la residence hotel & spa on asian journeys magazine

8/2/2019 La Residence Hotel & Spa on Asian Journeys Magazine

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The Golden Age of

When I first visited Hue,

Vietnam in 2002 my

only memory was of an

overcast drizzling dull gray

that didnt allow the day in. My recent visit

replaced that image with scenes from that of

the sprawling Citadel almost as impressive

as the Forbidden City to green fields and a

classic hotel born and reborn in the Golden

Ages of Travel.

History in DollopsFarah and I had stood in one of the few

places of shelter adjacent to the walls of

the Citadel listening to our guide tell us of

the history. Not one word sunk into my mind

because it was already soaked with rain

water. It rained constantly for the 48 hours

we were in Hue.

When I recently returned to Hue the

rain was still there, but only in occasional

sprinkles, while history was there in dollops.

Hue was the capital of Vietnam from 1802 to

1945. Why? Earlier than 1802 what we once

called North Vietnam decided it needed more

land so it invaded what we once called South

Vietnam. The rulers thought it would be

expedient to move the capital to Hue, which

is in the middle of the country. There the

capital remained until the end of World War

II. Subsequently the country split into North

and South Vietnam with Hanoi once again

becoming the capital of the North and Saigon

the capital of the south.

Most people outside of Vietnam dont know that Hue was oncethe capital of Vietnam. The Vietnamese are proud of their longand fascinating history and culture writes Floyd cowan aftervisiting the former Imperial capital.Hue

A Dynamic DynastyWhat is important to travellers is that the

Nguyen Dynasty, last of Vietnams Royal

families, left their imprint on the landscape of

Hue. Seven of the 13 kings had tombs that

they were built in the hilly region southwest

of the Citadel. Gia Long, Minh Mang, Thieu

Tri, Tu Duc, Duc Duc, Dong Khanh and Khai

Dinh all built tombs during their reign, and

some of them served as summer homeswhile the Kings were alive giving them a

place to escape the pressures of the Citadel.

We visited the tomb of Tu Duc on the second

day of our all too brief visit.

We arrived on a Vietnam Airways flight

from Hanoi and as we drove from the airport

to La Rsidence Hotel & Spa, the elegantly

beautiful Accor hotel in their MGallery

collection, I watched the passing scenery

thinking how little it matched my memories.

There was almost nothing about this trip that

overlapped.

The we on this trip were Australian

journalists Rae Wilson, Dominic Burke

and Theresa Paris with Chi Nguyen, Accor

Marketing & Communications Manager,

Vietnam, and Cynthia Dammerer, PR for

Press Trips for Accor in Asia, who had

designed an excursion that was to take us to

so many interesting places.

On the ThroneAnthony J Gill, General Manager and Dang

Xuan Phuoc, Director of Sales greeted us at


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historicAsia

La Rsidence. We had little time to get to our

room, do what we needed to and get back to

the lobby for our visit to the Citadel.

Sitting in the bathroom, as one does, I

was looking at the bathtub and thinking how

different our time is from the Golden Age of

Travel (from about 1900 to World War II)

which the La Rsidence originated in. To get

to Hue one probably would have travelled

a day or two over soul disrupting roads, in

tropical heat and humidity or pressed on by

Hues persistent rain. Upon arriving at the

hotel you might well have soaked in the tub,

sprawled on the bed then dressed for dinner.

You would not have rushed into the shower

after an hours flight from a distant locationand then headed out in the slowly gathering

evening, to explore the Citadel. We did.

At the sweeping entrance to La Rsidence,

as grand hotels from the Golden Age of

Travel tended to have, bicycle rickshaws

awaited to convey us to the Citadel where

Tung, our knowledgeable and opinionated

guide, gave us a quick tour of a vast complex

that needed much more time, and better light

to explore.

When the French InterferedI always enjoy riding in the pedal rickshaws

as you glide along the streets, close to

The Colour PurpleTung explained that the Forbidden Purple

City was built on the same design as Beijings

Forbidden City, based on Fung Shui principals

with water elements in the middle of the

complex. Purple was the Royal colour.

