Da Nang - the city has stolen my heart

I had never visited Viet Nam before, so Da Nang was completely new to me.  I didn’t know what to expect in this city of more than a million inhabitants and a completely different culture. The first impression when I left the airport was “Wow, all these motorbikes. Motorbikes all over”!!  During the fortnight that I was in Da Nang, I was more and more amazed by the traffic around me.  Partly that was because my friends in Da Nang took me around on their motorbikes, so I was a participant in the traffic. I even bought my own helmet! The first time I sat on the back of a motorbike was the most impressive.  Balancing with two people, sometimes even almost standing still, that evening we drove along the Han River to the Thuan Phuoc Bridge.  There we were not alone as many young people from Da Nang were there too, enjoying the cool evening and the beautiful sightseeing.  It was a memorable evening because it was the first time that I had seen Da Nang by night. A few days later I drove across the same bridge with the same friend as we set off to see more of the city - the sandy beaches and the international resorts.  The warm weather, the cool wind in my hair and the beautiful views made me feel free and happy.  Whilst I like the new parts of Da Nang and the beaches, most of all I love the “old” city. I walked for hours, just aimlessly wandering from street to street and enjoying the busy lives of the people.  Everybody seems to have a shop at home and they try to sell something to the other owners of the shops nearby.  My favourite place was the Con Market.  Almost every day I spent some time there and, although I don’t speak Vietnamese and they didn’t speak that much English, I ‘talked’ with all the shop-owners using body language and we had lots of laughs.  They only had small market stalls selling vegetables, meat or fish, but they enjoyed their lives.  I could have been married a dozen times as everybody knew of a single woman who was looking for a suitable partner from Europe. The market was also so colourful, and (with permission) I took hundreds of photos of people, products and presents.  I was wondering about the standards of hygiene but learnt that markets are actually quite hygienic places as there is little refrigeration.  Stallholders have buy and sell all their goods the same day, so most meat, fish and vegetables are fresh.  It was here that I bought the presents which I took home for my friends and relatives. Amongst the teeming traffic I learnt one of the specific characteristics of the people of Da Nang - they give way to each other.  Not just in traffic, where it is needed to avoid an accident, but always and everywhere they listen to each other and respect each other.  How wonderful it is to see one of the virtues we have lost in Europe, and I hope it never changes. I also hope that the government will find solutions for the traffic problems.  When everyone drives a motorbike, there are few problems.  But if 5 - 10% of the traffic changes to cars, then there will be the same traffic jams as are found elsewhere in the world, and many parking problems.  Where you can store thousands of motorbikes at Big C you only can park a hundred cars, and you would have to change the current parking solutions outside shops and restaurants.  Now you can drive to the front door of a shop or restaurant and park your motorcycle there.  Even if it is raining, you can easily go to a restaurant or bar because you can park nearby - and the raincoats make the streets even more colourful. Talking about restaurants, I had a problem making a choice.  There are so many good restaurants, and all are different in style, food choice, and service.  They are all excellent.  I knew that Viet Nam was a country with several different climates, but I didn’t know that there were so many different food specialities.  It looks to me like every village has its own food culture.  Every evening my friend took me to a different restaurant.  I learnt to roll food into rice paper and how to dip unknown products into even more unknown sauces.  There was, however, always one thing in common - the taste was more than delicious.  Whether it was in a well-known restaurant or simple street food, I enjoyed it all. After dinner I always went to a bar or coffee shop to chat with my friends.  We talked about work, ourselves, the future and the past, about wishes and desires, openness and respectfulness.  I learnt a lot about the country, the education system, parents and ancestors, daily life and reading palms.  I learnt a little about the differences between Western and Asiatic thinking.  I was pleased that they enjoyed listening about my style of living and thinking too. I learnt even more about the Vietnamese way of living and thinking during my visits to cultural and natural places.  I visited Ba Na Hills where I had four seasons in a few hours, but I saw in that same place the worshipping at the Buddhist pagoda and the ultra-modern theme park at the top of the hill.  A world of difference between prayer and play. I learnt yet more about the beautiful culture of the past at the Cham Museum, and it was a ‘once in a lifetime’ experience to visit the original place at My Son.  Far from the noisy traffic, wandering between the old trees with birds singing and jumping from branch to branch, I felt a sacred light shining on the thousand-year-old temple-towers which honour the unshakeable values that posterity has left us to contemplate, adore and passionately study. Da Nang took the favourable position as a harbour from Hoi An, but I had the honour of visiting this old town on full-moon night and saw it in all its glory.  Just lit by candlelight and the full moon creates an impressive feeling.  It is so charming, so romantic, and so beautiful - you can’t describe it if you haven’t experienced it.  If you have experienced it, then you know that falling in love is that easy! I know for sure that I will come back to Da Nang as the city has stolen my heart.  I have to come back to give my life power again, and I know that my friends will welcome me.  This time they won’t be waiting for me at the airport.  I will walk over the new Dragon Bridge and I won’t have to wait until I am at the other side before they run to me.  We have learned to build a bridge of friendship between us, a bridge that will last forever. Guillaume van Grinsven

(Source: Danang Today)