Danang Riverside Walk
'Busy' with something else on a Christmas Day, my yearning to peek around Danang decidedly brought me to the Han River. You have partly seen it in 2 previous stories.
NB: yes, in Danang or Da Nang City, Vietnam! Not the Han River in Korea :)
The reason for opting to walk along the Han Riverside was: it's just near the Danang Cathedral where my group was holding our Christmas activity with the parishioners!
Shhh, I did not want to 'escape from' or 'skip' the activity. I am just no expert at what was being conducted. My role/s came before and after the main program activities.
So it was time to take a leisurely walk!
Bạch Đằng St., along the Han River is just a block away from the cathedral. The Han Market is a similar walking distance from the cathedral but this was my best choice!
Sculpture Park?
First to greet me at the promenade were these sculptures, many of them...
I'm not good at interpreting / appreciating such artworks but they looked wow to me!
There are quite a number of them along this boardwalk, as if an outdoor museum.
And they have a common denominator... no titles, descriptions nor names of artists!
I could have spent more minutes ogling at each one of them, but no infos, so I went walking (southwards), since there are too many things to see - at pumuslit lang ako!
Many things to see like what?
Bridge Views!
Like there are 5 famed bridges (of many) crossing the river, and this is one of them.
Cầu Rồng or Dragon Bridge. But let us talk about it later, after my 'promenade walk'!
Trash Bins!
Made out of recycled materials, they're everywhere on this riverside promenade.
And they do look attractive! Dress-to-impress? I think that's one of the ways to do it!
Note that one side of each bin is in English: keep the country CLEAN AND GREEN for better life. I only wish that they put a stern Chinese warning/translation on all sides!
Bakit kelangan ininsik "on all sides"? Ah, basta, alam nyo na yan!
iDanang Vans
These are Mobile Tourist Information Centers roaming mostly around tourist areas.
I've seen them also at the beach and other areas. They're like your burger or hotdog food trucks, but what they offer is free tourist information or assistance for everyone.
It's like a mobile library - full of brochures and tourist-related information. Nice one!
Hey, I chanced upon that one with no humans in or around - and everything seemed closed. When I curiously went near (uzi-sero), a staff came running to attend to me!
His smiling opening line was "good afternoon sir, how may I help you". Aba sosyalin ang Ingles, hindi tunog Vietnamese! And this is where I learned about the 5 bridges.
Bridge Underpass!
I moved on southwards, passing via an underpass below the Dragon Bridge.
Sorry na, that pic is blurry. But I got a clearer one when I emerged on the other side!
I'm sure you will immediately notice, this isn't 'just like any bridge in the Philippines'. That underpass is well-made, well-lighted, and admirably clean - with no foul odors!!
Dragon Bridge West Park!
And just like that, I was in yet another "park" of the same continuous riverbank!
It's a plain wide empty space! But I knew what this is/was for - a multi-use space for affairs like outdoor exhibitions, concerts, trade fairs, meetings and/or sport events.
A great thing to have nowadays, where touristic events happen left and right.
Note there's another bridge in the background. That's Cầu Trần Thị Lý or Trần Thị Lý Bridge, that I passed-by last night, traveling from the airport to Holiday Beach Hotel.
We'll also talk more about that bridge later.
Then I saw that boat (or barge if you like) at right. Can you see it in the pic above?
Han River Dragon Boat (A Cruise Boat)
I went near it, half-expecting it wouldn't be operational at this time of day (2PM).
DVT, a familiar corporate name. That is a construction company that does electricity infrastructure. More of like MIESCOR kung sa atin. But what's their boat doing here?
I smiled telling my self "ah, baka me hinahakot"! But why does it look so festive?
Ayun! The name in big letters says TÀU RỒNG SÔNG HÀN - and that literally means HAN RIVER DRAGON BOAT! Oh wow, a Tourist Cruise Boat? Parang sa Manila Bay?
Argh, how would I know, eh sarado! Me mga tao pero parang nagpapahinga o tulog! But someone called out to say "hi, hello" - from those kiosks and shrubs on the side.
I quickly went there to perhaps ask about the boat. And that is where I learned that: 1) indeed it is the Han River Sightseeing and/or Dinner Cruise Boat; 2) it sails only in the evenings - at 6PM, 8PM and 9:30PM; 3) it costs VND 135,000 - excluding dinner.
Wow! So mga PHP300 kung sasakay ka lang (walang dinner). But you can buy food on board, as there's a restaurant and bar/cafe. Tickets with dinner are VND750,000.
So, mga PHP1,500 with dinner for an hour and a half sightseeing cruise. Pwede!
Meanwhile, those kiosks amid the plants and flowers (where I went) is already open during the day (a garden-style bar/cafe). Nag-Coke lang me while asking questions!
