It had been a long day at the Marble Mountains, and after a relaxing cup of coffee on the Han River, it was time to eat. We headed north up the avenue known as Đường Trần Hưng Đạo towards the apartment. As we walked into the building and parked the motorbike, the landlady offered us food to accompany our dinner. Jars filled with various chunks of meats with chilies and droplets of congealed fat floating atop the preserving liquid, all sitting out on the table in the lobby the entire time I’d been staying there. I couldn’t wait to try it. She loaded a bowl for us, and we headed up the stairs to the apartment.
After a much-needed shower and a delicious dinner complete with chunks of mystery meat, it was time for a stroll along the river. The apartment building was in an amazing location. I’m sure I’ve touched on this before, but walking along the riverfront on the cool tropical night was always a beautiful experience. The River was full of brightly lit evening cruisers full of their dinner guests touring the beautiful bridges that crisscross this coastal city. Across the river was the nightclub district with its rooftop clubs and spotlights lighting up the night sky and filling the air with fun excitement. The fishing boats moored up for the night, tightly packed together and sleepily bobbing at the river’s edge just south of the apartment. As we strolled down the river walk, we would pass young couples sitting on the benches that dotted the tree-lined avenue and the occasional group of teenagers playing games on their phones and generally enjoying the cool breezy night.
About a quarter of a mile south of the apartment, we came along the Cầu Sông Hàn, otherwise known as the Han River bridge. There are so many bridges in this beautiful city, but given this bridge’s proximity to my apartment, It is the bridge I have the most pictures of. The Dragon Bridge is my favorite, but every time I walk out of my apartment, the Han River Bridge is right there. Its massive LED lit cables melted into countless colors from blue to red to rainbow, it alone was a beautiful site. As many times as I had walked and driven on and by these beautiful bridges, this was the first time it was on a weekend night.
As we came upon the beautifully lit bridge, a rather remarkable thing began to happen all around us. Slowly, children and families came into view, and as we came upon the massive supports that held up the end of the bridge, a kind of makeshift carnival had popped up around its base. Blow-up slides and bouncy houses, areas with toy sand and excavating equipment, art studios where kids can paint plaster figurines of all shapes and sizes, kiddy pools with toy rods and reels and plastic fish to catch bobbing in the makeshift ponds, and, of course treats, lots of candies and sweets being sold by vendors that lined the river walk. You could rent battery-powered big wheels, hoverboards, and Segways by the hour. There were even areas cordoned off where parents were teaching their teenagers how to ride motorbikes. It was a fun, family affair, and the whole city seemed to be out on this cool Sunday night, and everyone was having a wonderful time.
We strolled through the crowd of children in their Sunday dresses and little bow ties as we headed south toward the Dragon Bridge. It was what I had come out for this evening, and I was very excited to see the mythical bridge work its magic. On Saturday and Sunday evenings at 9 o’clock, the bridge shuts down, and the Dragon becomes the show. A massive block party breaks out on the streets at the east end of the bridge as the Dragon comes alive and breathes fire and sprays water from its iron-forged mouth high above the crowd gathered below. I had heard the tale of the impressive sight, and I was pleased to finally be able to witness the event. As we walked up to the base of the structure, a large crowd had already begun to assemble near the entrance to Lovers Bridge. There were people from all over the world in the street here. They had all come as I had to see the Dragon come to life.
As the hour drew nearer to 9, the crowd grew to quite a substantial size, and the air became electric. Then suddenly, without any notice of warning, as if startled from a deep slumber, the Dragons eyes began to glow, and fire spewed from its mouth far out over the crowd. The size of the flame was quite impressive, and even at this distance, you could feel the warmth radiating from it. I took a few videos and some pictures as the Dragon went from flame to silence several times before going dormant again. It seemed as if the show was over when suddenly I heard various gasps from around me and looked back up to see the Dragon spraying water out from above. It was an impressive size but dissipated quickly into the warm tropical air, and after a few sprays and as unceremoniously as it had begun, the Dragons eyes dimmed, and it fell silent.
