Some rivers have painted their own portraits in human memory, like the Seine with Paris, the Danube with Vienna, the Nile with Egypt... And with Hue, it is the Huong River – the one that has immersed itself in layers of mist and time, flowing into poetry, music, and painting as a wandering stream.

Ho Dac Cung, a young Hue native raised in Cai Lay, Tien Giang, developed a passion for engine mechanics and, through self-teaching, built his own airplane. In 1935, faced with financial constraints, he wrote to Emperor Bao Dai seeking assistance and received the monarch’s approval.

In Da Lay commune (Da Teh district, Lam Dong province), the new homeland of the people from Hue today, it is hard to recognize the traces of the hardships from nearly half a century ago. The most recognizable feature in this rural area that carries "Hue far away" is the distinctive Hue accent, the conical hats of the elderly women glistening as they shield their kind smiles, and the lively mornings with loc and nam cakes. We arrived at the Da Lay market in the Central Highlands and felt as if we were back in Hue, enjoying street food and chatting at a corner of Dong Ba or An Cuu markets…

After the country was reunified, the Pioneering Youth force transitioned to a new mission: overcoming the consequences of war and contributing to economic development. In response to the revolutionary call at that time, Binh Tri Thien Province and Hue City established two Pioneering Youth regiments tasked with surveying, building roads, clearing land, and constructing homes to welcome thousands of families from Hue to settle in the southern regions and establish new Hue communities far from home. Among the many resettlement programs, one new homeland for Hue people was founded nearly half a century ago: the Huong Lam New Economic Zone (NEZ), now part of Da Lay Commune, Da Huai District, in the southern part of Lam Dong Province…

We lay on the sand, quietly hearing the gentle melody of the waves and the melodious sound of winds gently gliding around us. The moon veiled the shore with a dim mist-like light. Far out at sea was layer after layer of light from fishing boats like thousands of remote stars. Amid the peaceful melody of the earth and sky, a gentle sleep came. Until the red east appeared on the horizon, we woke up, starting a wonderful new day.