This house has strong ties to a nineteenth century romance between a wealthy mandarin and underage French immigrant girl during the colonial period. In 1992 it was made into a film titled The Lover directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud. Consequently it became the first major Western film shot in Vietnam. In retrospect the film also marks a turning point in opening up to the west after decades of communist rule. Having watched it before, I decided to see it a second time before visiting this spot. Whilst it’s been turned into a tourist attraction walking inside gave me stronger sense of the story’s emotional weight. #filmthelover #architecture #history