By air:

1.      From HCMC to Hoi An

-         visitors go from the Tan Son Nhat airport to Da Nang airport by plane then take a taxi or Honda om (motorbike taxi) or bus to Hoi an. The airports nearest Hoi An are those of Da Nang, Nha Trang, and Hue.

-         Visitors can book an airplane ticket at 116 Nguyen Hue St., Tel: (08) 832.0320, or at any agencies of Vietnam Airlines.

2.      From HCMC to Da Nang:

-         Duration: 1 Hour and 10 minutes Fight number: 3 per day

-         Departure time: 6.20, 11.20 and 17.30 everyday.

-         Ticket price: VND 825,000 per one-way ticket, VND 1,650,000 per return ticket.

-         Or contact Cathay Pacific Airlines at 58 Dong Khoi St., District 1, HCMC, Tel: (08) 822.3202.

-         Notes:

+ The above price are applied for Vietnamese and foreign visitors.

+ Children aged from 2 to 12 charged 75% of the adult ticket price.

+ The payment is to be done within one to seven days.

+No charge is done for any date and route changes

+ 10% paid for ticket return

3.      From Ha Noi Capital to Hoi An (Da Nang):

-         Visitors have to go from Noi Bai airport to Da Nang airport, then take a taxi or Honda om (motorbike taxi) or bus to Hoi An. The airports nearest Hoi An are those of Da Nang, Nha Trang and Hue.

-         Duration: 1 hour and 10 minutes

-         Flight number: 3 per day

-         Departure time: 6.35, 11.45 and 17.00 everyday.

-         Ticket price: VND 825,000 per one-way ticket, VND 1,650,000 per return ticket.

-         Visitors can book an airplane ticket at 25 Trang Thi St., Hoan Kiem District, Ha Noi, Tel: (04) 832.0320- 934.9630 or at any agencies of Vietnam Airlines in Ha Noi.

4.      From Hoi An to Ho Chi Minh City:

-         Visitors can take a taxi, Honda om (motorbike taxi) or bus from Hoi An to Da Nang airport, then take a flight from Da Nang to Ho chi Minh City.

-         From Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh city:

+ Duration: 1 hour and 10 minutes

+ Flight number: 3 per day

+ Departure time: 8.20, 11.30 and 19.40 everyday

+ Ticket price: VND 825.000 per one-way ticket, VND 1,650,000 per return ticket

5.      From Hoi An to Ha Noi

Visitors can take a taxi, Honda om (motorbike taxi) or bus from Hoi An to Da Nang airport, then take a flight from Da Nang to Ha Noi city.

    + Duration: 1 hour and 10 minutes

    + Flight number: 3 per day

    + Departure time: 8.50, 14.20 and 19.05 everyday

    + Ticket price: VND 825.000 per one-way ticket, VND 1,650,000 per return ticket

In Hoi An, visitors can book airplane ticket at the following address:

-         Hoi An Tourism and Service Company:

Address: 6 Tran Hung Dao St.,

Tel: (0510) 910.400- 910.444

-         An Phu Tourism Company Ltd:

Address: 722 Hai Ba Trung St.,

Tel: (0510) 862.643

-         Le Nguyen Commercial and Tourist Company:

Address: 30-32 Tran Hung Dao St.

Tel: (0510) 916.218

-         Hoi An Agricculture and Rural Development Bank:

Address: 255 Cua Dai St. (Cam Chau), 06 Hoang Dieu St., (Minh An)

Tel: (0510) 863.053-910.365

      By rail:

        In Ho Chi Minh City, there are several trains to Ha Noi calling at Nha Trang, Tam Ky and Da Nang trains stations. Among them, Tam Ky and Da Nang train stations are nearer Hoi An so visitors should go to these stations. Taxi, Hon da om (motorbike taxi) or bus to Hoi An is convenient  and saves time for visitors.

        The address of Sai Gon train station is 1 Nguyen Thong St., district 3, HCMC and its tel is (08) 931.8952, or visitors can dial number (08) 843.6528 to book and receive tickets at home.

        The price vary according to the two different train types, i.e. the express train and the normal one. Each train is divided into different ticket classes, i.e. hard seat, soft seat and bed seat. Therefore, visitors should have a careful reference for the ticket appropriate with their time and convenient for their journey.

1.      Tam Ky train stations:

-         Express train: Everyday, there is one train from HCMC station to Ha Noi at 19.00, calling at Tam Ky station (Quang Nam)

-         Ticket price:

+Sitting seat: VND 303,000 per ticket

+ Bed seat: VND 448,000 per ticket

-         Normal train: Everyday, there are trains from HCMC station to Ha Noi at 9.45 and 13.30, calling at Tam Ky station

-         Ticket price:

+ Soft seat: VND 223,000 per ticket

+ Bed seat: VND 392,000 per ticket

2.      Da Nang train station:

-         Express train: Everyday, there are trains from HCM station to Ha Noi at 9.45 and 13.30, calling at Da Nang station.

