Traveling day twenty-three - one of the greatest $2 spends we have had

While wandering off to visit the Imperial Citadel this morning we passed a sign that said 'Hire Bikes 15 000' - which is about 70 cents. Thinking that it was for an hour we thought we would try bike riding through Hue. It was until 8 pm tonight. So we have ridden bikes all over Hue today, in the sun (we saw the first real pollution free sky in three and a half weeks today), in the humidity (dripping sweat shirts for everyone) and in a thunderstorm tonight when we went to hand them back. It was an exhilarating experience cycling through Vietnamese traffic watching your ten year old daughter negotiate between scooters. We had three bikes - Gab sat on the back of Chris' bike like a Vietnamese kid. She loved it.

The imperial citadel was under repair. It had been bombed in the Vietnamese war and restoration has been going on for many years now. It was impressive in a bombed palace kind of way. If we used a lot of imagination we could imagine to emperor strolling through the garden and making decrees from the gold throne with elephants and officials clustered around.

Chris spent quite a bit of time today trying to find a place in Hue to watch the AFL Grand Final. Unfortunately the best he could do was listen to the ABC commentary online at the hotel. We found the Rugby World Cup, soccer and tennis. But no footy.

We have been sampling much Vietnamese food and I now have a few favorite dishes - mostly variations of food on a stick or food in a wrap. There is also a wonderful French influence of excellent pastries. Mmmmmmmm....

Next stop is Hoi An where we are hoping to acquire some tailored clothes. I am feeling very relaxed.

Chris' Cultural Tip - They really do wear those hats in Vietnam
You know how many traditional hats are just that - merely traditional. Synonymous with a culture, but rarely worn in normal life. Not so in Vietnam. Their traditional hats are very much a part of everyday life. You know the ones. Like this:




They are worn in many places, and not just for the tourists. And it makes sense. They are broad brimmed - keeps the hot sun out of your face. And they are also mostly waterproof. So they double as a rain hat in these tropical climes. So wherever we have been so far, urban and rural, they really do wear those hats in Vietnam.