1/11/16
When I was young, I read a famous children’s story call “The Emperor’s New Clothes”. The story says that there was an emperor whose fashion designer recommended a dress maker for him. To save fabric and labor cost, the dress maker decided to tell the emperor that the clothes he made could only be seen by smart people, and basically forced the emperor to prance around naked in these invisible clothes. Everyone was either too scared of the emperor or too afraid to admit they are stupid:, and just went on with the charade (which begs a question: did the emperor not feel cold? Or sweaty?). Finally, one brave honest subject decides to voice his opinion, and the emperor was so ashamed that he killed the dress maker, wore clothes, and admit how stupid he was (I guess it is a fairy tale afterall…). The lesson of the day? I think it was about not paying too much attention to fashion. Or that we should be honest and admit we are all stupid. This flew in contrast to the emperors of China I studied later. Those are dictators that riled with absolute power, and were usually survivors (lots of princes and only one final King- I am sure chemists and assassins were in high demand).
I woke up groggy and again dos not know where I was. After a few seconds, I remembered I am in Hue, the imperial city and I had planned to see the palace today. Hue used to be the capital of Vietnam (well, before Vietnam is known as Vietnam), with the emperor Gia Long coming into power at 1802. Regicgbized by China as the official emperor in 1804 (just like how the United States and united nation recognize regimes. I sense irony whenever China complains about that), the emperor started to built his palace. 10 km of walls and moats were dug, and the final citadel was built to face east. Many courtyards and gardens were added throughout the years until mid 1900s when the reign ended. Part of the citadel was known as the purple forbidden city (just like China), until the Vietnam war between the north and south. Out of 160 buildings, only 10 remained. In 1993, the city was named as a UNESCO heritage site and restoration of the palace started in earnest. It is still undergoing construction today.
Under a very very hot sun and humid weather, i walked a mile to the walled city. It is an impressive sight: high walls and a moat surround the whole complex, with a lot of the original central gates still standing. I purchased an entrance ticket, walked to the emperor’s throne room and immediately felt a sense of familiarity creeping over me. (No, it is not a Deja vu moment. Nor did I suddenly remember by past life.) The room has tiles of Chinese poem all over it, with the throne looking exactly like those in China (well, the forbidden one). The courtyard, the architecture, and even the language are all Chinese based. This make a lot of sense, since Vietnam used to belong to China, but it still made me felt a little cheated. It is like a miniature version of the forbidden city in China. I know i should not judge a palace by how it looks (actually, shouldn’t I?), but I still felt a little strange. To understand the history more, I actually walked almost the whole place, spending about 4 hours there. I quite like it, but it still felt like a rougher younger brother of the one in China.
In The afternoon, I decided to do what lots of people told me to try: make some clothes in Hue. (No, not weave or spurn some cloth. Actually visit a seamstress and make custom made clothing. No, not the cosplay variety. But now that I think of this idea….) I entered the shop, wanting to see how much it was and how the process is. Sensing fresh meat, the sales lady descended on me (in a family friendly way), and I was soon choosing fabric, listening to lectures on button holes (again, the family friendly variety), getting measured (in a clothes making way), spurned around, and cupped when they measured my inseams (not in a family friendly way). The whole process fasincated me and I came away with a lot more than I wanted or needed. I have to say, for the cost of a pair of true religion jeans I could have made about 3 shirts, 3 pants and a tshirt. The owner was really on her game, and I left the shop feeling stressed: how the hell am I supposed to pack all these into my backpacker backpack?! Then again, if you have the time and a little money to spare, definitely make some clothes here. They can do any design (within limit), and can reproduce anything in photos. I saw a guy bringing in magazine photos of suits and combined a few elements from them to make his. The best thing? They are usually ready without 6 hours. Suits take a day and about 2-3 fittings though. One customer I chatted with was so happy with his suit that he ordered anothetone right after he was fitted with the first one. At $120-$180 a suit, it is definitely a bargain.
I ate dinner at a tour agency/restaurant while pondering of I should take a motorbike to hoi an. As I was thinking about the danger of riding a bike and whether I have my donor card with me, I was reminded how much money I have spent today when I paid my check. While clothes are expensive, they also make the man, and I guess I should not be too harsh on fashion. Of course, the dressmaker could also be way more advanced than we realize: he could have spurn a cloth that can only be seen under a certain wavelength that correspond to higher brain activity. It could also be a cloth that bends light, and appear transparent (akin to stealth fighter planes). Whatever the case, I am sure it was pretty expensive, unlike the clothes I made today (I am really trying hard to justify my spending…).
(On a brighter note, I maybe the best dressed backpacker there is on the trail. Or on the back of the motorcycle).
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