out was the outer moat surrounding the city, we turned left and passed by the Hue War Museum with its collection of old Vietnam War era military equipment on display. There is free entry to the museum but we just stopped briefly to snap some photos of the tanks, armoured cars, artillery pieces and war planes from the road. A few of the displays looked familiar, such as the Commando V200 armour car, Russian MiG 21, A37 Dragonfly planes
US-built A37 “Dragonfly” at the Hue War Museum. The cockpit looks like the head of a dragonfly, doesn’t it?
MiG – 21 fighter plane operated by the North Vietnamese during the war.
An antiquated Commando V200 armoured car. I operated similar vehicles during my military service in Singapore.
Soon after, we caught sight of the walls and moat of the Royal Citadel. The Royal Citadel is a citadel within a citadel. The square shaped Royal Citadel is protected by its own moat and its main entrance is the massive Cua Ngo Mon, modelled after the Meridian Gate of the Forbidden City in Beijing.
Massive Cua Ngo Mon as seen from a distance.
In front of the gate is the Hue Flag Tower, or Ky Dai, which is hard to miss. The tall 37 meter mast had been destroyed and rebuilt through the times and now proudly flies the state flag.
Ky Dai or Hue Flag Tower.
In the old days, the Emperor may visit the pavilion on top of the Cua Ngo Mon to deliver important proclamations, watch troop movements and subjects paying homage to him.
The roof is decked in yellow (imperial colour), glazed ceramic roof tiles. On the roof tiles are golden dragons, various animals and creatures to ward off evil.
There are five entrances within the massive Moon Gate. Like all palace gates of Imperial China, Korea and Japan, the middle one is reserved only for the Emperor. Anyone caught using that gate would be beheaded! The two, slightly smaller, side entrances were reserved for mandarins, soldiers and horses. The two small arched entrances on the side were for the rest and commoners.
After entering the imposing gate using the left entrance and keeping our heads, we crossed the Bridge of Golden Water (used to be reserved for the Emperor only!), flanked by two ponds.
We then entered the Thai Hoa Palace (Hall of Supreme Harmony) right after the bridge. This is where the Emperor, along with high ranking mandarin officials, does his “meet the people” sessions and also other important court activities. No photography was allowed inside this building. We could see the throne of the Nguyen emperors, perched high on a platform.
The structure of this building is supported by 80 red lacquered columns made from solid wood from trunks of massive trees.
I am not sure if this story is true.
Our guide told us this building was built in stages. It was first built as a simple building to appease the official from China who came to inspect the construction. After satisfying the imperial Chinese officials that the palace is not bigger than the one in Imperial China, the Vietnamese extended this building further without his knowledge.
At the back of the building, there is a video showing the construction of the Imperial City and a scaled model of the Imperial Citadel showing the layout. The almost square area is divided by walls into zones. The most important zone is the Purple Forbidden City. The Forbidden City is where the emperor and his immediate family reside. It is forbidden to everyone except concubines, servants to the royal family and select members of the imperial court.
Not to be missed is the The Mieu and Hung Mieu compound located in the south western part of the Citadel.
Gates to access the temple compound.
Details on one of the gates. A pale shadow of what it was before.
There used to be 9 buildings. Now only 5 remains – the 2 major temples ( The To Mieu and Hung To Mieu), Hien Lam Pavilion, the Soil God temple and the Divine Kitchen.
The Hung Mieu Temple was built by the emperor Minh Mang in the year 1821 and is dedicated to the memory of their ancestors. It is used by the Nguyen court to commemorate the death anniversaries of the emperors. Attendance by women, including the Empress, was forbidden.
The To Temple – Its name in Vietnamese is Thế Miếu, or Temple of generations.
A royal altar in front of the The To Temple.
The The To Mieu temple contains the altars in memory of the different emperors in the Nguyen dynasty. The one in the middle is for Gia Long, the first emperor. It is franked by the altar of the second emperor, Minh Mang, on one side and third emperor on the other side. This goes on for the rest of the emperors in the Nguyen dynasty.
Right in front of the The To Mieu temple is the Hien Lam Pavilion.
The nine Dynastic Urns and the Hien Lam Pavilion.
There are nine large funerary urns, made entirely in bronze standing in a row. The urns are decorated with floral motifs and traditional symbols of Vietnamese culture.
Large funerary urn, made entirely in bronze. The urns have heights of about over 2 meters and weigh about 2 tons each.
They represent 9 of the emperors in Vietnam and in ancient times played an important role in many ceremonies of worship to ancestors.
There are 4 urns to the left and 4 urns to the right with a larger urn in the centre, facing The To Mieu temple. The centre urn is dedicated to the first emperor of the Nguyen dynasty, Emperor Gia Long.
Stones steps decorated with stone dragons in the Hien Lam Pavilion. Dragon is a common theme in the palace.
Some zones within the Citadel are under restoration and not accessible during our visit. The rain started to come down as we walked pass what was to be the Forbidden City.
Bombs and artillery shells rained down on North Vietnamese forces camped within the Citadel during the Battle for Hue in 1968. The Forbidden Purple City was almost entirely destroyed.
This is what remains.
Thankfully there were some parts that were not completely destroyed or were partially restored.
Covered passageway with exhibits of ancient court documents.
Lotus pond within the Citadel.
One last place we saw before leaving was the Royal Theatre. Now it is the Hue Traditional Theatre of Art where one could enjoy performances of Hue Court Music, Royal Dance and Theatrical play.
Inside of the Hue Traditional Theatre of Art where once the emperor sat to enjoy performances.
Beautifully decorated window.
Walls at the Lac Thien restaurant. This place seems to be popular with independent travellers and backpackers.
Our guide introduced some local Hue cuisine to us at Lac Thien restaurant.
Banh Cuon – Hue’s speciality rice-steamed rolls with pork and green salad inside. This is to be eaten with peanut dipping sauce.
Banh Khoai – Hue’s speciality crispy open pancake (like a taco) with fillings of pork, shrimp, eggs, green salad, slice figs. Once again, this is to be eaten with peanut sauce as a dip.
The restaurant also serves the local noodle soup called Bun Bo Hue but our guide says the more typical Vietnamese beef pho (noodle) is better.
Enjoying local delicacies and a hot bowl of beef pho with a friendly local guide was a good way to end a visit to the Citadel on a wet day.
Saigon Morin Hotel – a historic colonial era hotel location close to the Citadel.
Thankfully, the rain stopped as we finished our dinner. That allowed us to take a slow walk back to our hotel across the river. The Truong Tien Bridge would be a good place to see the sun set across the Perfume (Huong) River, but not on this evening.
Where we stayed in Hue:
The Saigon Morin Hotel is a historic, French colonial-era hotel, located next to the Truong Tien Bridge and Perfume (Huong) River. On Le Loi Road in the city center, it is ideally located for walking to the Citadel, Dong Ba market, shopping, restaurants & bars.
Check latest prices and availability for this hotel when planning a trip to Hue.
No comments:
Post a Comment