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The countryside around Hue 

 

The countryside around Hue is particularly beautiful, and touring it by rickshaw is an unforgettable experience. 

I've always had a reluctance to sit comfortably in a rickshaw while the driver pedals, but that's how he makes a living. Avoiding the rickshaw in a country where he has remained popular deprives this worker of his income. 

Such a walk around Hue makes it easier to see and feel things. 

Thus, the first thing that strikes is to see sumptuous monuments in the middle of the countryside. They are tombs, and their luxury is astonishing. It seems that the Vietnamese attaches great importance to the worship of the dead and their comfort in the afterlife. Their tombs are often more beautiful than the houses where they resided during their lifetime. 

Vietnamese in the countryside are used to being buried on their land rather than in a cemetery. This encourages the heirs not to divide up the land after their death.

The rice fields as far as the eye can see are also impressive. There is water everywhere and what could be more romantic than a sunset over rice paddies in Vietnam. 

On the rivers, the fishermen have set up their Chinese nets to catch the fish that will be used for their evening meal. 

Cows and buffaloes graze peacefully in the fields and a fortune teller reads from the hands and reveals the secrets of the tourists' future for a few dongs... 

A short film is worth more than a long speech, I can only invite you to watch this video which goes very well without comments.

 

about the place, Hué:

Located near the demarcation line set by the Geneva Accords in 1954 between the two Vietnams (the 17th parallel), Hue is the former imperial capital of Vietnam. Hue is crossed by the Perfume River and its main resources come from fishing, but above all from tourism. The city has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993. 

Capital of the empire, Hué was the imperial residence and one of its highlights is the Forbidden City built during the 19th century. 

The city has a long history of wars and devastation. The Forbidden City was burned and destroyed in 1885 by the French who looted the city and massacred its inhabitants. It also paid a heavy price in the Vietnam War, bombed by the Americans and targeted by the Viet Minh.

Spoken comments in the film: 

In the countryside around Hue, one encounters many of these funerary monuments which are often more beautiful than the houses of the living. It is a testimony to the worship that the Vietnamese dedicate to their dead who must not miss anything in the hereafter.

 

It's not just fish in the rivers of Vietnam. There are also many duck farms all over the country.