The government has made a huge

investment to restore, not just the Citadel,

but all the historic buildings in Hue by 2020

which is great news for visitors. Chi had

visited the Citadel some years earlier and she

said that there were a lot of new buildings

that she hadnt seen before.

The French army had shelled the building,

and removed or destroyed nearly all its

treasures. Most of the buildings in theForbidden City were destroyed by fire in

1947 and at its lowest point less than one

third of the original buildings remained.

In the Fading LightTung lead us through part of the grounds,

along tree-lined lanes and past impressive

gates and walls and buildings in various state

of repair. I had a hard time keeping up with

the group as everything seemed worthy of a

photograph from several different angles.

The light was dying so I hustled on

there was dinner to look forward to at La

Rsidence. Anthony and Xuan Phuoc gave

everything. One night in Chiang Mai, very late,

we got five, or was it seven people? (anyway

it was an odd number) in a rickshaw at thedrivers urging.

Tung was an interesting guide, not just for

his abundant information, but because he

repeated several times, when the French

interfered with our country which I think

succinctly describes the colonial period.

During its heyday the Citadel was home to

200,000 people and present day Hue is just

shy of one million. It had residences for the

kings of course, for their widowed mothers

and for all the officials and hangers on that

were needed to make the government work

and life better. Not to forget the residence for

the concubines.

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us a tour and the history of the hotel that was

built in the 1930s

La Comfort & CharmWith 122 rooms and suites, La Rsidence

Htel & Spa is a boutique hotel where a lot of

care and though has been taken to preserve

the charm, comfort and atmosphere of a

classic colonial villa. Pictures and paintings

bring back local characters and scenes. The

pastel colours provide an intriguing feeling

of sophisticated comfort without dampening

the sense of happening. There were a lot

of people in the lounges, in the nooks and

crannies, doing things. Quietly.

We poked our noses into a number of rooms

all of which have every modern convenience.

The atmosphere of a bygone age is captured

through the use of local materials, art deco

inspired design and careful attention to

detail. It was done so well that I didnt realise

my room was in the new wing that had

been added in 2003 for the opening of the

expanded hotel in 2005. In the 1980s it had

been a government hotel so you can imagine

what a delight that wouldve been.

I could easily imagine myself having a

romantic dinner for two on the roof top

Governors Terrace, or enjoying a cocktail

party there as other celebrities have done.

But I didnt have to imagine as we were soon

enjoying an excellent meal with excellent

company in a truly beautiful setting when we

went for dinner on terrace off the Le Parfum

restaurant.

Creative AsiansAs the website explains, At Le Parfum

the chefs like to experiment with creative

Asian, Vietnamese and European flavours.

As at the heart of every dish are the very

best of Vietnams fresh and vibrant produce

combined with top quality imported specialty

ingredients. To really appreciate what that

means you must enjoy a meal there. The

food was truly an experience as was the

entire dinner that was served in a warm and

generous manner.

Anthony continued to support the

impression I have of hotel General Managers.

As a group, they are charming, well-educated

and knowledgeable while being very

hospitable. Anthony went out of his way to

help me with a small matter that I greatly

appreciated.

We packed our bags and had them loaded

in the mini-van at 9:00am even though our

flight wasnt until late afternoon. Sadly, we

wouldnt return to La Residnce on this trip,

but we had an intriguing time ahead of us.

Meeting Tu DucWe drove to those rolling hills with Tung

talking non-stop about his countrys history.

We only had time to visit one tomb and

Tung had chosen that of Emperor Tu Duc.

I asked him why he had chosen this one.

It represents more traditional architecture

and culture, Tung replied of King number

four. King number 12s tomb looks like a

European castle.