-         Ticket price:

+ Soft seat: VND 223,000 per ticket

+ Bed seat: VND 392,000 per ticket

-         From Hoi An, if visitors want to visit adjacent places such as Nha Trang, Hue and other provinces, or return to HCMC and Ha Noi by train, they can book tickets in Da Nang station through the phone number (0511) 823.810, or (0510) 914.218 (contact Mr Tung)

-         From Da Nang to Ha Noi: everyday, there are 5 express trains at 6.46, 7.15, 8.44, 12.53 and 14.30, calling at Hue station.

-         Ticket prices from Da Nang to Ha Noi:

+ Soft seat: VND 298,000-VND 312,000 per person

+ Bed seat:

            .Floor 1: VND 431,000- VND 452,000 per person

            .Floor 2: VND 395,000- VND 413,000 per person

           .Floor 3: VND 346,000- VND 361,000 per person

   - Ticket prices from Da Nang to Hue
         + Soft seat: VND 47,000- VND 58,000 per person

         + Bed seat:

                     . Floor 1: VND 67,000- VND 77,000 per person

                     . Floor 2: VND 63,000- VND 72,000 per person

                     . Floor 3: VND 57,000- VND 65,000 per person

-         From Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City: everyday, there are 5 express trains at 5.29, 7.10, 7.30, 7.41, 11.09, and 13.06, calling at Nha Trang station.

-         Ticket prices from DA Nang to NhaTrang:

+ Soft seat: VND 166,000- VND 223,000 per person

+ Bead seat:

                     . Floor 1: VND 269,000- VND 316,000 per person

                     . Floor 2: VND 246,000- VND 291,000 per person

                     . Floor 3: VND 218,000- VND 256,000 per person

-         Ticket prices from Da Nang to Sai Gon:

+ Soft seat: VND 348,000- VND 365,000 per person

+ Bed seat:

            . Floor 1: VND 506,000- VND 531,000 per person

            . Floor 2: VND 463,000- VND 485,000 per person

            . Floor 3: VND 423,000- VND 406,000 per person

Note:

-         Children aged under 5 is charged no feel, children aged from 5 to 10 is charged 50% the ticket price.

-         Ticket return is accepted 5 hours before departure. 20% is charged on a ticket return or date change.

  By road:

-         In major cities in the country, the tourist offices sell tickets to Hoi An. This is the most convenient travel way for visitors, particularly foreign ones. There are even evening trips to save visitors, time. If visitors do not like to go on a tourist bus, they can some to Mien Dong Coach Station (eastern Coach Station) for an express bus.

-         From HCMC to Hoi An, there are 3 trips per day departing at 7.00, 8.00 and 20.00

-         From Nha Trang to Hoi An, there are 2 trips per day departing at 18.00 and 19.00

      Long Chu festival is offend celebrated on the 15^th of the lunar January  and July, in the religious beliefs of the old folk, this is the time when people face the risk of epidemics. As a result, religious ceremonies are carried out to fight the disease.

      Long Chu is a boat in the shape of a dragon (once of the four religious animals-dragon unicorn, turtle, and phoenix- worshipped by the old folks). This is traditionally a luxurious transport means for the kings in the oils time on their sight-seeing or patrolling tours. On the festival day, the villagers religiously move Long Chu to the temple where the chief of the ritual and the sorcerer will carry out the blessing ritual for the boat and then move it back to sea. Before the festival day, the sorcerer goes around the village ticking superstitious charms on those places where bad sprites are suspected to hide and threaten people’ life.  his festival, help in the whole are of Hoi An, is a time for the villagers to gather hard enjoying themselves after hard working days.

   Whale worshiping festival

       The whale Worshiping Festival lasts for two days in the second week of the lunar March in Hoi An. It is help by fishermen in the hope for good luck when they go fishing. If a dead whale drifts   to the seashore, fishermen will hold a big worshiping ceremony. Sometimes as long as three-day time, to pay the whale in return for it’s help. During the festival, hat boi (classical opera in South Viet Nam) with supporting orchestras is often performed. The actors and actresses sing and act like they are rowing a boat on the ground to illustrate the fishermen’s activities on the river. The meaning of these dances and song s is of the fishermen’s gratitude to the whale for its help to the fishermen when they have difficulty on sea. The whale Worshiping Festival performed at fishermen’s many visitors and local people to come and participate in.

 Boat racing festival

       The boat racing festival are organized in the hope to bring cheerful atmosphere for people in spring. In the old folks’ superstitious beliefs, a boat race is a time for people to show their gratitude to Gods who bring them peacefulness. The festival is annually held from the 2^nd to the 7^th of lunar January. The busy and cheerful atmosphere in the riverside fishing villages attracts many people of different social classes to take part in. Before th festival th festival, everybody is the belief in team work strength and the bets wishes which the local people give to each other.

