Đà Nẵng, Việt Nam is not an unfamiliar destination for hivers. There seems to be an endless stream of marvels to talk about this coastal city. That said, there are less known and trodden paths that have yet to be featured on hive.blog.
So let us, in these times of quarantines, revisit the serene nature of Sơn Trà, a mountain and peninsular, northeast of Đà Nẵng.
Sơn Trà is a historical site, towards which in 1858, French Colonists fired the first hostile cannon shells, triggering their invasion and occupation of Vietnam which lasted for almost a century. Today, it is locals' favorite weekend retreat (when I said less known and trodden, I meant tourists only) and the house for several meteorological centers.
Twice, in 2014 and 2019, I had the privilege of visiting this beautiful part of the city under the guidance of my friends, who have spent most of her life in Đà Nẵng. Without her, this trip would have been impossible. It is simple to reach the summit though, as the the roads are well tended to, as long as you know the way. There are some minor instances of landsides, so you need to be careful. There are warning signs and instructions for hikers as to the danger of rock falling, so just don't be around where they tell you not to.
Our first destination was the summit of Bàn Cờ (literally, Chessboard), which could have been named after a flat slate of stone found nearby. This stone was worked in to the shape of a real chessboard with chess pieces and a statute of a chess deity. I was unhappy with this. Well-intended it may have been be, this is destruction of nature landscape.
From the summit of Bàn Cờ, you can look out to the vast sea, which happened to be foggy on the evening of out trip or to the city of Đà Nẵng below.
On the way down from the summit, we took a rougher path, to the (allegedly) 1000-year-old banyan tree, another spot of interest of Sơn Trà.
The tree is old and most likely empty inside like most strangler figs. The roots are huge and woody but some are still soft enough and can be enjoyed as a natural swing, but that may damage the tree so it's not advised.
On the way down, there are several tourism spots near the base, such as a flashy pagoda, flooded with people most of the time, where a huge statue of bodhisattva which is a huge waste of money in my opinion resides. But you can enjoy great sea views from this temple.
A less known and easy to miss establishment (which we indeed missed on our first trip in 2014) is a private museum called Đồng Đình, not far from the pagoda.
I didn't take a picture of the gate, which I should have. It was simply a slate of metal with the name of the museum, undecorated and nondescript. The entry fee was less than $1 in Vietnam dong. The owner and founder was a America War veteran. Together with his wife, they did the job of curators, janitors, tour guides, ticket people and security guards (talk about multitasking). Most of the time, they were in their private quarter, doing everyday house work, but if you asked they would be more than happy to show you around as that was their intention to when they first started the museum.
According to them, the museum is the way to reserve souvenirs from their childhood, and they would very much like for others to appreciate these mementos as well. It's not unusual for students and researchers, Vietnamese and international, to visit the museum. On weekend there are often organized visits from local primary schools, as the one on the day we toured the establishment.
All in all, a short visit to Sơn Trà is a nice break from all the grandeur of Đà Nẵng, a pleasant change of pace, and exciting new experience to a well-known tourist city.
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