Vietnam - The Rough Guide to Southeast Asia on a Budget - page 868

grass-covered stone outlines today, thanks
to the damage inflicted by the French as
they attempted to retake the city in 1947.
he Royal Reading Pavilion , an appealing,
two-tier structure surrounded by bonsai,
and the nearby Royal heatre are all that
remain intact; the latter holds music
performances (9am, 10am, 2.30pm,
3.30pm; 100,000VND). he beautifully
restored dynastic Mieu temple , a decorous
low, red-lacquerwork building in the south
corner of the citadel complex, has a row of
thirteen altar tables dedicated to the
Nguyen royal emperors. Behind it is the
partially ruined Dien Tho Residence where
the queen mothers resided, followed by
the Truong San Residence with its splendid
dragon-and-phoenix gate.

world. he seven tiers of the octagonal,
brick stupa each represent one of
Buddha's incarnations on earth. hien
Mu Pagoda is included on most boat
trips along the river (see box above), but
is also within cycling distance of Hue
(30min). Follow Le Duan (Highway 1)
west along the river.

The Mausoleum of Tu Duc
Emperor Tu Duc was a romantic poet
and a weak king, who ruled Vietnam
from 1847 to 1883. His mausoleum is
the most harmonious of all those in Hue.
It took only three years to complete
(1864-67), allowing Tu Duc a full sixteen
years here for boating and fishing,
meditation, and composing some of the
four thousand poems he is said to have
written, while sitting with his concubines
in a lakeside pavilion. From the southern
gate, brick paths lead alongside a lake and
a couple of waterside pavilions, from
where steps head up through a triple-
arched gateway to a second enclosure
containing the Hoa Khiem temple , which
Tu Duc used as a palace. Behind the
temple stands the colourful royal theatre,
where you can now play dress-up in
traditional Vietnamese clothing, and the
austere, dark wood Luong Khiem temple
dedicated to Tu Duc's mother, Tu Du.
he second group of buildings, to the
north, is centred on the emperor's tomb ,
preceded by the salutation court and
stele-house. he imperial remains are
actually buried in an unknown location
to prevent grave robbing; the two
hundred servants who buried him were
beheaded to (literally) take the secret to
the grave. Tu Duc's Mausoleum is around
5km from central Hue by road. From the
boat jetty, it's a 2km walk or xe om ride
(30,000VND return).

11

Thien Mu Pagoda
Founded in 1601 by Nguyen Hoang,
Thien Mu Pagoda (daily 7am-5pm; free),
4km from Hue, is the oldest in Hue and
has long been a hotbed of Buddhist
protest against repression. In 1963, it hit
international headlines when one of its
monks, hich Quang Duc, immolated
himself in Saigon in protest at the
excesses of President Diem's repressive
regime. he monk's powder-blue Austin
car is now on display here, with a copy of
the famous photograph that shocked the

PERFUME RIVER BOAT TRIPS
A boat trip on the Perfume River is in
theory one of the city's highlights,
puttering in front of the citadel, past row
boats heading for Dong Ba market. The
standard boat trip takes you to Thien Mu
Pagoda, Hon Chen Temple and the most
rewarding royal mausoleums. You can
enquire directly at the wharf east of the
Trang Tien Bridge, rather than going
through middleman tour agents; be clear
as to what the tour involves and whether
lunch and motorbike fees from the
moorings to the tombs are included or
extra. Hotels, travellers' cafés and tour
agents offer group tours that tend to last
from around 8am to 4pm and cost around
US$10 per person (this does not include
entrance to the tombs or Hon Chen
Temple). Agents can also arrange charter
boats at $25-30 for the day.

The Mausoleum of Khai Dinh
he Mausoleum of Khai Dinh is a
monumental confection of European
Baroque and ornamental Sino-Vietnamese
style, set high up on a wooded hill. Khai
Dinh was the penultimate Nguyen
emperor and his mausoleum has neither
gardens nor living quarters. hough he
only reigned for nine years (1916-25),