Lunar new year festival

      The new –year Festival lasts for three days- the first, second and third days of lunar January through out the country

      The new-year Festival is a original traditional one of the Vietnamese in general and Hoi An people in particular. The festival has communal social, highly humanistic and aesthetic characters. The new-year Festival is the very point when an old year ends and a new year comes, and the big festival day when a new operating cycle of the universe stars, which reflects the harmonious spirit of human being and nature (earth-heaven-beings) and carries a profound humanistic value. The word Tet maens tiet, which is mispronounced from the word “thoi tiet” (weather). the word Nguyen means “stars” and the word Dan means “early morning”- the starting point of a new year. In addition, Tet is an occasion for families, relatives, neighbors, reinitiate give their regards to each other, commemorate and express their gratitude to the ancestors.

   Tet is also the time when people express their and less happiness enjoying a new year, forgetting all tiredness, difficulty they suffered in the last year, as well as being readily to make a fresh star in life with hope and fun. According of the agricultural residents, when comes as a reveal periods of all things.

Nguyen Tieu festival

     The Nguyen tieu festival is annually celebrated on the 16^th of lunar January at Guangdong and Chaozhou Assembly Hall by the Chinese living in Hoi An. This is the first worshiping ceremony in a year to the Guangdong and Chaozhou Chinese congregations. During the festival, many solemn ritual and interesting activities such ad Unicom daces or lottery games attract a great number of visitors and local; people in Hoi An Ancient Town to participate in.

Thien hau thanh mau worshiping festival

      The festival is annually help on the 23^rd of lunar March at the Fujian and the Five-community Assembly Halls by the Chinese living in Hoi An. They hold the festival in memory of Thien Hau Thanh Mau-the goddess thought to rescue boats and ships having difficulty on sea. The festival are organized in a wide are decorated with colorful flowers and lanterns in the traditional Chinese designs. Traditional games like unicorn dances and lottery games attract a great number of visitors and local people at Hoi An Ancient Town to participate in.

Good crop praying festival

     The Cau Bong (good crop praying) festival is annually organized on a spring day on the Hoi An River. The Festival is regarded as an opening ceremony for a new year.  Boat races are always help in this festival to pray good harvest, good health and prosperity.

      Minh Hai founder Worshiping Festival is annually help on the 7^th of lunar November at Chuc Thanh pagoda, Hoi An. After the worshiping ceremony which includes many rituals related to Buddhhism activities such as music performance and picnics.

Whale worshiping festival

     The Whale Worshiping Festival is offtenhelp at Ong temple, Cham Island on the date the Whale died or when a whale was found dead. The festival is originated from fishermen’s superstition.

Mid autumn festival

      The festival, annually help on the 15^th of lunar August in Hoi An. In the Asian philosophy, the moon symbolized for (posit to Yang) Yin. Consequently, the festival is organized on the full moon date of August to worship the Yin. The time for the original Mid Autumn Festival was Xuan Phan, the beginning of fall-winter period when supernatural power helped create on earth. On the 14^th and 15^th of the lunar August, every village in Hoi An organized traditional cultural activities such as preparing food trays to contemplate the moon, unicorn dances, lantern marches concerts competition, etc.

Doan Ngo festival

       The Doan Ngo Festival is annually help on the 5^th of the lunar May in Hoi An. It is originated from the belief of the old folks living on the river. In the festival, not only worshiping ceremonies are help in every local person’s house and at religious places but entertainment are also organized in public areas as well.

       Summer is the time when Yin and Yang are interchanged and the first important festival in summer is tet Doan Ngo. It is help in the hope for good health and prevention of disease. The Worshiping ceremony can be organized party here and there, but the festival invites almost everyone to leave home for pagoda, beaches, or beautiful landscapes to benefit from the fresh air for better spiritual and physical life.

MR.GUSOKUKUN’S ancient tombs

Mr.Gusokukun was a Japanese businessman, living in Hoi An when this ancient town was prosperous urban area. The tomb stele of Gusokukun was constructed in 1629 at An Hoa(presently Tan ward). This is an ancient tomb located on a rather large land in neighborhood with other Vietnamese and Chinese tombs. Many researchers inferred that Mr.Gusokukun was a rich and powerful man in his time because his tomb was built very elaborately and magnificently.

The tomb was severely damaged in wartime. Hoi An Town has the tomb refurbished in conformity with its photo before it was ruined.

MR TANI YAJIROBEI’S ancient tombs

Tani Yajirobei was a Japanese trader who was born is in Hirado. Tani Yajirobei died in 1647. His tomb indicates distinctive Japanese features. It was built by means of lime mixture made from shell, boi loi leaves and cane sugar. The tomb stele was erected northeastward, looking towards Japan, as a nostalgic sign on the beautiful Nippon land, his homeland.

Currently the tomb lies in the center of a romantic water rice field, Truong Le Field. The tomb is much better thanks to the big restoration in 1997. Visitors can come here on asphalted road visit to the tomb.

