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DAY SEVEN As the morning sun flooded through the cab at 5.30am, having not slept a wink through a chorus of snoring, gurgling and farting, and a party that lasted until 2 hours ago in an adjoins compartment, I blessed the saints of Pearl Jam who once again kept me company through a tight spell with their instrumentally sublime, at times gritty, others soulful, lyrically waxing tunes. At 7am, the other occupants were awoken by the alarm I had been asked to set...I had forgotten that the song that was already programmed was by System of a Down called B.O.B, which isn't exactly the most relaxing way to rise...but rise they did in quick fashion. Expected result in quick time...perfect. Arriving in Hue, it was already clear that the pace of the city was completely different to Hanoi. Less motorbikes and vehicles = less horn blowing! Checking into the impressive accommodation of the 'google hotel', decision was reached extremely quickly that my Vietnamese overnight train adventures were a thing of the past, so a visit to the travel agent for flights from Danang to Nha trang ensued. Instead of an 11 hour overnight train journey, we booked a one hour flight which cost around £50 uk / $120 au for both of us. Nice. Hiring out a scooter to take in the sights seemed the easiest option, as all of the sights were quite a distance away. We sat off with our little helmets on, on a hog which did a top speed of what seemed 20 km an hour into the manic arterial roadmap. First destination was the imperial palace, situated over the perfume river on the West Bank of Hue. The imperial palace was constructed in the 1700's and is ode to the spirit and splendour of oriental royalty in their architecture specifically designed for the upper echelon of society. The complex is surrounded by 50 foot stone walls and moat running around the circumference. Inside is a shadow of its former glory, as unfortunately it experienced the spoils of the Vietnam War, with firstly the B-52 bombing campaign destroying much of the forbidden purple palace, then in the resultant ground campaign, much more was levelled. There are bullet holes, scars and lesions from shelling and vacant land evident still. There is reconstruction work still happening now even what is now 40 years on. The areas that have preserved or refurbished are magnificent, and it is easy to envisage what it was actually like. There is a compound with military equipment, vehicles and aircraft seized during the conflict in a yard adjacent to the palace. There is still feeling that maybe the Vietnamese still haven't truly moved on from what happened, as everything is referred in terms of ' imperialist insurgents' and ' evil capitalist invaders' as examples. When you can see the damage caused in such historical and constitutionally important landmarks, the resentment is understandable. Next stop- the beach 12 km away...yayyyyyyyyy. Think I may have taken an incorrect turn originally as we ended up between Vietnamese number one fly tipping site and a very over the top cemetery, where the deceased were buried in houses better than a lot of the local inhabitants housing! A re-calibration of the route finally assisted us in discovering the beach, and from jumping off the bike into the water took less than 10 seconds. The water must be mid 20 degrees- absolutely bloody fantastic. Ten minutes swimming was then interrupted by a grumble from the skies, with a very angry looking cloud overhanging the end of the bay. Needless to say, we didn't fancy being on a scooter while the sky's pent up anger released on us. Free beer at the hotel after a freshen up was next on the agenda. Free beer you say- where is the catch? There actually isn't...it's free, but believe me when I say it doesn't really deliver in terms of quality! A meal at the 5 star rated ' Golden Rice' restaurant with the Dutch couple and an Aussie from Queensland called Matt followed, with the decision to take on the banquet could of been a big mistake. Alas, I disappoint thee, as this really was the best food I have had a long time. Five starters of shrimp spring rolls, spicy rice rolls, Mr Hue's bloated floating fern shaped shrimp rolls and mixed vegetable were a fine start. Mains of sautéed prawns In garlic and butter, crispy honey sesame chicken, grilled spiced eggplant, chicken and cashew stir fry and the piece a la resistance, the seafood hotspot, which was a large pot of shrimp consommé on top of a burner, where you as the diner add the various items and cook yourself. Prawns, calamari, shrimp, pork buns, vegetables, herbs and vermicelli noodles formed the ingredients, and all I would say is research a recipient and try it yourself, because that was heavenly. For those who know me, know I like cooking and I shall now be learning this little b***** especially for the likes of the greens, gledhills ands the Irvings who are familiar with the ingredients and similar styles of food. A few drinks and amazingly confusing priced bar called 'brown eyes'( no puns please) in the cooler night air, with extremely inquisitive staff, who were determined to get to know us all. Tom, from holland, explained to the bar hostess that he was actually an Eskimo from Alaska and that to greet each other in his culture, one must rub the other persons nose. The poor girl believed this ruse, not the brightest unfortunately, and proceeded to start touching everyone's nose. Tom, beetle, pineapple and a few others will remember the nose touching fetish society moment from a years ago, so needless to say I found this quite amusing. Tomorrow morning, 8am bus to Hoi An....now we are cooking on gas as this place is supposed to be next level
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