Hoi An : A Town As a Museum

A Town As A Museum 

Soon after overseas travel got de-Covid-regulated, we found ourselves teleported into a picture postcard of lanterns, conical hats and yellow houses .

They call the place Hoi An .
Sometime in ancient history , the Chams  had called it Panduranga . 

In later historic times , the name was Faifo. 

But, first things first : Where , What and Why .

The Where :
Hoi -An :  in Quang Nam Province of Central Vietnam , on the bank of River Thu Bon just before it enters the South China Sea .

The What :
Hoi- An Ancient Town , is a 30 hectare sprawl that was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1999. , and is now a part of the Cu Lao Cham Hoi-An Biosphere Reserve also ( which area includes a few uninhabited biodiverse  islands that are home to the Swift which makes the much sought after delicacy Bird Nests - in fact , there is a "Ministry For Protecting and Regulating Harvest of Bird Nests" seen in Old Town !)  

It is a remarkably well-preserved example of a small-scale trading port , that was active from the 15th to 19th centuries , trading widely with the countries of Southeast & East Asia, the Mid East and a slice of Europe . The town was the hub of Chinese and Japanese traders majorly . The seas were busy then , the port towns humming . 
And then, with the rise of colonialism and all the trade and business shifting to bigger and more modern ports, Hoi An stagnated . But , remarkably , did not change itself !

The town’s heritage status comes from its well-preserved complex of 1,107 timber frame buildings, with brick or wooden walls, which are in their original shape till today , the periodical repairs ( using traditional methods only) not withstanding . The buildings include public halls, commercial and domestic spaces , an open market , a ferry quay, and religious buildings . Architecture , though faithful to Eastern design , mingles freely with European touches where needed .

All houses are tiled and have vast quantities of carved wooden components all over. Outer walls are all colored a mellow yellow , said to bring good luck . The buildings stand in tight rows , along narrow streets. With hardly any pavement spaces .

  
One arterial street runs parallel to the river and the other streets and alleys run off from it at right angles , forming a grid so that the river is never far away from anywhere . Most establishments are shop-houses .
The town continues to be living to this day , often occupied by generations of the same families, and functions as a center of modest commerce, plying its old trades like fishing, pottery, carpentry and dressmaking . Now , Tourism is a major source of income .

According to UNESCO , "the town’s outstanding universal value comes from its comfortable commingling of varied and rich cultural influences from different directions , making them its own proud heritage , with no pressure to modernise its character."
There is a modern , concrete & glass Hoi An town too , but it does not overlap with the Old Town .

A 280 hectare Buffer -zone is maintained to protect the heritage site from external threats like annual flooding , illegal encroachments , etc.

The Why :
Easy one . “Because it is there “ .
Basic urge being to get Vietnam too stamped in the passport , to keep company with other Far East pins on our travel maps. But , the Hanoi-Ho Chi Minh -Halong Bay circuit seemed too hackneyed  . 

Besides , reviews about crowds and commercialization in those places were discouraging . Hoi An was the better option . It had heritage , it had beaches and it had The Lanterns !

Most of all , obtaining the visa was child's play ! A simple online application is all it takes. 

The How :
At own sweet pace , according to own sweet plans , though all “15 Things To Do in….” kind of lists and packages were faithfully pored over . We did four things : walked about the Old Town , took pictures, ate and slept . And no , we did not take the Cookery Lessons, much advertised all over . Nor did we dress up in  the graceful, flowing "Ao Dai" for pictures . 

Language :
Did not try to learn the Basic Phrases after coming to know that in Vietnamese , its not the word that carries the meaning , but the pronunciation . The same word can mean seven vastly different things . Better stick to rudimentary English than getting deported for blabbering something seditious in place of a greeting . Anyway, Hoi An is such a Tourism based economy that even the street vendor knows a smattering of English .

Transport : 

Full use of “ Grab” app . But taxis stop just outside Old Town limit . Have to explore only on foot , bicycle or the cycle rickshaws. 

Another public vehicle is the open Buggy ( electrical) , thats an Autorickshaw aspiring to be a Bus. 

A ticket is needed to enter Old Town  in daytime , when the museums and shrines are open . Ticket price includes entry fee to any 5 of above . Daytime , the town is quiet and peaceful. Good time for  pre-nup and  Instagram photoshoots in fancy wear  as could be seen! 

