- PLACES TO EAT:
You can go across the river to the Dong Ba market to shop or there are smaller, closer shops for daily basics. There are many, varied restaurants in Hue. Here are a few of my favorites. I recommend getting a Lonely Planet or some other type of guide as well.
- La Carambole – consistently good food, great Mango shakes, crepes. You can get noodles with meat and vegetables and drink for $2-3 dollars. The owners are a French man and his wife, who is Vietnamese, and they are very gracious and nice people.
- Cafe on Thu Wheels
- Omars (for Indian)– 2 locations: Nguyen Tri Phuong St and Pham Ngu Lao St.
- La Boulangerie (French bakery)
- There are a few other good options on Hung Vuong street between Nguyen Tri Phuong St and Le Loi St.
- A number of small local restaurants can be found around the house–one right on the corner of Ngo Quyen St. heading to the house. Most are pretty good but it’s always safest to ask the locals where they eat.
There are tons of restaurants on Pham Ngu Lao street and the few streets around it as well.
THINGS TO DO:
Hue is a UNESCO World Heritage site and has many interesting and beautiful places to visit. It’s a great place to rent bikes or motor scooters (WEAR YOUR HELMET!!!) and cruise to the beach or through the rice paddies or through the country side. Take a boat trip down the river and stop at tombs and make sure and take your bike with you.
There are many interesting cultural and historical sites to visit including temples, pagodas, tombs, the emperor’s palace. Easy weekend trips include: Hoi An, Bach Ma National Park.
We recommend purchasing a Lonely Planet or some other type of guide prior to departure.
There is a bicycle at the house that is available for use by tenants. Bicycle repairs, particularly flat tires, can be dealt with using a street corner repair guy who is usually set up at the corner of Ngo Quyen St and Ha Noi St.
COMMUNICATIONS WHILE THERE:
Most hotels have Wifi. Call your phone company, because depending on your cell phone, you have to “unlock” it to use it in Vietnam. Vietnam uses a GSM 900/1800 network. When you arrive, you can buy a local phone number SIM card for your phone which makes calls much cheaper and easier to call within Vietnam.
TRAVEL MEDICINE:
Please go to http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/list.aspx and go to the Vietnam section. You should have all of your regular vaccines including MMR, DTaP, Polio, Hepatitis B finished or updated. They also recommend Hepatitis A and Typhoid.
Malaria prophyaxis is generally not indicated in cities, including Hue, but if you are doing a lot of outdoor activities or going outside cities for long periods of time, you should take it. Most people take Mefloquine or Malarone. Consider using DEET and long sleeved/long pants clothing because there is a high incidence of Dengue in Vietnam as well.
The Salmonella is resistant to fluoroquinolones, so although you should always travel with Ciprofloxacin, you should take a Z-pac as well.
GETTING THERE:
This is really up to the individual. There are no direct flights from the United States or Australia to Vietnam. Most people go through Hong Kong, Taipei, Beijing, Tokyo or other major cities. You will arrive in either Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City, and most people take a Vietnam Air flight to Hue. These are reasonably priced and can be booked on line or through a travel agent.
You need a VISA and can apply via the Vietnamese Embassy or one of the consulates in the U.S. At last check, the fee was $70 per application. http://www.vietnamconsulate-sf.org/ecms/index.php?cPath=73&osCsid=76e75743de77a40d21ee860e00ffbe84
If you have questions or need help with arranging travel, flights, visas, etc., please get in contact with:
Helen Nguyen, Blue Sky Travel. 9061 Bolsa Ave. Westminster, CA 92683.
(714)895-5411. helenblueskytravel@yahoo.com
Please email her or another travel agent well in advance of your planned rotation to make sure all arrangements can be made.
TRAVEL INSURANCE:
You should consider buying emergency medical insurance for your travels. Talk with your residency director to see if this is something that is required. There are multiple websites available if you Google “Travelers Health Insurance”. One company with whom some of our members have personal experience and recommend is: OnCallInternational (OCI) is a travel assistance company with ethics, experience and reach. Their medical director is Dr. Bob Wheeler is a BC EM physician from New Hampshire.
IN COUNTRY TRAVEL ARRANGEMENTS:
Chan has arranged many tours for everything from one person to a large group for us. He is a good resource to have if you are stuck or having trouble and are trying to get somewhere.
INSERIMEX TRAVEL DANANG
21-23 Tran Hung Dao St., Danang City, VietnamTel: (++84.511)3951906 Fax: (++84.511) 3951907
Hotline: (++84) 913490718 – Mr. Nguyen Hoai Chan
E-mail: asiaexplore@vnn.vn
GENERAL INFORMATION WE NEED ABOUT YOU:
- Curriculum vitae
Reference letter from applicant’s ED director/ Residency Program Director
Passport (scanned)
Exact period of time you will be at the school for your rotation
- You can send the above to Heather Crane, hacrane@hotmail.comwho will forward it to Dr. Huy via Ms. Pham, his secretary.
We will email it to Dr. Huy, the Vice-Head of International Relations. In general, all visitors to Vietnam who are not just tourist capacity are required to submit their passport prior to the visit. It is not at all unusual.
Attention: Ms. Pham Thi Hop Khanh
Nguyen Vu Quoc Huy, MD, PhD, MIAC
Associate Professor of Obstetrics & Gynecology
Vice-Head, Science, Technology and
International Relation OfficeHue University of Medicine & Pharmacy
6 Ngo Quyen St., Hue 47000
VIETNAM
Tel: +84.54.3.82.28.73
Fax: +84.54.3.82.62.69
Email: nhuy@dng.vnn.vnFor more information on the school: http://huemed-univ.edu.vn