So, where was I? Oh yes, I was telling you about Hanoi, and my month there, and the strange effect it had on me. That it filled my heart with unexpected pleasures while at the same time leaving a feeling of emptiness inside when I moved on.

But what happens after that? What happens when I finally set out to explore Vietnam from North to South as I have always dreamed of? I sulk. I sulk pretty badly for a couple of days as I miss the laid-back, sedentary life I had in the Vietnamese capital, which is slightly silly because I know that whatever happens, I just can’t live in Hanoi. Even as I explore the beauty of the imperial enclosure in Hue, I continue to sulk.

And then something happens. I decide to choose one of the many vacation tours available and take a boat trip along the Perfume river on a dragon boat, stopping along the way to explore pagodas and royal tombs. I don’t have high expectations for this trip as, while leafing through my guidebook without pictures, I wonder just how exciting a tomb can be.

Boy am I wrong. The boat quickly takes me away from the not-so-attractive banks of hot Hue, the air clears, the land turns a soft green and it all settles into quietude, disrupted only by the soft put putting of our boat. Suddenly, I am excited to be here and eager to see more. Suddenly, I remember why I wanted to be here in the first place.

Over the course of the day trip…

…I am introduced for the first time to Vietnamese traditional homes, which I’ll also come across in other places around Vietnam…

…I roam Thien Mu Pagoda, lingering to enjoy the view of the Perfume river from the top of the hill the padoga is built on…

…I watch life go by on the Perfume river, as women wash their clothes in the water and boats loaded with sand for construction collected from the bottom of the river drift past…

…I see for myself what the fuss is about when it comes to the royal tombs which dot the countryside around Hue. First, there’s the quirkiness of the tomb of Khai Dinh. The tomb looks like it could be centuries old, but it turns out it was built between 1920 and 1931 and is apparently made of concrete…

…then the larger, greener and more peaceful tomb of Tu Duc, whose lifelong pursuit of fathering an heir to the throne led him to have 104 wives and proved fruitless, as the emperor was said to have been sterile after contracting small pox.

…and this trip is only the beginning. In the coming weeks, I travel down the length of Vietnam to discover more life, more colour, more wonders, and more unexpected treasures in this long slender land of many facets.

-Text and photography by Denise Pulis @www.theartofslowtravel.com. This is a sponsored post.

blogsherpa, Thien Mu Pagoda Hue Vietnam, tomb of Khai Ding Hue vietnam, tomb of Tu Duc hhue vietnam, vietnam hue Hue