Huế was the capital of Vietnam from 1802 to 1945. 

UNESCO-designated Complex of Huế Monuments is the main reason tourists visit.

I used the GPSMyCity app to walk the huge site. It didn’t work all that well. I probably should have simply hired their headphones guide.

Happily, I got there in time for the morning changing of the guard.

I took a LOT of photos over a couple of hours. Most tourists don’t leave the main attractions. I walked everywhere. 😀

Pho and Mango Smoothie overlooking the site.

The other thing I enjoyed in Hue was renting a bicycle and cruising the waterways.

A nice tourist stop.

I had another inexpensive private room in a hostel.

I’ve spent quite a few nights in the Old Quarter of Hanoi, Vietnam over 2 trips, the first in 2014.

If you’ve been, you remember well the entertaining, chaotic traffic. 😀

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Hanoi has already started implementing a motorbike ban, beginning with petrol-powered motorbikes inside Ring Road 1 on July 1, 2026. These restrictions aim to combat the city’s severe air pollution, progressively phasing out fossil-fuel vehicles

I’ll believe that when I see it. 😀

I did see tourist areas blocked off for the evening in some other cities. Restaurants and bars could spill on to the street as they do in Europe.

There’s much to see and do in Hanoi, however.

I was moved by the Hanoi Hilton (Hỏa Lò Prison) museum. This is where John McCain spent parts of his five and a half years as a POW during the American war.

Both my visits I was very impressed with the Roman Catholic Church of Cửa Bắc.

Of course, tourists love the inexpensive local restaurants.

This time I wasn’t allowed into the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. I had a drone in my backpack which was detected going through the metal detector. Busted.

In fact, taking this photo from quite a distance and outside the fence, armed guards came to chase me away.

No worries. Images of Ho Chi Minh are everywhere.

He was the founder and first president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam from 1945 until his death in 1969.

He was worldly having worked on ships from 1911 to 1917. This included stops in the USA.

He lived in France for years. Then moved to Moscow in 1923. And to China in November 1924. In Canton, Hồ organized the Association of Vietnamese Youth.

It wasn’t until 1941 that Ho Chi Minh returned to Vietnam to lead the Việt Minh independence movement.

I passed St. Joseph’s Cathedral often, staying in a nearby hostel.

BUT my favourite activity in the old quarter is walking around Hoàn Kiếm Lake. Especially at night.

Hà Giang Province in far north Vietnam near the Chinese border is one of the poorest regions.

Gorgeous mountainous karst landscape.

Since the designation of Dong Van Karst Plateau Geopark in 2010, the tourism industry has been growing. Astonishingly popular in 2025 is a loop of some of the scenic roads by jeep or motorbike.

I signed on for a 3 day, 3 night option for about USD $200.

Rice does not grow well here — corn is the most important crop.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

We traveled by sleeper bus from Hanoi to Ha Giang city. Then slept a few more hours in a hostel.

Each tourist has a personal guide / driver.

I called my guide BOSS as he was the leader of the pack.

It’s possible to do the loop on your own, renting a bike. But I understand you’ll be stopped by the police often — and asked to pay a fine / bribe.

The other 2 nights were in a good hotel. And a charming traditional homestay.

Food was excellent. We all gained weight over 3 days. 😀

Everyone in my group left super happy with the experience. No accidents — if you don’t count me running off the bike when my driver hit a hidden pothole at very low speed.

We did about 300km — all good. Dozens of scenic stops.

Drivers know all the best photo stop angles.

A great adventure.

In Indonesia, I keep some inexpensive Marie Biscuits handy — as emergency snacks.

It dawned on me that I’ve done that all over the world. They seem to be in every small shop, everywhere.

The biscuit is round and usually has the name embossed. Always 66 mm in diameter.

Since they are quite dry, they have a relatively long shelf life. 

They were created by the London bakery Peek Freans in 1874 to commemorate the marriage of the Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia to the Duke of Edinburgh.