Address: Truong Le Hamlet, Cam Chau commune, Hoi An.

Patriot NGUYEN DUY HIEU’S tombs

Before joining the war resistance, Nguyen Duy Hieu had once successfully passed the national examination and obtained the second rank and he was well respected. He is the patriot who led Nghia Hoi Resistance Movement and built Tan Tinh revolutionary base to fights against the enemies in the provinces of central Vietnam. He gained lots of efforts and contribution in rescuing many revolutionary fighters from death when they were surrounded by the enemy. In 1887, he sacrificed in Hue and was brought back to Hoi An for burial. His tomb is 3 kilometers northeast from Hoi An Ancient Town, regarded as a typical Vietnamese architecture and a national historical and cultural relic.

Address: Cam Ha Commune, Hoi An Town.

One of the common features of ancient houses is their yin-yang tile roofs. Hoi An tiles are mad of based thick and very hard. Each piece is a square whose side is elevated and about 17-22cm long. Houses roofed by yin-yang tile roofs are very airy, especially in the dry season. Another important feature is the eye-shapes on the front doors, which is considered as the soul of the ancient houses.

Hoi An ancient people thought that all human beings and objects had “eyes” to look at the real life and themselves. Therefore on the doors are wooden circles like 2 eyes looking towards the roads, which are called the door-eyes.

An ancient house must have a lot of wooden pillars in the center and along the 2 sides of walls with all kinds of rafters, beams, ceilings, partitions, doors and staircases and so on. The biggest pillar is called principal column or main column in the shape of a circle cylinder or square cylinder located near the center of the house. Most of the ancient houses are entirely of precious iron wood which is good against humid-proof and termite. In the house, there are a lot of big beautiful wooden boards engraved with Chinese characters is red lacquer or gilded with gold. The ones hang horizontally are called Horizontal lacquered boards white the long, narrow ones vertically hang on columns in pairs are called pairs of wood panels. Both the horizontal lacquered boards and pairs of wood panel show the pride and elegance of the house owner. Paralleled sentences are inscribed or nacred on the wood panels covered by lacquer, subtlety expressing indicating the art of playing words by the writer. The most distinctive feature of the ancient houses in Hoi An may be their architecture and sculpture on wood. The houses lie side by side ut they have different structures. When walking on the streets, visitors would see the high and low tile roofs, and the arts of architecture and wood sculpture are most clearly demonstrated at these highest sections. There is a system of wooden frames and girders close to the house roof – top, created by putting big and short wooden columns together in order to support beams and rafters of the roof, which helps to make the unity and to concentrate all forces into the pillars, etc. This frame system is called the set of “vi keo”, or “vai” called by Hoi An people.

Inside an ancient Hoi An house, the most beautiful, sophisticated and painstaking one is the set of “vai” of its second chamber which is behind the space for shop and close to the garden. Normally, this is used as a living room where the set of wooden furniture, settee, tea drinking – table surrounded by old porcelain vases, landscape paintings and paralleled sentences inscribed on silk are hang on the walls, etc. The sets of “vai” are stylishly carved with lithe images such as leaf shaped clouds, fillets, precious worshipped animals. These are lissome and eye-catching sculpture works which are still strong enough to support the lays of tile roof above and make them romantic and less heavy.

There are 4 types of “vai”, in which the most charming and distinctive are 2 types of “vai trinh chong” including “tru doi (overlapping columns)” and “vai vo cua (“vai” in the shape of crab-shell)”. When looking at the sets of “vai”, visitors wil see there are a lot of short and unequal columns lying on the horizontal kingpost and the depestals of their bottom parts are widened like the shape of a pumpkin or a lotus or finger citron fruit, which are “vai trinh chong – tru doi”. With the type of “crab-shell” or “turtle-shell” ceiling, the roof-top is not 2 crossing-cutting planes, but is bent basing on the cambered arch. The frame supporting this arched roof is called “vai vo cua” and often carved so sophisticatedly that not many people may think it can bear forces. These frame systems can indicate their artists, great talents in sculpture and the pride of the house-keeper.

An ancient house often has 2-3 types of “vai” used in different roofs. Especially the house wooden frames are attached each other by spelling, not by iron nails. At the top of the main set of “vai”, there is a wedge called the “main key” of all houses, frames. Therefore, it is only required to detach this main key for moving the house to another place. Moreover, purlins which are transverse beams of the ceiling must be calculated as long as the number of purlins, basing on the subsequence of purlins, basing on the subsequence of 4 words “birth” or “old age” in order to avoid the bad omens for the house keeper. Additionally, purlins can be elaborately and spectacularly decorated with the popular carved images such as carps, Eight weapons, four Seasons, crabs, shrimps, serpents like monsters, fishermen, woodcutters, tenant farmers and readers, etc. These have contributed to the everlasting attraction, speciality and distinctive values of Hoi An Ancient Houses. It is a must for visitors to be in some tipiclas of hundreds of such ancient houses in Hoi An Town.