The grounds are extensive and the

buildings in good repair. Are the others in as

good shape as this one? I asked Tung. Yes,

he replied. It took us all morning to wanderthe grounds, to read some of the history, to

photograph and enjoy the architecture and

statues and ponds. There are six more I wish

to visit which would make a fascinating trip

to Hue if you were to visit all, two a day.

Emperor Tu Duc was born in 1829 and

had the longest reign of all of the Nguyen

Dynasty. (Our Accor guide Chi Nguyen says

she is not related.) The King died in 1883

after 35 years on the throne, but his mother,

whom he was very devoted to, survived him.

She passed away in her 90s in 1901 having

witnessed 10 coronations including that of

her husband and her sons.


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An Empty TombThe tomb was built between 1864-1867 and

though it is called a tomb the Emperor was

not burried there. Having seen the French

rob other tombs Tu Duc had himself buriedelsewhere and is not in this grave. Today

no one knows where he is buried. The tomb

includes 50 monuments and is surrounded by

a 1500m wall. Inside the grounds he allowed

deer to roam as they were used for hunting.

Tu Duc studied eastern philosophy,

history, and literature, and wrote many very

humble works. Perhaps the reason he was

so humble was because he had 104 wives

but no children. Despite having composed

4,000 verses and 600 prose works,

during his reign he was unable to gain therespect of his subjects. In his self-critical

autobiography Tu Ducs last line is: I leave it

to the next generation to judge. Whatever

his legacy, Tu Duc left a fascinating place to

visit for todays traveller.

Some of the things Tung pointed out while

we roamed the grounds: In the gate there are

three doors. The centre one is for the kings

use only. When he dies it is closed forever.

Yellow was the Kings colour. As we passed

the dormitories for the staff: When he visited

the tomb he didnt bring all his wives because

they were too noisy and always fighting. The

tablets at the tomb are the largest in Vietnam

made of 20 tons of stone.

Let Me Come AlongFrom there we left the rolling hills for a very

flat plain, passing along rice paddies, flooded

fields and lakes and canals to Thanh Ton

Bridge which was built in 1776 by a lady of

the village who had the good fortune to marry

a wealthy man.

Trn Th o, who had no children, built

the bridge with her own money as a gift to

her neighbours so they would not have to

wade across the creek. When we got out of

the mini-van to walk the short distance to the

bridge there was a lady singing If you go to

the bridge, let me come along.

We strolled across the bridge and visited a

small museum that had tools from days gone

by, some of which local ladies demonstrated

how they were used.

An Introduction to the WorldWe tumbled back into the mini-van and the

next time it stopped was on a very ordinary

looking street. Chi had promised us a very

interesting lunch location but this didnt look

too special. That is until we walked down the

lane to Tha Om Restaurant.

Anthony said that Tha Om was his

favourite restaurant in Hue and it only took

moments to understand why. Set in a garden

with ponds and flowers and made from very

dark teak the ancient Vietnamese ambience

comes through in every aspect of the

presentation. The owner purpose built Tha

Om using all the ingredients of Vietnam. I

only invite in one group per meal, he told us.

I dont run this as a restaurant, my goals is tointroduce Hue food to the world.

Each course was a work of art, not only in

taste, but visually. Each course was meant to

be enjoyed in a relaxed manner, taking the

time to indulge the senses in the experience,

to marinate in it.

Unfortunately, we didnt have the time as

a jet would soon be going to Bangkok, via Ho

Chi Minh City, and we had to rush to get on it.

I am frequently asked where a good

place to go is, and for those looking for an

encounter with history and culture I highly

recommend Hue and La Rsidence.

La Rsidence Htel & Spa

5 Le Loi Street Hue City,

Vietnam

T: (84) 054 3837 475

[email protected]

Tha Om Restaurant

12/12 Nguyen Phuc Nguyen,

Kim Long, Hue

T: (+84 54) 3527 810

www.la-residence-hue.com

Vietnam Airlines

3 Flights per day Hanoi Hue

T: +84.125.652.22.69

T: +84.169.387.21.66

[email protected]

www.flyvietnam.com/

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