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S
ince My Son in Quang Nam
province was recognised as a
UNESCO World Cultural Heritage
Site, tourists have become more
aware of ancient Champa culture. The
Champa civilization was once dominant
in Southeast Asia, primarily Vietnam
and Cambodia.
While Cambodians are proud of An-
gkor Wat, Vietnam boasts complexes
located along the central coast prov-
inces of Danang, Quang Nam, Quang
Ngai, Binh Dinh, Tuy Hoa, Phu Yen,
Khanh Hoa, Ninh Thuan and Binh Thu-
an. These Champa relics show the signs
of Hindu and Islamic influences.
Besides My Son complex, other his-
toric Cham towers still stand at other
sites along the central coast, including
the Twin Towers in Quy Nhon City, Binh
Dinh province; Po Nagar Tower in Nha
Trang city, Khanh Hoa province; and Po
Klaung Garai in Ninh Thuan province.
Aware of all these sights, but never
having seen them, I planned a trip to-
gether with an Australian friend who
had long planned to write about the
area’s heritage.
After landing at Danang Internation-
al, we first stopped at the Museum of
Cham Sculpture in Danang city. This is
a must-see destination for an overview
on the culture and beliefs of the Cham
kingdom before you start your fieldtrip.
Regarded as one of the most beau-
tiful in Southeast Asia, the museum has
a collection of nearly 2,000 sculptures.
Of these, 288 are on display inside the
museum while 187 objects shown out-
side in the garden.
We spent a whole day and a half at
the collection but even that didn’t seem
like enough. However, we needed to
press on to Hoi An.
The exotic Cu Lao Cham group of
islands just off Cua Dai beach has been
recognised as a World Biosphere Re-
serve by UNESCO. It is blessed with a
cool climate, beautiful and clean beach-
es with white sand, transparent water
and protected marine habitats.
After visiting the islands we made
our way back to Hoi An and on to
My Son, the most sacred place of the
Champa kingdom. It lies about 30km
west of the site of Simhapura, the capi-
tal of Champa until 1000AD. Protected
by a circle of mountains, there were
over 70 structures of brick and stone,
most of which were dedicated to Siva.
At first I felt rather disappointed
at how few tourists were there, while
the beaches were very crowded. I won-
CHAMPA
GRANDEUR
Alongside stunning beaches, islands, wild nature
and luxurious resorts, the south central coast of Viet-
nam is rich in treasures from a glorious cultural past.
Duc Hanh
spent ten days exploring the traces of
the region’s past Champa civilization
42
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