Danang/Hue/HoiAn 2025 - Danang Son Tra Night Market

 

The plan for us was to walked along the river, and maybe have dinner at the night market before we went to watch the weekend Dragon Bridge Show. It was rather early in the evening when we reach, so the night market was just in the mids of setting up. The name of the market was called Cho Dem Son Tra.

It was quite a huge market, and separated in sections for shopping and eating. The eating area lined with seating area and shops selling all sorts of food, while the shopping area is filled with clothes and souvenirs. 

We head to the eating area for our dinner. There were so many types of food to pick from. 

A seafood stall. I guess we shouldn't be too adventurous on our first day in Vietnam? Don't want to have an upset tummy at the start of our trip. lol. But it looks so appetising. And I know it would be delicious cause I've eaten such street food in Hanoi road side before and it's always filled with so much condiments that it was hard not to taste delicious.

There were lots of street snacks too, things served in skewers are always popular in night market cause they are so easy to eat as you walk around exploring the place. 

Lots of BBQ or fried meat. Above is roasted chicken. I'm trying to pick up Vietnam bit by bit. So I know that Ga means chicken, and Com means rice. So Com Ga means Chicken Rice! and Ca means fish. I can also read pork and beef as Thit and Bo. 

The stall we finally settled on, and the menu above.

We ordered a mixed platter to share. It was very flour-y, but it was ok. Our first taste of Vietnamese street food. We sat among the locals to eat, so the ambience was really nice. It was a rather light dinner for me. 

Soon it was night time and the streets are lighted up by lanterns. It was time for us to walked to the Dragon Bridge to secure a place to watch the free night show!

Danang/Hue/HoiAn 2025 - Danang Dragon Bridge River Walk

 

Onwards to wards the Dragon Bridge! One of the reason I wanted to visit Danang was to see this unbelievable Dragon Bridge. I still can't believe they would build a whole dragon decorating a bridge! It was beautiful and magical! Vietnam is such a land of mystery!

There are many bridges connecting both side along the river, and there was a rainbow looking beach just opposite from the Dragon Bridge too, and it reminded me very much of Japan's Rainbow Beach at Odaiba. We did even cross it on our way home to the airport on our last day.

But today was all about the Dragon Bridge. It was a big cloudy when we walked across it. And yes, you can walk across it. There are pedestrian walkways along the beach and they are quite wide. So it felt very safe walking along it. Above is the head of the dragon.  

After crossing the bridge, there is a river walk you can enjoy so see the view of the river and some boats parked at the marina. You'll also find more dragon statue here, and restaurants and shops along the river. It was all rather touristy.

Here is a close up of the dragon overlooking the river. Kinda reminds me of the Merlion of Singapore lol. 

Here is a photo of two dragons together in a single photo. I still think the Dragon Bridge is the most impressive looking one, especially with it's reflection on the river, and even more so if there is a sunrise or sunset view that adds to the heavenly being's present here. 

Some huge boat-like restaurant that looked expensive. We didn't venture into any. But it was fun walking around seeing all these interesting sights. 

Here are some photos of me and my friend at the Dragon Bridge. 

And another one of us at the river side looking towards the Dragon Bridge. 

Danang/Hue/HoiAn 2025 - Danang Chun An Long Temple

 

Just besides the Cham Sculpture Museum, you will find a little door leading to Chun An Long Temple. It's not really flagged out as a tourist attraction, but it's a very interesting place to go and take a look all the same.

Upon walking in, you will see some huge granite calving of Goddess of Mercy and Buddha. That alone should justify a visit! It's such a lovely piece of art. Above is the one of the Buddha. 

And here is the one of the Goddess of Mercy surrounded by dragons. Vietnamese seems to like dragons a lot. Everything is 'Long' to them, a heavenly being on earth. I kinda like that cause I'm born in the year of the dragon :)

There is a two storey temple inside, and you are free to explore them. What caught  my attention here are the lotus leaves that are so gigantic! I've tried growing water lilies before, and I also love lotus plants. I think they looked so beautiful surrounded by water. One day, I would like to grow them again, maybe in a pond with fishes to that they don't grow mosquitoes.

Going inside the temple, I am always amazed at home modern, and how colourful Vietnamese temples looked. I always remind myself that Vietnam is a very young nation, and its population is also very young as compared to other countries that I've visited.  

Inside the main shrine, a golden Buddha sits. One thing that really caught my attention is the beautiful lamps found through out the temple. They were so elegant and lovely. I would love to have them in my house if my house have an altar too. 

