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Dien Khanh Ancient Citadel
Dien Khanh Citadel is 10km to the
west of Nha Trang city. Originally built
during the Nguyen dynasty (1793), the
Dien Khanh citadel was constructed in
the Vauban architectural military style
from Western Europe.
Alexandre Yersin, founder of the
Pasteur Institute in Nha Trang (1895),
once lived here. It also provides evi-
dence of the Thai Khang and Dien Ninh
Estates and the protection of Southern
Central Vietnam.
The 235 Ship Relic
This relic is symbol of the heroic
sacrifice of captain Nguyen Phan Vinh
and soldiers of the 235 Ship in the war
against America.
Unique Tu Van Pagoda
The architecture of this pagoda is
truly amazing. The most impressive is
Bao Tich Tower, which is built with cor-
al, snail shells and pearl shells piled. The
tower has two floors. The upstairs was
once used for worshiping Buddha, Bo-
dhisattva Manjushri and Bodhisattva Sa-
mantabhadra. The downstairs was used
as an attraction for tourists. Outside
Bao Tich Tower are several pyramidal
towers in which are statues of Buddha
Sakyamuni, Amitabha, Bodhisattva and
Buhhda Maitreya.
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BACK IN TIME
Khanh Hoa province and Nha Trang city are home
to a rich variety of historical and cultural sites,
writes
Nhat Ha
Nagar Tower
A time travelling adventure into
the past, Po Nagar Tower (Thap Ba)
is named after a goddess worshipped
in the ancient kingdom of Champa.
It’s one of most notable Cham relics
in Vietnam along with the crumbling
towers of My Son near Hoi An. The
complex is located on a small hill over-
looking the mouth of the Cai River and
Nha Trang bay.
The first temples were made of
wood, but were destroyed by seagoing
raiders from Java around 774 AD. The
first brick structure, built 10 years after
this raid, is no longer extant. The earli-
est surviving structure is the mandapa,
which was built in around 817 AD. The
temple was built during the Hindu pe-
riod of Champa, and thus the image
of the goddess takes the form of Uma,
wife of Siva.
Am Chua (Temple of God)
This temple is located halfway up
Mount Dai An in Dai Dien Trung vil-
lage, Dien Dien commune, Dien Khanh
district. The temple is used to worship
Thien Y A Na, the Mother of the Land in
Cham culture.
Am Chua is a part of the local his-
tory of the revolutionary struggle of
the army and people in Dien Dien com-
mune, as well as in Dien Khanh district.
During the struggles against the French
colonialism and American imperialism,
the 350 year old tree in the front yard
was used several times to fly the flag to
encourage the patriotism and also to
prove power. Behind the temple, there
are still ruins of bunkers and trenches
made of stone built by the French.
100 steps made of marble lead up
to the temple through an archway. The
temple comprises a porch and the main
worshiping area. On the roof we can
see the sculptures of the four sacred
supernatural animals: the dragon, uni-
corn, tortoise and phoenix. Inside the
porch is a story, written in old Chinese,
about the legend of Thien Y A Na.
NHA TRANG - KHANH HOA TOURISM