Arriving in Qui Nhơn
We had been on the bus for just over two hours when Qui Nhơn slowly came into view. There has been an issue with the apartment I had booked in Qui Nhơn. The host informed me that it was unavailable. She did however have another two bedroom apartment across town for the same price, maybe even cheaper. I was trying to communicate this to my traveling companions. We were meeting up with several others who had already arrived at the apartment.
Apparently upset at the inconvenience, I was informed to cancel the apartment, they would find a hotel for us. Not particularly thrilled about giving up the ability to vest my own accommodations. I conceded in a simple attempt to keep the peace and avoid causing Diễm any more of a headache. Though I was often content to chock it up to the adventure, she unfortunately bore the brunt of dissatisfaction, as we were with her family and she was the youngest.
We arrived at the bus station in Qui Nhơn just before three. Being the central hub of the city, we immediately loaded into a taxi for our hotel. The two bedroom luxury apartment I had booked in Qui Nhơn was about 30 usd for the night. I was informed on the way to the hotel how fortunate I would be as the hotel was much cheaper. Only 200,000 vnd a night or just under 9 dollars.
We pulled up to the hotel Đường shortly after leaving the station and unloaded into the lobby. The hotel was right across the main boulevard from the beach, a plus, and the lobby had a typical classic Vietnam feel to it. Built during the war, the hotel had no elevator, which was fine as, I need the exercise.
We checked in and grabbed the key, room 103 on the second floor. The lobbies of the hotels and apartments here tend to be only big enough for a receptionist’s desk and a back office type area where the proprietor and their family usually live. So almost exclusively rooms begin on the second floor. As we walked up the stairs I could smell the salty air as it gently blew through the open hotel.
Of the room I could say it was nice, I could say it was rustic, homely, retro, but to be polite I’ll say this. The room was like a well aged Sauvignon Blanc, aromas of fresh cut vegetation and tropical fruits with a slight hint of cat pee. A real award winner I assure you. Again, the adventure is the journey or the journey is the adventure, you get what I mean. And so we settled in.
Qui Nhơn a brief history
Though the area around the city has been settled for millennia, Qui Nhơn became a cultural center in the 11th century. The Champa Empire enjoyed an exclusive claim to modern day central Vietnam for centuries. But with Viết strength growing in the north, tensions were mounting rapidly.
Sometime around the year 1000 the Việts invaded the Champa capital of Indrapura. Near modern day Da Nang, and drove the Champa south. With their capital sacked, their emperor slain and most of their wealth and people taken north as bounty and slave. The remaining Champa fled 300 km south to the protected bay and fertile lands of Qui Nhơn.
The Champa settled with a safe distance from their enemies and plenty of fertile land in the central highlands. There the Champa people regrouped and established the Cham empire. Eventually expanding into modern day Cambodia and Laos. For almost 500 years the Cham would dominate Southeast Asia and the South China Sea.
Their growth and prosperity however, were not to last. At the close of the 15th century, the ever strengthening Viet kingdom to the north, amassed an armada of thousands of ships and hundreds of thousands of soldiers. They sailed south to the bay of Qui Nhơn. They sacked and burned the capital as well as the surrounding countryside and killed or enslaved upwards of 100,000 Cham. Those who survived were forced to adopt Buddhism and Vietnamese customs or face the penalty of death. The ancient Hindu temples were raised and replaced with Buddhist shrines, and the tombs and graveyards were covered over with farmland.
After the Cham were all but eradicated from the region, the city became an enclave of the newly established Dai Viet Empire. Though modest and mostly undeveloped. It wasn’t until the Americans arrived in July of 1965 that the city became of any real relevance. With its port and its position as a transportation hub, the surrounding region rapidly became an outsized theater of the war.
Qui Nhơn quickly became home to Napalm-deforestation squadrons as well as the South Korean infantry division known as “the Tigers”. The Tigers were a taekwondo division who wore traditional doboks when not in the field. The Korean division was known for its ruthless efficiency, often raiding bunkers and caves and quickly over running Vietcong forces. One American soldier once said of the Tigers effectiveness, “I’ve never seen so many broken necks and caved-in ribs.”