There was also a thousand hand Goddess of Mercy inside the temple. After reading Strange Building and Strange Strange House, I find that I can't looked at such idols in the same way as I used to. Japanese fiction always have a way of messing up my psyche that way. After reading Uzumaki, I find it hard to use kitchen wares with spirals on them, lol. 

Here are more frightening photos of golden idols for you. When I took these photo, it was just a normal thing for me during my travels. I have yet to read the Strange House and Strange Building series. But now that I am uploading these photos, some part inside of me felt really disturbed looking at them. 

Some Pali writings? We don't see such deco on doors in temples in Malaysia or Singapore. Or even China. So it was interesting to see them here in Vietnam. Plus the colour combination of red and gold really made the writings stand out.  

Going up to the 2nd storey, there is a lovely statue of Buddha with fake flowers surrounding it. It was a lovely sight, and it would have been lovelier if the flowers were real.... But I'll take what I get  :P

I think you could also go into the 2nd floor if my memory did not fail me. Again there were beautifully decorated doors and floors.

Inside, another golden idol illuminated by yellow lighting. Interestingly male idols don't disturbs me. Only the female one does, cause in the Strange House and Strange Building books, the goddess inside was female, and gold.....

After spending a brief time at the temple, we left from another door where two dragon heads hung on the door frame, and Buddhist coloured flag surrounds the door way. I think it's a lovely temple to visit if you're already there at the Cham Sculpture Museum. Don't miss it!

Danang/Hue/HoiAn 2025 - Danang Cham Sculpture Museum Level 2

 

I was surprised that the path leading up to the second floor looked rather modern. I was expecting stairs, maybe dark stairs way leading up. But this design is so opened! And so bright!

There were some history section of this 100 year old museum. It used to be a house I think, or maybe a government building, before being turned into this lovely museum. 

There were less heavy-weighted items on display at the second floor, like embroidery. 

At the hall way around the second floor, there were also miniature replica of ancient Cham temples or tombs. I really like these, especially since I've seen many in Angkor Wat. All these were replica of actual sites, and their names were displayed on each one.

Here is an example of one. 

Stones with writing on them, and probably a deity's feet, or what is left of it. Do you see the round things below with a dot? Those are actually designs that looked like nipples. Female forms, fertility, nature. It was after all, a very agricultural and farming society. So the female breast was something adored in the culture that they often put this design in their sculpture. 

This sculpture just looks interesting to me. Looked like an old western man with mustasche.

This one was also interesting because they showed wheels!

They also have a section which was like an archive, and they just dumped whatever that cannot be categorised here. Perhaps it was just overwhelming amount of sculptures that they have. Or perhaps they are waiting for some area to complete renovation first before displaying there. But it was still fun to walk around these and you felt like you are in an old antique shop looking for treasures.

And among those treasures you found these! Lol. I've actually brighten up the photos before posting them here. It was rather dark in the archive room. 

Danang/Hue/HoiAn 2025 - Danang Cham Sculpture Museum Level 1 (2/2)

This blog is all the lovely sculpture that I found inside the Cham Sculpture Museum, Danang. We probably spent around an hour inside the museum, and it was rather lovely. I like taking photographs of those exhibit I find beautiful and touching, so that I may display them here on my blog. I take this blog like a personal museum and art gallery of my life :) And I want it to be filled with things I love. 

All these lovely sculptures not only captures the artistic talent and workmanship of the people who created them, but I think it also captured the love and worship of their gods and religion. I am always fascinated by religious art, even though I am an atheist my whole life.

Some were similar in looks and it was hard to tell them apart after a while.

So much work must have gone into each pieces.

Some reminded me of Indonesia Bali style sculptures. Or those guardians in Bangkok Palace. All originating from the same source, Hinduism. Yet they have also morphed into their own intepertation of each culture.

This one even looked Japanese!

Some in meditative post.

Others in the dance of life.

Some, I guess, just standing there..... There was a story about this lady. I just can't remember it.....

But how elegant they look.

This one was kinda like a whole piece put together like a jigsaw puzzle. At that time I didn't knew it yet, but this now looks like a tomb, or something inside a mausoleum. Kinda like a rich man's tombstone. Cause now that I look back on this, it reminded me like how one of the mausoleum looked like in Hue.....

This is the front view of it. What do you think?

I love that you could still see the greens and natural sunlight outside. It had been raining slightly when we stepped into the museum. So it was rather humid. A very appropriate vibe of a Cham Museum :P

I leave you here with some elephant sculpture.