 
Come dusk , the lanterns go up , crowds surge in , music and noise take over . And street performances . Full mela . That’s everyday . On fullmoon days , there’s added attraction of more lanterns, more noise , more shows , more shutterbugging .
But, everything closes down by 9.30 or 10pm. sharp .

Food :

 International Vegetarian and Vegan options available. For good measure , two desi Dal-Roti hotels are also within Old Town. "Ca-phe" is famous . Very strong and comes in variety of added flavours , like Cinnamon coffee, Coconut coffee, pandan coffee , egg coffee etc . Also the Weasel Coffee -Which in Indonesia was Civet Coffee or Kopi Luak 

Quite creditable that the old buildings have been maintained in good condition. Obviously care has been taken not to introduce modern elements during periodic renovations. It helps , perhaps, that many buildings are occupied by the descendants of the merchants/traders who built them. Those sold or let out for running cafes and shops  also retain the old character.

Among the ticketed buildings are a rich merchant's house ( * see below for details ), a folk and traditional crafts museum, a family shrine for ancestor worship , two Assembly Halls where the old trade guilds met to do business , a pottery workshop and silk weaving workshop. 

A lane full of renowned Tailors who can stich any garment design shown to them. So too Shoe and Bag makers. Logos of famous brands are flicked happily ! 

The most famous landmark in Old Town is The Japanese Bridge  (Chua Cau) first built  in 

16th Century to link the Japanese  traders settlement and the Chinese traders settlement , situated on either bank of  the river/canal . It was rebuilt in present form a century later with the words " Lai Vien Kieu " ( =Bridge to receive Guests from afar) carved on its entrance arch by The Emperor of South (S.Vietnam)  It is 18 meters long and 3 meters wide, made  entirely of timber, with ceramic tile roofing covering the whole bridge . It also has a shrine midway to Tran-Wu , a Taoist deity who controls Weather/Elements  and two peculiar Guardians- a Monkey and a Dog - guarding the two entrances to the bridge . The mythology pertaining to the bridge is that of Namazu , the  Terrible Dragon with its Head in India , Body in Vietnam and Tail in Japan. It causes earthquakes whenever it moves , so needs to be kept pinned down . Apparently, the Bridge with the God and The Guardians  does just that !

The Japanese bridge features on a currency note of the country and is also the most widely used image for  making Tourist Souvenirs.  

It is not known why  Lanterns became such a big deal in Hoi -An. Apparently they were introduced here by the Japanese sea-merchants of yore .But the colorful "local tradition" has become famous and does encourage tourist spending . For a little town which suffered badly during the Pandemic shut down , a revived influx of tourists is a most welcome relief. 

The Beaches of Hoi An are also a  big draw. Spent a tranquil evening in An Bang Beach , a popular one , but some distance away from Old Town . Very clean , not noisy though lined by cafes and bars. 

Hoi An's history of maritime trade is the theme of a grand  open air Opera, ( "Memories of Hopi An ") , with mega props, special effects and a cast of nearly 500 actors, staged every night in a theme park called Hoi An Memories Land , half an hour away from the Old Town. 

The nearest big city ,  DaNang ,  a very hep and happening place with lovely beaches and bays bordering it , is home to a wonderful museum :  the 100 year old  "DaNang Museum of Cham Sculpture" which has the largest collection of Cham artefacts . 

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* Tan Ky Merchant Heritage House : Meaning : Progress Shop. Was a trading house in 18th - 19th cent. , built by a much benevolent  Chinese Merchant  with a Rags-to-Riches life story, after he chose to retire to this quiet town by River Thu Bon to spend his sunset years communing with Nature. His 9th generation descendents still live here . The House is of traditional Three-Part plan , richly done up with carved wood panels joined by pegs , not nails. Two black laquered wood pillars  inlaid with Chinese letters in mother of pearl are absolutely stunning for the fact that , at close up range, each stroke of the Chinese characters is fashioned like a tiny bird ! 

The fabulous house is listed as a "National Heritage Home" by Ministry Of Culture and has been visited by many famous guests. 

While touring the house , there's no escape from sales talk by persons claiming to be descendents, plugging charms , amulets and such like  !