Christmas Card 2001

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Best Wishes for Christmas and the New Year

Perfume River, Hue, Viet Nam

This picture, which appears on my Christmas card for 2001, was taken with a digital camera in September of the same year on the banks of the Perfume River in the center of Hue, in Viet Nam. The river is so named because of its pleasant scent. The picture itself shows a boatman relaxing on the stern of his sampan enjoying the day's last rays of sunshine.

Hue, designated in 1993 as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is the cultural capital of Viet Nam. It is famous for its many temples and the remains of the old imperial Citadel, where former kings of Viet Nam once lived. Unfortunately, the recent history of Hue has been troubled. The French burned and looted the imperial library at the end of the 19th century and much of the city was flattened during the fierce fighting of the Tet Offensive in 1968. Hopefully, the future will treat the city and its inhabitants more kindly.

The Christmas letter that accompanied the card explains more about my trip to Viet Nam.

The Travel section of my web site has more pictures from my other trips.