Day 4 Sunday Apr 20

SIGHTS ENJOYED

Hoi An Japanese bridge, Tan Ky ancient house, Fujian Assembly Hall/ Phước Kiến /Phuc Kien Assembly Hall, Quan Am Pagoda & Quan Cong Temple, Trung Hoa Assembly Hall, Trieu Chau Assembly Hall, Hoi An traditional lantern boat ride

Hội An Ancient town

Hoi An ancient town is spread across thirty hectares near the Thu Bon River. It thrived as a bustling trading port from the 16th to 18th centuries, connecting Europe, China, India, and Japan. This historical significance has resulted in a rich cultural blend unique to Vietnam.

the area has changed very little over the last few hundred years. Part of that is because when the French colonized Vietnam, they chose to create their own port of trade in Da Nang, to the north. That decision led to Da Nang being developed during the area’s industrial era, while Hoi An stayed the same. So Hội An retains old world charm and is a very popular area visited by all tour groups

We wanted to have an early start to avoid the tour crowds. We took a grab taxi and reached quite early

We walked into the town

The entry ticket to the Old Town of Hoi An costs 120,000 VND (about $5.21) per person. The ticket is divided into 5 detachable coupons.

This ticket grants access to 5 locations among 22 visitable tourist sites... 1 in each category

Tickets for the Old Town are only available at specific counters which are small stands scattered throughout the old district.

There are 11 sales stands located on the outskirts of Hoi An Old Town

We bought a batch of tickets and entered the ancient town. it is pedestrian only.

We had seen photographs of the whole place slammed with crowds but we had quite an exclusive experience and could savor the beauty

Japanese Covered Bridge (Chùa Cầu):

Emblematic of the city, this bridge was erected by the Japanese in 1593. Chùa Cầu was built to link the Japanese and Chinese quarters of the town, symbolizing unity and cultural harmony. It's a huge tourist attraction, It also appears on the 20,000 VND bill.

Legend goes...Namazu is a Japanese mythological monster whose movements cause earthquakes and floods. Its head is located in India, while its body is in Vietnam and its tail in Japan. The bridge was built as a magical sword to pin down Namazu’s back. Therefore, the monster could not wriggle, preventing natural disasters in Vietnam, Japan, and India. Hence, the lives of people in these three countries would go on in peace and prosperity.

The bridge is 18 meters long, connecting Tran Phu Street (the Chinese quarter) on the eastern side and Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street (the Japanese quarter) on the western side. It crosses the Thu Bon River.

The bridge and the top were built mainly with red lacquered wood, while the base was constructed with stone. Although it is commonly called “Japanese Bridge”, the architecture is an ingenious combination of Vietnamese, Japanese and Chinese culture, from the material, design to patterns and decorations.

The bridge highlights the Japanese style with a curved roof decorated with yin and yang patterns

There are small corridors and benches on each side of the bridge. A unique feature of Chùa Cầu is the small temple located at its center, dedicated to the deity Tran Vo Bac De, who is believed to protect the bridge and town from floods and other misfortunes

At the entrance and at the exit of the bridge there is a dog and a monkey respectively. They represent the guardians of the bridge, since they symbolize protection and safety in Japanese culture. It is also said that these two statues marked the beginning of the construction in the year of Monkey and the completion in the year of Dog.

Later, it was refurbished by the Chinese who established a Taoist temple on it.

The roof has interlocking yin and yang tiles. It represents the town’s era of prosperity as a bustling international trading port and the harmonious coexistence of diverse communities. Over the centuries, it has become a symbol of resilience and unity, surviving the tests of time

Our next stop was the ancient house which has been with the same family for 7 generations

Tan Ky House

Tan Ky old house in Hoi An was built in 1741 as a residence, 7 generations of the same family continue living here, it was also the trading place of the local merchants as well as the foreign traders in the 18th and 19th centuries. the family members live on the top floor, the first floor is open for tourists to pay a visit.

Mother of pearl/tortoise shell inlay on wood

STREET SCENES

Enjoyed some nice street scenes as we walked to our next destination

Artist setting up his paintings...

Couple at pre wedding shoot

One can get custom tailored outfits here

Bamboo handbags

Fukian Assembly Hall (Phuc Kien)

Chinese merchants from the Phuc Kien province built this structure in 1697

Quan Am Pagoda & Quan Cong Temple

Quan Am Pagoda (or Lady Buddha Temple, Minh Huong Pagoda, Ba Pagoda) is behind the Quan Cong Temple, but on the same ground. Its entrance opens to Nguyen Hue St.

It might have been constructed before 1653 because one memorial stele in the temple (carved in 1753) informed that they were over 100 years old

Quan Cong Temple was established in 1653 by Chinese immigrants in Hoi An. The temple is a place of worship devoted to an esteemed Chinese military general - Quan Cong

Quan Cong served as a military general and a martial master dedicated to the civil wars during the Three Kingdoms period in ancient China, he is honored as a God of War He is a symbol of loyalty, bravery, integrity, and justice. Legend has it that Chinese merchants came to Quan Cong Temple to sign contracts for loans because no one had the audacity to commit fraud in the presence of the deity.

Incense coils with prayers by devotees

Thien Hau Holy Mother rescuing a fishing vessel

Ceramic painting

Lovely ceramic statues

Quan Am [Goddess of Mercy]

Paintings by a talented local artist on rice paper

Koi fish pond

General Cong's horses

At the left and right sides of Quan Cong, there are two statues of his loyal guardian - General Chau Xuong (Guan Xing), and his administrative mandarin - Quan Binh (Guan Ping)

Trung Hoa Assembly Hall

Trung Hoa Assembly Hall is one of the five notable Chinese assembly halls in Hoi An, Vietnam. It was built in 1741 by Chinese merchants from Fujian, Chaozhou, Guangdong, Hainan, and Hakka, and is a communal space for all Chinese groups in Hoi An, rather than being dedicated to a single regional group

Look at the elephant trunk as the planter's legs

Main altar with the Sea Goddess Matzu, circular cones of incense with devotees prayers

DOORS WITH CARVED STORY PANELS

Another altar with carved doors

Just look at porcelain on the wood shelf above the bed!!

GARDEN WITH MURALS

Lovely fountain... details in the video

another mural

Another altar with carved doors with story panels

Meeting place in the assembly hall

Trieu Chau Assembly Hall

Ong Bon is another name for the Trieu Chau Assembly Hall, which was constructed in 1845. This Assembly Hall was initially built to serve as a place for community and religious activities for the Trieu Chau people

Reception hall

Intricate carving in the altar...

DENIED ENTRY

We had one more visit left on our 5 ticket coupon but they refused to let us in at this assembly hall... they said it was just one of each category and we can only visit a museum with our remaining ticket

This museum with shards of pottery was not to our taste!!

We sat around in a square waiting for the sun to go down. We had bought tickets for the Traditional lantern boat ride, the guy had told us to come to the pier at 6pm

LIT UP STREETS... CITY OF LANTERNS

TRADITIONAL LANTERN BOAT RIDE

We had thought the ride may be tacky but it turned out really beautiful.

With the tickets we had bought earlier, we went to the top of the line and got into our boat. Set off our lit up lamps in the river and enjoyed our ride!