Heritage Hoi An

Hoi An is the best example of a traditional trading port in South-East Asia. It is the result of a fusion of cultures over time, from the 15th - 19th century.

Hoi An attracted ships and traders from the rest of Asia and Europe. Its architecture is of traditional Vietnamese design, with Chinese and Japanese influences.

Comparisons are made with Vigan (Philippines), which however has a Spanish colonial street plan as in the Americas where Hoi An organically evolved. It is also exceptional for the use of wood as a building material.

Visit March 2011

Not many WHS, especially in Asia, come as touristy as this one. It attracts bus (and probably plane) loads of western tourists, mainly on group tours. They behave like they're in Thailand, and have come for the shopping, the beach, the beer.

I had a hard time seeing the town, the 4 roads that comprise this WHS that is, as a cultural heritage site. One morning I bought a ticket that gives you entrance to 5 historic buildings in town. You can choose whichever 5 you like from the about 20 that open their doors to visitors. Though all the other buildings in town are very welcoming too, as they are either restaurants or silk/clothes shops.

I enjoyed the Tan Ky house the most - an old merchant's house with its back to the river (to easily load the merchandise) and the front at the town's main street. The houses in this area of Hoi An always have been very susceptible to floodings - inside Tan Ky there are markings on the wooden beams to show how high the water reached in which year. 1.5 to 2 meters is no exception.

I've now visited all 3 Asian trading ports on the List (Vigan, Melaka and Hoi An) - and none of those 3 did really impress me. Hoi An did remind me of Ping Yao: the dark wooden structures of the houses, the Chinese influences in the Vietnamese houses. Ping Yao, though touristy as well, is much more a living town, much bigger also and with a higher variation in its historic remains.

 Source: worldheritagesite.org