It was this almost overnight swelling of troops and civilians that most of Qui Nhơns modern buildings and infrastructure were built. This fact however is changing rapidly. The landscape was even more fluid than back in Da Nang. There were places here in Qui Nhơn where entire neighborhoods, blocks of skyscrapers and resort areas were rising from the sand out of nothing. No previous buildings or infrastructure to speak of. It was evident by long swaths of sidewalks covered in sand that served no purpose. At least not yet, as it was clear that Qui Nhơn was on a move to become international.
A little Cham History
I had noticed on my way into town, a large ancient structure relatively distant from the city core. A site I was willing to pay to see. Again, as the Cham even today are all but persecuted, their ancient sites are unfortunately neglected and often in continued ruin. The wikivoyage page for the ruins simply states, “If you’re a self-motivated Indiana Jones bent on historical discovery, an archeological day trip from Qui Nhon is great fun.”…….I’m In.
So Diem and I loaded in a private car and headed northwest out of the city. We arrived at a site almost desolate. Hot and humid in the sweltering sun, there wasn’t a soul there when we arrived. I was shocked at the emptiness of the ruins, but had heard some reasons why this might be. Even today anything Cham is considered taboo, but to neglect ancient architectural sites seemed a bit barbaric. The temples were overrun with vegetation and I even stumbled on several fresh snake skins among the ruins.
I had read of the seemingly exploding venomous snake populations of recent years. And so I was extra careful to watch my step. Current Vietnamese newspaper articles speak of the green pit viper and king cobra dealing epidemic encounters as habitats are being gobbled up and the snakes are becoming more encroached upon. So I watched my step, avoided heavily vegetated areas and enjoyed the exploration.
The ruins were ancient and overrun with vines and age. In short, they were awesome. Diem and I explored and climbed for over an hour in the massive ancient temple sight high above the Qui Nhon Valley. When we finally reached the top temple it was quite remarkable. The interior was high and pointed to the sky. Even though the sun was high and the day as hot as the sun, the interior of the main temple was pitch black.
As you entered the walkway into the main hall you could hear the bats chirping above. No one entered beyond the walkway as there was bat guano everywhere. I tried to use my flash to catch the chirping nesters, but the temple interior was too high for my flash to reach. Like a scene from dusk till dawn, I could see the entrance to this temple empty out with thousands of bats as night fell. Lucky for me night was far off and it was time for church.
An Unexpected Mass
Our traveling companions had chosen a nice strip of eateries for our dinner. It was apparently the center of all things edible in Qui Nhon, and I must say it didn’t disappoint. Everyone sat at their street stalls for their preferred delicacies and we were all in sight. Diem took me to the corner with some unique offerings I had not had the pleasure of trying yet. A bowl with artfully cut fruit and gels in a floral and herbaceous watery broth. Simply divine. Skewers of leaf wrapped ground pork grilled to perfection, and fresh spring rolls with cucumber, lettuce and shrimp.
After dinner we stepped out of the eatery and I couldn’t help but notice the cross at the end of the street. We walked towards it and to my luck the service was just beginning. I couldn’t believe it. I had seen and passed many churches in Vietnam, but they all seemed ornamental and rarely in use. Here, in the most unusual of outposts, I had stumbled on Church just beginning.
Within the gates was a large courtyard, to each side an altar. To the left an altar for Mary and to the right for Joseph. Straight ahead was the main church and sanctuary where the homily was just beginning. As I, without hesitation, stepped down into the courtyard and on into the sanctuary I realized I was suddenly alone. Feeling warm with the spirit and rightly at home, Diem had stayed back at the entrance, unsure and unsteady. As one of the smallest religious groups in Vietnam, Christianity is often misunderstood. Religion can be very touchy here and in an effort to not offend or do wrong, she simply and innocently stayed at the gate. Whether she knew it or not, when I looked back to see her standing at the gate light, It was a touching image, one I will never forget.
And so she patiently waited while I said my prayers and wandered the familiar yet foreign church grounds. It was an amazing end to a wonderful night. As the sun was completely set, Diem and I walked alone, the distance of the beach back to our room in the moonlit night of Qui Nhon.
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