One night was definitely enough for us in Hoi An so we decided to catch a train heading north to Hue. We filled up on a delicious western breakfast at the fancy sister hotel of ours and then made the decision to catch a taxi to the Danang train station 20kms rather than a bus as it was scorching outside.

We were taking a little bit of a gamble not having pre purchased our tickets but after lining up we soon had our two seats in air conditioning. However when we entered the train our cabin’s air con didn’t seem to be working and it didn’t have any windows. A metal train sat in the midday heat is the definition of a sweat box so we snuck into the next carriage.

The train journey to Hue was stunningly beautiful. The tracks were positioned on the side of a hill overlooking the coast line. The scenery of Vietnam is pretty amazing with green forested hills and peaks flowing down to white sandy beaches meeting beautiful clear blue sea. The coastline didn’t have much development other than a few villages and it was pretty spectacular.

We arrived in Hue late afternoon and immediately took a liking to the place. Our guesthouse was down a little alleyway off a busy street where locals came to drink beer and chat. Lonely planet recommended a restaurant nearby where you could get a 5 course meal of all the local street food selections and helpful waitstaff who took the time to show us how to correctly eat the dishes. The restaurant was packed and you know you are onto a winner when there are far more locals than westerners. Again the flavours were subtle yet delicious. I thought Vietnamese food would be as hot as Thai food but it turns out that that is not the case at all. Yes there are bowls of chilli on every table but the dish that comes out of the kitchen doesn’t usually have a lot of hotness to it at all. 

We were so stuffed after dinner that we went for a walk around the area and hit the local night market for a bit of window shopping. We haven’t been here for long but so far Hue has been a very enjoyable city. Very much looking forward to exploring the Imperial Palace and Tombs tomorrow. S

Stunning coastal scenery from the train.

One of the five courses of Hue street food we had at the restaurant. Pork mince kebabs which you wrap in rice paper with a bit of this and a bit of that.

Floating restaurant along the rivier.

There are little ice tea stalls all only the night markets and these are the flavours. They look interesting but somehow not very appetising.   

This guy was obviously a Chinese Chess god as people would pay to play him 5 at a time.