Taking a cyclo ride around Hue’s calm, old streets gives one a wonderful feeling. Sitting in a cyclo riding smoothly along tamarind tree-lined roads, a person who has never been to Hue before will feel as if the city were familiar with its beautiful river, old citadel, streets, and quiet gardens.
Taking a cyclo during winter is also nice as visitors can enjoy a slight coldness caused by drizzles which create beautiful thin layers of fog. That’s why, many visitors prefer to sit bareheaded while taking a cyclo ride in the rain even though every cyclo in Hue has a retractable roof to prevent passengers from getting wet.
Taking a cyclo during winter is also nice as visitors can enjoy a slight coldness caused by drizzles which create beautiful thin layers of fog. That’s why, many visitors prefer to sit bareheaded while taking a cyclo ride in the rain even though every cyclo in Hue has a retractable roof to prevent passengers from getting wet.
 Visitors enjoy a cyclo ride.  Visitors take a cyclo ride around Hue’s citadel.  A French woman enjoys her cyclo tour around the city. Cyclos were invented by the French in Indochina in 1939.  Foreign visitors are interested in riding a cyclo.  A street carnival with cyclos in Hue.  A cyclo show at a street carnival in Hue.  A cyclo passing Dieu De pagoda is a familiar image in Hue.  Using a cyclo as a mean of goods transport.  A cyclo flower vendor on the street.  Cyclos are familiar with Hue people. |
Cyclo drivers in Hue are not talkative but are knowledgeable. They can tell visitors about the history of Hue with secret stories of the former royal family to the present-day life of Hue people.
For Hue people, a cyclo is not only a way to make a living for poor people, but also a memory of old and present Hue, a cultural asset of the city through its historical developments. One cannot imagine a day when cyclos will no longer be seen on Hue streets.
Hue now has about a thousand cyclo drivers who have set up a tourist cyclo union to increase professionalism in service. According to Phan Ngoc Tho, chairman of the Thua Thien Hue People’s Committee, the province is working out a plan on Hue cyclo culture. Under this plan, members of the tourist cyclo union will be trained in foreign languages and services to build a brand of Hue cyclos whose drivers are friendly, hospitable, professional and trustworthy.
By Thanh Hoa
