Viet Nam: Hue in Transition

[Comanche]

If Ho Chi Minh City is the economic and financial hub of Viet Nam, then Hue is the cultural center. Though it is much smaller than HCMC (Hue’s population is about 340,000) it has a large influence on the rest of the country due to its deep Buddhist roots. The people of Hue are socially very conservative – the newest fashions are not adopted as quickly or as widely in Hue as they might be in HCMC. Generally, Hue’s society does not embrace rapid change.



Many of the spiritual practices of Hue are found nowhere else in Viet Nam. It was the last imperial capital of the country and the people are very proud of its royal past.

But change is happening – and quickly – probably quicker than many older people would like. Keep in mind that the median age of Viet Nam’s population is only 27. The older people are being overwhelmed by the sheer number of young people. The youth are changing Hue – and tourism is changing Hue.

Tourists flock to Hue by the tens of thousands, attracted by the large collection of historical buildings from the days when it was the royal capital. The Citadel is the huge walled city where most of the people lived (and still live), then within the Citadel is the walled and moated imperial headquarters and within that are the king’s quarters. Most of these old buildings suffered immensely after the last king abdicated in 1945 – they suffered from a large fire in 1947 (during the war of independence against the French), they suffered in 1968 during the Tet Offensive of the American war and they suffered from neglect after 1975 when the Communist government saw them only as symbols of a bourgeois past. Once the economy opened up, the value of the heritage sites was seen as tourist dollars. Restoration has been underway for years and continues as the tourism-generated money rolls in.




Buildings such as the Ngo Mon Gate into the imperial headquarters (shown from the side along its moat)




and the Thien Mu Pagoda outside the city will remain, carefully guarded as reminders of the past. But meanwhile, provision must be made to accommodate modernity while maintaining the past.




Though automobiles are allowed inside the Citadel, most of the motor traffic is two-wheeled and heavy trucks are forbidden. The Cua Ngan gate carries a lot of that traffic, but it is one way in, while other gates are one way out.

Tourism has prompted growth – hotels are needed to accommodate the Europeans, Japanese, Australians and Chinese who visit. (Yes, there are many Americans – both young people and returning veterans – but Americans are a smaller percentage of all the visitors.)




More tourists means more construction – both big hotels and small businesses alike. Hue has not done a good job of managing its growth, allowing large buildings to crowd into established neighborhoods and spreading the traffic congestion around the city.

The small entrepreneur has also thrived with the influx of tourist money.







One worker unloads 180 bags of concrete by himself at a construction site, while other workers drive large bamboo pilings into the wet earth to provide the foundation for a new wedding shop. The men will make about $5.00 a day, which is not much by American standards, but is high enough to lift them out of the lower poverty levels and become consumers. Spending more as consumers creates change in the whole society.

But, it’s the young people who are truly changing things.




Coming of age during a time of rising expectations, they expect to achieve their dreams. They have a higher level of education than previous generations, they don’t have to struggle financially as their parents did, and they have unprecedented opportunity. They expect to be able to buy the newest mobile phone, to own a laptop, and to meet friends at any of the upscale coffee houses in the city.




An elegantly dressed young woman astride her expensive motorbike glances at the displays of fancy shoes while waiting at a traffic light. Her spending habits and those of her compatriots will continue to reshape Hue’s economy.

The Perfume River flows through Hue and will always be the linchpin that binds the city of Hue together.




Hopefully, scenes of women washing clothes in the river will disappear in the near future, but then again, it is hoped by the Hue people themselves that not every traditional scene disappears. The ideal Hue of the future will be a little bit of the modern and a little bit of the traditional.



(Once again, I have to ask your indulgence. Trying to process these on an old laptop and an old version of Elements is a challenge. I hope the colors aren't off to badly.)

[d0ne]

Again, another great series Doug.

[SevenAndMe]

Jeans and baseball caps- interesting.

The picture of the woman washing clothes in the river reminds me of how our laundry was done when I was there 1968-69.
I was on a MACV advisory team down in the delta region; we were with the local Vietnamese. A couple of local women washed our clothes by scrubbing them on a rock in water. You could almost tell how long someone on our team had been there by how faded their fatigues were.
To help the ladies know whose clothes they were we all had laundry numbers written on them with a magic marker. My number was 13. I consider it my lucky number.
As you know, the number 10 is the unlucky number in Vietnam.

Thanks for posting those shots.

[lhdvies]

You're really good at protraying the VM story! Thks & keep it up.