4 popular things to do in Hue, Vietnam

1. Enjoy the elegant beauty of Nha Nhac Cung Dinh Hue

Nha Nhac is widely known as a variety of musical and dance styles performed at the Vietnamese Royal Court from the Tran Dynasty of the 13th century to the Nguyen Dynasty. Nha Nhac appeared regularly in annual ceremonies including anniversaries and religious holidays, as well as social daily events such as funerals or official receptions. Nha Nhac was performed by highly trained and skilled court musicians dressed in sumptuous costumes. There was also a large-scale orchestra with a broad range of instruments such as conical oboe (đàn bầu), the pear-shaped lute with four strings (đàn tỳ bà), moon-shaped two-string lute (đàn nguyệt), two-stringed vertical fiddle (đàn nhị), and drums (trống).

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Vietnamese royal music represents elegant and refined music. It deals with the music performed in the imperial courts and on different anniversaries, religious festivals, and on such particular occasions. Of the different categories developed in Viet Nam, only the royal music was national.

— The UNESCO Council

With the ups and downs of history, Nha Nhac becomes a relic of nations which claims nationwide scopes and stable links with Asian cultures. Nha Nhac not only a means of paying tribute to the gods but also a way to transmit knowledge about nature and the universe. On November 7, 2003, UNESCO officially proclaimed Nha Nhac as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

2. Immersing into the elegant melody of Ca Hue on The Perfume River

Ca Hue (Ca Huế) is a kind of scholarly musical art that rooted in performances in royal and mandarin houses during the feudal era. Ca Hue is the harmony combination of the quintessences of the folk and chamber music. The smooth, gentle and loving melodies of Ca Huế associated with the charming and poetic scenery of the Perfume River retain the remarkable features of Hue.

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Ca Huế consists of two lines including the Northern and the Southern one. The Northern one includes songs with cheerful and bright melodies, meanwhile, the Southern one features plaintive, slow and sorrow melodies. Ca Huế is performed by talented vocalists dressed in ao dai, the Vietnamese traditional custom. The tune of Ca Hue is played with many traditional Vietnamese musical instruments such as 16-string zither (đàn tranh), two-string fiddle (đàn nhị), moon-shaped lute (đàn nguyệt), and wooden clappers (sênh tiền). The other noteworthy feature of Ca Huế is its lyric of many meaningful messages.

A free Ca Huế performance is held every Tuesday and Friday at the Truong Sanh Residence. If you want to immerse into the beautiful melody of Ca Huế and enjoy the charm of the Perfume River, you can join the Ca Huế Performance which is held daily in the Emperor Dragon Boat (Thuyen Rong). To enjoy this performance, firstly you have to come to Truong Tien Bridge, purchase the tickets and then get into the Emperor Dragon Boat. After that, all you need to do is letting the melodies of Ca Huế stir your souls with both sorrow and delightful moods.

3. Taking part in Hue Festival – The quintessence of culture

Taking places every two years around April and May, Hue Festival is an international cultural event attracting a considerable number of both foreign and domestic visitors. The purpose of Hus festival is to honor the priceless heritages of this city. In the past, this festival was called the Vietnamese – French Festival. Not until 2002, did it gain the present name “Hue festival”.

Being the biggest festival in Vietnam, Hue Festival features many community-based events imbued with Vietnamese cultural identities such as Imperial Night, Nam Giao Worshiping Ceremony, Ao dai Festival, the Vietnamese Timbre, and Truyen Lo Ceremony. In addition, the Hue Festival has a special international art troupe with the participation of many countries from all over the world. This troupe not only represents cultural nuances of 5 continents but also shows the great unity between countries. Taking part in the Hue Festival, you also have chances of watching many traditional craft villages and special traditional games such as human chess and kite competition.

4. Visiting Hue Night Market and discovering the daily life of the locals

Located on the Nguyen Dinh Chieu walking street, Hue Night Market has busy, the animated atmosphere which is completely contrasted to the tranquility of Hue in the daylight. Hue Night Market often opens from 17:00 to 23:00. Hue Night Market has more than 122 stands divided into three sections including traditional handicrafts, consumer goods, and cuisine.

Visiting Hue Night Market, you will amaze at a variety of sophisticated handicraft, eye-catching souvenirs, and lovely decorative items. In addition, Hue Night Market is the perfect place to enjoy tasty local cuisines such as com hen (mussel rice), bun bo hue (Hue beef noodle), and banh la (leaves cake). Hue Night Market is also a place where most quintessence products of Thua Thien Hue Province gather including Phu Cam conical hat, Ke Mon jewelry, Song Hy sesame candy, Truoi berry and lotus seed of Tinh Tam Lake.