Hai Van Pass

We left Hoi An in late morning, quickly climbing into the foothills above Da Nang Bay.

To get to the ancient capital of Hui from Hoi An, you have to drive across the legendary Hai Van Pass, a mountain road on National Route 1 stretching along the Annamite Range.

Well, that's not exactly true... a massive tunnel now cuts through the mountains and most traffic travels through it along the highway. For those who want to see spectacular views, however, the slower route through the pass is the way to go.

Long considered one of the most beautiful roads in the world, the Hai Van Pass is currently at risk of mass development, and I was really glad that I was able to visit it while it was still relatively unspoiled.

Jeremy Clarkson from Top Gear described it as "a deserted ribbon of perfection; one of the best coast roads in the world".

The road is, unfortunately, no longer deserted. As we made our way up into the hills, we drove alongside a number of cars, motorbikes, and jeep tours ferrying visitors between Hoi An and Hue (something that, admittedly, looked like a ton of fun).

After a while winding up the steep mountain roads, we came to a sort of rest stop, where a handful of shops and restaurants lined the road. Alex came to a stop, and Dominik and I stepped out to stretch our legs and explore.

Hải Vân Quan (Hải Vân Gate) is a small historic fortress at the crest of Hải Vân Pass, about 490 meters above sea level. It sits directly on the historic boundary between the Huế and Đà Nẵng regions and was built to control one of the most important routes into Huế, the Nguyễn dynasty capital.

The current gate dates back to 1826, though there were fortifications on the site for far longer. We purchased a ticket and made our way up the stone steps to the old fort.

The complex is small, but is made up of fortification walls, storehouses, barracks, administrative buildings and cannon positions from which at this elevated position, the Nguyễn government could monitor the mountain road and the approaches toward both Hue and Da Nang.

After a Coke and a snack (some sort of rice cracker), we got back in the car and began to drive down the mountain, coming back to sea level. There we saw the exact spot where the Top Gear guys paused and, for the first time, admired the natural beauty of Vietnam.

The scene today is very much the same, though there's a new highway and bridge that has been built since the special in 2006. It was really cool to rewatch the special and see the exact same view that we had witnessed on our drive.

We stopped at a local shop for some coffee and took a walk to see the surroundings. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon.

A bit later, we pulled into Hue. We explored the walking street area for a while, then both turned in relatively early.

Our plan for the next day was to wake up early and explore the Imperial Citadel and the Forbidden Purple City, and we needed to be well-rested for what was sure to be a long day.