After touring through Thien Mu Pagoda and two tombs of Nguyễn Dynasty emperors, we rode back to downtown Hue. There was just enough time for a quick lunch before hopping onto the 1pm bus to Hoi An that we booked through our hotel earlier.

After checking into hotel in Hue, we rented a motorcycle and headed for Hue Imperial City. We planned to visit this UNESCO World Heritage site this afternoon before it closed at 5, and visiting tombs of various kings tomorrow morning before hopping onto a bus ride to Hoi An tomorrow afternoon.

After a forty minute minivan ride, we were at Noi Bai Airport and ready for our flight to Hue.

Fourth day of our Vietnam tour as we were leaving Hanoi and heading for Hue, which had been the capital of Vietnam after Hanoi until 1945. But since our flight was at noon, we decided to take a brief morning tour to Thăng Long Imperial Citadel before heading to the airport.

We started our tour of Vietnam in Hanoi, the capital city that's hugely characterized by historic Vietnam, but also greatly influenced by communism through its independence and civil war.

I will combine the second and third day of our Vietnam trip in one post as we were touring Ha Long Bay in these two days.

January of 2018. I know staying in my bedroom for four weeks of my winter break back in China would be boring, and even more for my mom who had been basically doing nothing for half a year recovering from major surgeries. So my dad advised us to take a short vacation away to somewhere warm in Southeast Asia, and that's how this trip to Vietnam took place.

Winter break of 2017.
For reasons out of my control, this could be the only holiday that I could (or at least, willing to) spend with my parents who lived in China, who had been yearning for my visit ever since I left for graduate school in the states. Well, partly that's because my mom had some major surgeries during the last summer, and I happened to be away during all of them, the oh-it's-tomorrow-but-I'm-booked-on-flights-today sort. And, it turned out that my winter break would be much longer than I expected. I was looking for a two-week official winter break, only to be told that at University of Maryland, this was followed by another two weeks of winter semester, during which nothing happens. So to forward goodwill with my mom, and to bring to the states all my online shoppings of 2017 (I know two checked bags for my first trip were never enough for years of study), I decided to spend this winter break in China.

A bright sunny day as woke up in the town of Ella. The plan of the day was to hike Ella's Little Adam's Peak, and visiting Nine Arch Railway Bridge in the afternoon before heading to Tissamaharama in the evening.

 

Ninth day of our Sri Lanka trip as we planned to hike the Horton Plains and take a train to Ella for the day.