The DMZ Cafe, owned by a Vietnamese person who apparently survived the ordeals of the 1960s, is a throwback to the Vietnam War era when the area was crowded with US and other Western servicemen. It serves pizza, hamburgers and spaghetti along with the usual Chinese and Vietnamese fare. I think our young hosts thought we'd enjoy the change of atmosphere (and food) which attracts many Westerners, mostly backpackers it seems. The cafe is actually on the corner of where the Asian Hotel is situated and I'd seen it in action the prior night when we were rounding the corners in our cyclos en route to the Asian from the government guest quarters. It was awash in loud American music, bright lights, the smacking sound of cue sticks on the pool table balls and lots of people having a good time. The food was far from spectacular - Kelly & I stuck with a plate of Chinese vegetables, we seem to be on a role with the chopsticks - but the atmosphere was a bit refreshing. It's the usual pool table atmosphere and lots of beer signs with an outdoor seating balcony overlooking the street. We sat upstairs where a nice breeze was blowing in from off the river. I actually had a drink - a DMZ daiquiry - the first bit of alcohol I've had since leaving home.

Thien met us outside the DMZ just as we finished and we said our good-byes to Anh Thu after taking a few photos in our conical Vietnamese woven hats which Thien had brought us in preparation for an afternoon of sightseeing in the hot sun. We really looked the part now!

We proceeded by taxi to the Citadel and a visit to the Forbidden City, the place of kings and royalty. Built in 1804, the Citadel area is the old walled city of Hue which sits on the north side of the Perfume River, across from the main commercial area where our hotel and major offices & shopping lie.

Within the Citadel's 2-meter thick walls there are numerous temple and other sites related to royalty. It has withstood attacks during both WWII and the Vietnam War. It's lost perhaps half or more of its buildings but intensive restoration is underway with support from Japan and Korea and the plan is to rebuild those structures that were lost. It's a pretty remarkable place with fountains and gardens, reception areas and temples all done up in red and yellow, the color of royalty. This is the main UNESCO-designated World Heritage Site for which Hue is so well known and visited. We spent perhaps 3-4 hours walking around in the hot sun til I thought I was going to drop. It's got to be close to 100F.

Uyen is a storehouse of knowledge about Vietnam culture and history and both she and Thien could spout dates and kings and places and events like nobody's business. I think I retained about 5% of what they told me, fascinating as it was. It's just all too overwhelming.

After a near collapse for not having drank any water all afternoon, we agreed to call it quits for the day. We'd hoped to visit the pagoda but it will have to wait for tomorrow.

Back at the hotel, Kelly and I stopped at the interior courtyard bar, a phenomenal oriental gazebo set amongst palm trees and tropical gardens adjacent to the hotel's pool. I could have lingered far longer but knew I'd better get in a little nap before our dinner.

Mr. Le Van Anh, my long time correspondent and head of the Hue Friendship office, hosted a dinner in a private room at a hotel across from their office for Kelly and I, Thien and Uyen. It's my first opportunity to meet Mr. Anh after having corresponded for more than 2 years so I was excited to finally be introduced. He is a quiet but self-assured man who was the Mayor of Hue at the time our Sister City relationship first started in the 1990s. Now retired, he works for HueFO full time.

Our dinner was very elegant and we had wonderful Vietnamese cuisine, each dish explained to us in detail as it was presented. Kelly is getting the hang of the chopsticks and only chased a few items around the table. Chalk up the loss of that table cloth for another use! Fortunately, we didn't linger, Anh realizing that we were still both overcome with jet lag. By 8:30pm I was in bed and asleep (with instructions to be ready by 8:25am tomorrow!)

To be continued...

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