The Quan Thang ancient house

The Quan Thang Ancient House was more than 150 years old, being well-preserved as its primitive status. It was the most typical and beautiful house of Hoi An with the architectural style of Hoa Ha area (China) thanks to the excellent talent of Kim Bong carpenters. By their own great capacities, they brought to the House lively natural images such as birds, flowers, butterflies and stripes of red silk which are not only supple and exquisite but also very refined. The walls around the “Thien Vinh (God Resting)” yard considered the most beautiful parts of the House have a lot of small squares or rectangles with enough depth for the carved images inside stand out, describing the life of farmers, nobleness of the set of Four Season Pictures, surrounded by carps, squirrels, bunches of grapes which are lively as if they were the real ones. The landscape outside the House is cool, romantic and harmonious with the beauty inside, making visitors feel comfortable when visiting the House.

Old House Of Tan Ky

There have been either five or seven generations of Tans living here, depending on whom you speak with. Built over 200 years ago, the four small rooms are crammed with dark-wood antiques. The room closest to the street is for greeting visiting merchants. Farther in is the living room, then the courtyard, and, to the back, the bedroom. The first three are open to the public. A guide who will greet you at the door will hasten to explain how the house is a perfect melding of three architectural styles: ornate Chinese detailing on some curved roof beams, a Japanese peaked roof, and a simple Vietnamese cross-hatch roof support. The mosaic decorations on the wall and furniture are aged, intricate, and amazing. Take your time looking around.

Phung Hung Old House

Believed to be built in 1780, this 3-storey private residence has a mix of Chinese and Japanese structural designs. The main roof of the first floor is four-sided and influenced by Japanese architecture while the balcony on the upstairs has a Chinese rounded “turtle shell” roof. The house also features a trap door that is used for moving furniture during an emergency like flooding. The house’s third floor became a refuge for other families during the town’s worst flood in 1964. It is said that house has been inhabited by the same family for eighth generation.

The Tran Family Worship House

Like many houses in Hoi An, of the Tran Family Worship House is influenced by Chinese and Japanese architecture. The house, which was built by a mandarin of civil service named Tran Tu Nhac, is surrounded by a garden and high fences. The house has two parts: the main part and the auxiliary part. The first part is a place for worship while the second one is reserved for the family and a guest residence. The worship hass has three doors. Each door serves different types of visitors. The left door is for men. The right door is for women. The middle door is for the grand parents – it is open on Tet Festival or some festival days.

Ancestor worshiping house in Hoi An

One of the typical architecture features in Hoi An is expressed through worshiping houses where offspring generations celebrate and respect their ancestors, merits and contributions. Visitors should visit several following ancestor worshiping house in Hoi An to contemplate their solemn architectures as well as discover the ancient and present worshiping conventions and customs of Hoi An people

Tran Ancestor Worshiping House – Address: 21 Le Loi St

The Tran Family – a common family name has existed in Hoi An’s early time, approximately since 1700. The Tran worshiping house was constructed by Tran Tu Nhac, a mandarin who worked in the time of King Gia Long and was assigned to deliver diplomatic affairs in China. He was attached himself to the homeland, so he decided to have an ancestor worshiping house built for his descendants and it was also his way to respect the ancestors of the Tran Family.

The Tran ancestor worshiping house was built up in conformity with the principle of traditional geomancy under strong influence of Japanese and Chinese architecture style. It is secluded house nestled in a large garden featured with quiet landscape and green trees and plants. The House architecture consists of two divisions: the main division for worship including 3 gates. Among them, two side gates are used for male and female isolated accommodation while the central gate is used for grandparents and only opened on Tet Holidays or worship days. Many antiques are preserved in the house such as red-lacquered and gold-trimmed wooden box, a sword, a set of seals by Tran Tu Nhac. Moreover, the Tran ancestor worshiping house is an exhibition place for Tran Family, antiques. Visitors can buy and collect their favorite things when they call at this location.

The Tran ancestor worshiping house is not only a place for the Tran family’s members to gather, worship their ancestors and handle their family affairs annually but also a fascinating tourist destination in Hoi An.

Truong Ancestor Worshiping House – Address: 69/1 Phan Chu Trinh St

The Truong Family originated from the Fukian province of China and the Truong Family’s members have been famous for their business, scientific researches and their significant contributions and efforts to the national economic growth and cultural development. The Truong ancestor worshiping house was constructed in the mid 19^th century. Under the impact of time, this worshiping house has been degraded and damaged and it is currently financed for restoration according to its original architecture. Being in the Truong Family Chapel, visitors wourd be very interested in witnessing old items which were gifted by Nguyen Lord such as title-conferring records, education diplomas and certificates on display. These achievements resulted from considerable contributions of the Trung family’s members to the country during the Nguyen dynasties.

· Nguyen Tuong family worshiping house – Address: 8/2 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai St

· Tang family worshiping house – Address: 16 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai St.

