Hue A Minute

[Disclaimer: The author concedes that she is a close-minded, racist, one-sided bitch. Yes, she thinks anything Chinese is by birthright better than anything non-Chinese and if she ever concedes that something not of Sino origin is superior, she will find a way to argue that the Chinese invented it first.]

Vietnamese relics suck ass. They are not completely void of charm and quaintness (euphemisms for suck ass) but as a whole they are not awe inspiring and basically looks like a poor man's China. Ali makes a fair point that I can't compare Vietnam to China, with is larger size and longer history of self rule, but hell even the Native Americans managed to carve some cool totem poles and their monetary system comprises of melon seeds, sea shells and wampum. Alas, I am a hopeless optimist who ceaselessly tries to see the positive so let's not dwell on Vietnam's sucktitude.

It is nice however, to see what Chinese-style buildings would look like today if not for fervent restoration and that is what you get out of Vietnam. There comes a point where the Chinese sites are so restored that you really looking at Benjamin Moore #462 instead of the original facade. If a piece of the wall is missing, the Chinese will just call up the local cement maker and order a replacement wall. Vietnam hasn't had the luxury (or the demand) to restore its Imperial City so what you see is what the Forbidden City would look like true to age. The Purple Forbidden City in Hue was the seat of power for the Nguyen Dynasty and all that remains is really a big stone wall. There is the front gate and not much else beyond that. You can't complain about paying the ticket price to look at an empty field because as the Vietnamese shrewdly points out, the Americans flattened the area with bombs during the American War, destroying much of Nguyen's crib. So suck it up, pay the entrance fee and repent for the mistakes your nation's mistakes.