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Bun Bo Hue

Hue, Vietnam – After a few horizontal days, it was time to be vertical.  I set out on a bicycle for the imperial city (the citadel), a complex of palaces, gardens and temples in various states of ruin and restoration surrounded by a moat.   I found it was one of the most charming sites  I’ve visited.  Of course, there are many that are more architecturally or historically interesting and others that are much older, much bigger and more physically imposing.  However, there weren’t many tourists on the day I visited so at times I found myself completely alone in a temple with only the breeze rippling through the wooden doors and the sunlight streaming in on the red walls.  As I wandered through, there were times I happened on ragged fields where workers had built shanties to live in, tvs blaring through the loose board walls, and other times I happened on buildings or gardens that clearly weren’t ready for visitors to see.  Still I didn’t mind.  It felt like the secret garden of Vietnam.

As lunch time approached, I wasn’t quite ready to leave so instead of biking out of the imperial in search of the much anticipated bun bo hue (beef noodle soup), I stayed inside the complex knowing full well I wouldn’t be getting the real local experience.  Still, I wasn’t really disappointed with the bowl I did get.  The noodles are thick and round, somewhat similar in appearance to slightly overcooked spaghetti.   The distinctive broth is redolent of lemongrass and some fierce Vietnamese herbs.   The soup is served with more fresh herbs, a wedge of lime and chile.  I’m not sure that a bowl outside those walls could have been so much exponentially better that it would have made a trip outside worth it.  In any case, I was happy to have mine in the middle of the imperial city with elephants wandering around the field just a short distance away.