· Nguyen family Chapel - Address: 24 Le Loi St.

· Pham family worshiping house – Address: 58/9 Le Loi St

· Pham family worshiping house – Address: 96 Tran Phu St

· Phan Xuan family worshiping house – Address: Hamlet 3 – Cam Kim

· Huynh family worshiping house – Address: Khoi Son Pho 1, Cam Chau

Hoi An is situated in the coastal tropical region with the average yearly temperature of 250C, and its climate is separated into 2 seasons: the dry season with severely hot weather from February to July and the rainy season from September to December. Especially from December until March, the average temperature has fluctuated from 180C to 210C and the humidity reaches 80-90%. The majority of inhabitants are Kinh people and Chinese.

Hoi An is domestically and internationally famous for its oldest urban architecture complex in the South East Asia and its well-preserved ancient style. Hoi An jas become a fascinating tourist destination which draws and attracts lots of domestic and foreign visitors for their discovery and expedition especially after Hoi An Town was declared a Cultural World Heritage on the 4th December 1999 by UNESCO.

Hoi An Ancien Town was formed in the 16^th and 17^th centuries. As one of the busiest commercial ports in the Central Vietnam frequented by trading ships from many countries for commercial activities, Hoi An became a Cultural crossroad mingling with the Western, Japanese and Chinese influence remains which have been preserved rather intact including ancient living houses, assembly halls, communal houses, temples, pagodas and shrines in combination with complicated but neatly-lined streets and roads according to chess squared planning (the urban commercial models of eastern countries in the Middle Age). In addition to its ancient town, Hoi An has been featured with natural landscapes, beaches, islands traditional cuisines attracting numerous visitors to indulge themselves in the ancient quiet atmosphere.

Furthermore, customs, conventions and old-aged cultural activities inherited and developed by Hoi An people have enabled Hoi An to be a living museum of culture and architecture. Thanks to its to early contact to various civilizations and cultures, Hoi An inhabitants have owned peculiar features in their way of living: both as calm and thoughtful as the Eastern and polite, elegant as the Western. Yet their characteristics such as hospitality, modesty and simplicity have been best known.

Upon arrival in Hoi An, you may feel that everything seems to be zoomed in and shrunk e.g. quiet ancient houses with moss-covered yin-yang tile roofs so adjacent to one another; calm and peaceful river branches in slowly flown water; immense white sand beaches, rising to a coastal village after. Everything is right in visitors, vision.

The streets in Hoi An are lined with ancient wooden houses which possess both old and sophisticated styles. Visitors can recognize that these houses are always open to visitors so that visitors can look through to the back of houses with frames, pillars, rafters and collar beams. Long parallel streets have the crossing end at a secluded wooden bridge with a low tiled roof and handrail for pedestrians. It is where Pagoda Bridge of Japanese Bridge – the symbol of Hoi An Ancient Town – is situated.

This ancient town had been under impact of the old Chinese culture for ages; thus upon arrival in Hoi An, visitors might see colorfully – decorated and refined temples and pagodas located here and there in the town with thir high and wide gates, blue curved ceramic tile on roof, which are very distinctive and unique. Such temples, communal houses and assembly halls, etc had been deeply influenced by the Chinese architecture. Shops along the sidewalks have only enough space for arranging a few chairs and table sets to serve visitor’s food and beverage needs or give them room for reading books comfortably. Everything – houses, pagodas, temples etc in Hoi An old-aged and ancient but affectionate, familiar and warmly-felt, which make travlers feel relaxed, unworried and unhurried.

Hoi An is most graceful when lanterns are lighted along old streets. Upon the sunset, hundreds of silk lanterns emit light which are sufficient enough for visitors, walking on sidewalks. Here and there in the street corners or on the sidewalks sat old-aged women by their food-selling bamboo frames whose baskets contains food and are surrounded by clients eating and talking excitedly. Visitors can obtain a fantastic relaxation while walking on Hoi An streets by night. The ancient town seems to bring visitors back hundreds of years ago at a place where there were neither high-rise buildings nor advertising-neon-light supermarkets. The living pace appears to be slower so that visitors can get away from hertic life and daily concern. Hoi An has been preserving cultural values which fascinate visitors to come, to explore and discover. All the things in town has been waiting for visitors, footsteps, even once.

Coming to Hoi An is returning to nice reminders of Hoai District which lies along the bank of the Hoai River which was known as a faifo to Western countries and was one of the wealthy and busy towns in South East Asia with its community of Vietnamese, Chinese and Japanese residents who got along well.

In the year 1719, Nguyen Lord (Nguyen Phuc Chu) visited Hoian and renamed the bridge as Lai Vien Kieu, which means a bridge for passengers – by from far away. Lai Vien Bridge (Kieu means bridge) is the evidence of the golden time of Hoian Ancient Town for many centuries. It was once a busy international port and an residing place for Japanese, Chinese and Vietnamese communities from 17^th to 18^th centuries.

Pagoda Bridge has been famous for its unique and special architecture. On one bridge sie – the western end are a pair of wooden monkeys and a pair of wooden dogs guards indigo-blue ceramic incense burner on the eastern side. There are several explanations for these animal statues. One story claims that construction of the bridge began in the year of the Dog and finished in the year of the Monkey, wo the animal statues were built up for celebrating these events. Another ancient story said that a water monster – Cu resided in the ditch under the bridge. His head was in India while its tails in Japan and its back went across Hoian Town. Each time, the monster Cu woke up, floods happened and caused severe damages to human life and property. Therefore, the Japanese built the Pagoda Bridge strategic point to protect inhabitants from disasters and to help them live peacefully and prosperously. The Chinese worshiped the God “Bac De Tran Vu” right in the centre of the pagoda to exorcise water monsters based on their religious belief.

During the time and the ups and downs of history, Pagoda Bridge was downgraded and has been restored several times in 1763, 1817, 1865, 1917 and the latest rehabilitation was done in 1986. The Japanese Bridge or Pagoda Bridge has been regarded as the symbol of the ancient town and was licensed as a National Historical and Cultural Relic on 17^th February 1990.

From the 16^th century to the 17^th century, Lord Nguyen attached much importance to the trade with foreign countries. To promote the trade, Lord Nguyen made good conditions to the Japanese, the Chinese so that they could establish a trading town. Hoi An was considered the mose advantageous spot thanks to its position adjacent to the Dai Chiem seaport and backing a prosperous land where there were various products and where the traffic of boats and ships was done easily. The export products of Hoi An were mainly gold, swallow, nests, seafood pepper, silk, amber, precious wooden furniture, pottery etc.

“Dat lanh chim dau” (good land for birds, home), the Japanese and the Chinese started buying land lost established a town, built warehouses, loadingports and stores etc., turning Hoi An into a busy and exciting town in the shape of a “special economic are” that developed most in South-east Asis. Then under the western’s eyes, Hoi An was known as faifo with a Japanese district, a Chinese district, a harbor, markets and handicraft villages on the edge of the town. Faifo was so busy and crowded that it was thought to be two cities. It was also the heyday of the town. Hoi An functioned as the bridge head for the propagation of the Christianity in Vietnam by priest Alexandre De Rhodes, who had great contribution to the promotion of the Vietnamese writing based on the Latin characters.

In the end of the 18^th century, the bed of the Thu Bon river got shallower and shallower with the historical upheavals and the geographical changes and big ships could not enter. As a result, Hoi An was no longer a commercial port. Remarkably, Hoi An was not destroyed by bullets and bombs through the fierce war years in Vietnam. The houses blocks in Hoi An ancient town are now evidence for the golden age of a hustle and bustle urban.

It is these factors that attract domestic and foreign visitors to Hoi An. It is not overstated that Hoi An is a live museum for those who are keep on researching, discovering and exploring this “treasure” of non-material and material culture.

Evidence of this uniqueness is partly visible in the outer appearance of the streets with old, moss-encrusted architectural works with their ancient decorative patterns and in the extant names of the lanes. It can be found in the clubs and head quarters of the guilds of different styles and worshiping statues imbued with distinctive East Asian features of the glorious past. The beauty of the city’s old streets expresses something that cannot be easily captured, with their native cultural depth that has been formed and nurtured from integration and creation, hence the particular and unmistakable colour of the city.

Isn’t it the reason why Hoi An is always animated and busy, but not boisterous, sustaining its natural peace and tranquility in spite of the changes that time has brought. People of all ages and nationalities, who have mingled with the life of the town, weaved through the flow of its traffic, visited its old sites of interest, has a cordial talk with its people, and shopped here and there, will quickly realize the gentleness and elegance of the ancient town. This simple and plain cultural quality is just like an early morning mist shrouding the environment and social life naturally, unpretentiously, and exactly as the trading port is called in Vietnamese.

These days, on the evening of the 15^th day of the lunar months, all homes in the city douse the electric lights and hang up their fancy lanterns of all shapes and forms. Loopahs and pumpkins, octagons and merry-go-rounds, all flickering from dusk till dawn turn the old streets into a glittering fantasy land, attracting more and more people onto the roads. One day as the viewers quietly walked on and on, contemplating the lanterns and the streets, I was one among them, mixing and mingling with them and making the mose of the lofty pleasures of contemplation, windows-shopping or enjoying the evening snacks and delicacies. At every corner, Hoi An was engulfed in an atmosphere of open-heartedness, rustic yet elegant, simple yet colourful, plain as the chracters of its soil and the virtues of its folk, something intermingled between the true and the false, between poetry and painting, between the present and the past between introspection and external settings. On such nights, you want to stay awake all night with Hoi An since wherever you go you’ll get some feeling of profound attachment.

I soon found myself in an old house, a very wealthy merchant’s home, built 400 years ago, still standing there intact as a historical witness to the city. With the exception of two brick walls, it was built of iron wood, glistening with the passage of time, decorated with vertical and horizontal wooden plaques, panels and couplets flowing calligraphy in the lounge, including this exceptionally interesting poem:

As the apricot blooms try to blossom before the others,How beautiful those snow-white flowers on the distant mountains areContemplating the spectacular scenery, who could realizeThe beauty of spring at the harmonious moment of heaven and earth

The private properties of the wealthy in Hoi An always includes a “back garden”, unlike other areas of the country. Often this area is doted with rare bonsai plants for the owner to enjoy during leisure times, feasting his eyes on the miniature landscapes and reciting poems.

Thuong Chua Cau – Ha Am Bon is the main axis that leads to the centre of the town. Along its side runs the Hoai Pho River weaving through the old streets. This name brought me some sweet nostalgia of the past. It was a Vietnamese articulation of the term “Faifo” given by the European merchants, implying an urban area with a trading port, or a “port city”, to be brief. The Chinese in Hoi An, however, pronounced it in their own way, transcribing it into “Hoai Pho”, to signify their longing for the ancient town. Either term accurately expresses what exist in Hoi An.

And like the feelings invoked by the name “Hoai Pho”, those who travel along the ancient streets of Hoi An seem to go back against the flow of history, into the depth of its cultural layers. There, in the 17^th century, it was a prime center for trans-shipment and distribution of commodities of the South. Besides aloes and gold, its fine arts articles accounted for a high percentage of the exports of the Dai Viet. The “Phu  bien Tap luc” (Miscellaneous Annals – Revised and Amended) by Le Quy Don records: “Hoi An has so many commodities on display and on sale that one cannot remember them all. There are silk and silk products, medicinal herbs and pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and costumes, high-quality paper and stationery, glass and fans, pins and needles, furniture and pottery, copper and silver wares, tea and dried foods, candies and cookies. It goes on and on”.

Thus you may see that as early as the 17^th century, the handicrafts produced by private house holds and guilds developed well. The artisans of a craft would be living in the same communes, such as carpentry at Kim Bong, ceramics at Thanh Ha, mental casting at Phuoc Kieu, textile at Minh Huong. It is quite well known that the ancient houses and monuments of the town with delicate carvings were made up virtually by the clever hands of Kim Bong and Phuoc Kieu artisans, that is, these workmen made no small contribution to the formation of the cultural values of these old streets. Later, they were recruited by the Nguyen Court to construct the ancient capital of Hue.

So where are these renowned artisans today? I immediately felt some touch of nostalgia when I suddenly recalled the verses of late poet Vu Dinh Lien:

People in the days of yore,Where are you now?

Embroidery, one of the traditional crafts in Hoi An, is being restored and developed, and is cherished by many people. Hoi An embroideries are really gentle and graceful, as elegant as its young girls with subtle movements and delicate tasteful lines. The colours are fantastically vivid. I stood there, astounded and stunned, contemplating the products of their producer. Possibly both!

Gastronomy constitutes another distinctiveness of Hoi An culture, with tea from Phu Thuong, cinnamon from Tra Mi, cane-sugar from Dien Ban, noodles, half-done beef, and ambrosia from the Quang region. In particular, the herbs from Tra Que are quite indispensable spices for discriminating connoisseurs of fine food. According to old folks in town, these spicy legumes, a variety of aquatic weeds take from a lake and planted on the promontory of Tra Que, provides micro-quantum elements, which produce a particular aromatic taste cherished by so many people, perhaps thanks to the growers’ own secrets to their cultivation.

Hoi An has so many exotic things! So exotic yet so popular!

People say visiting Hoi An is like a homecoming, back to the old scenes of trading boats moored at the riverbanks, back to the roots that embrace the whole course of history and glory of a most frenetic trading port, and back to a place of peace and benevolence, imbued with immense humanity and profound values.

The writer Nguyen Ngoc, born of Quang Nam Province, has come to settle down in Hoi An after traveling to all corners of the country, seeing the town as his “native land”. Its attraction means the magnetism of the “native land”. In the age of the vibrant and frenetic industrial civilization of today, more than ever, the appeal of the “native land” seems to be the call of the innermost recess of the human heart.

Visiting Hoi means not only coming back to the old villages and ancient streets but returning to mean tracing the footsteps of the ancient Viet people of Sa Huynh Culture. Staying in Hoi An can lead to seeking Prophet Trang Quynh’s old oracle “Hoanh Son nhat dai, van dai dung than” (literally, the Long Range may be a place for eternal habitation), in order to realize and reflect upon the far-sightedness and the undaunted will of our ancestors. You will be lead to understanding the origin and development of Hoi An as a trading port, and to contemplate it as a heritage of all humankind and the pride of the Vietnamese nation, which has won the admiration of friends from all corners of the globe who are coming ever larger numbers, like coming back to their “native land”.