Nice find!
More Promenade Views!
Beyond the cruise boat docking area, this seemingly endless promenade continues.
Yet, I was determined to walk as far as my body-over-mind can bring me heheh. That was probably just a one-kilometer-walk (so far) from the cathedral. Kayang-kaya pa!
Look at the young trees lining the road. Uniform and lovely to look at. None of them, include anything you see, was here 2 decades ago. Everything was spruced in 2017.
There are things at right, across the road. But before we go there, let me titillate you with that line of so many buses by the young trees. When I saw them, I said "oh no"!
Those were the buses carrying the 'battalion' of annoying noisy unruly tourists from "mainland", who were at the cathedral earlier. Kung mamalasin ka nga naman. Over!
But I observed the people across the road..., few and quiet. Maybe those "wakanga" people weren't yet where I was going. Maybe they were at the museum. So, let's go!
APEC Sculpture Park!
Yes, this is the commemorative park of/for the APEC 2017 Meeting in this city.
Oh I did not know there was something like this in Danang. I just stumbled upon the park during this walk! So I eagerly walked to it, to see what's around and what about.
I triumphantly told my self "good the wakangas are not here". OMG I was wrong!
Look! At a perpendicular street, more of them, in big buses, were descending upon civilization! I observed them for a moment. Good this park wasn't their destination!
They were just being unloaded here for safety and convenience, but I think their tour destination this time, was that temple across the road. I silently said "hay salamat"!
I abhor them. It's disgusting enough seeing these unruly tourists, and hearing them noisy at ultra-high decibel levels. It's more horrible if I am mistaken as part of them!
Anyway, back to this APEC Sculpture Park, I took time looking at each artwork. They were crafted by artists from each of the APEC member countries as gift to Danang.
Each artwork has a label telling the title and the country where it comes from.
The one at left is from Brunei Darussalam: "Female merchant on the Padian River". At center is from Australia: "The Meeting Place". At right is from Danang: "Happiness".
There are supposed to be 21 sculptures, representing the 21 APEC economies.
At left is from Singapore: "Icon Junction". The one at right is from USA: "Cloud boats".
These are artworks. I wouldn't know what each means, unless I read a full writeup!
Left is from China: "A Common Vision Of A Shared Future". In the middle is Vietnam: "The Origin". At right comes from Russia: "Yuri Gagarin, The First Man In Outer Space".
They 'probably' celebrate each country's contribution to the cooperative group.
Left picture is: "Radiance of Rational" from Japan. In the middle is "Kapal Pinisi" from Indonesia. Ah, I know that! It's a "Pinisi Ship" - Pinisi is an ancient boatbuilding style.
The right panel of the pic-collage is: "Beginning: Creating New Dynamism, Fostering A Shared Future" from Korea. It's not only colorful, it's also one of the biggest (widest)!
They all get you to 'imagine the meanings'. How I wish there are longer narratives!
Left panel is from Mexico: "City Stories". Center is a gumamela hehehe. Actually it is, really. "Bunga Raya: A Symbol of Malaysia's Diversity, Unity, Harmony and Sovereignty".
Many Pinoys know that. Our gumamela is bunga raya (great flower) in Malaysia. That is their national flower. Oh, the photo at right is "A Gentle Breeze" from New Zealand.
Sculptures are in a garden-like bermuda-grass setup amid concrete walking paths!
That red thing is from Peru: "Millenial Presence In The Asia Pacific". That center panel is from Taiwan: "The Tree Of Life". I immediately noticed those little green dots on its circular base. Those are jade-colored jewel-like balls permanently fixed to concrete.
From a distance they look like chipping-off paint. But closer, it's something else...
Either those half-balls are falling off naturally or they're being deliberately detached by unruly tourists. I strongly suspect the latter! Who might be those unruly tourists? Ayi!
Alams na! They swarm in droves! Ah, I'm not accusing. Just suspecting hehe!
Oh, before I forget.., that last sculpture in the above collage, is from the Philippines: "Unity In Community". Interestingly, that is the only "realist" sculpture I've seen in this park. I mean "a depiction of realistic appearance and proportions of people and things".
Except yung tamaraw - kung makikita nyo pa yun hahaha!
Actually, I cannot be too sure if Philippines is/was the only "realist" sculpture in this park, because, I think I missed 3 (CL, HK, PG) - unless they really did not isntall any.
There are 21 member economies of APEC or Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation. I have 17 sculptures above; 2 of them are from Vietnam; I have seen "Resilience" that huge maple leaf sculpture from Canada, though I can't seem to find it in my photos.
Therefore, I haven't seen sculptures from Chile, Hongkong and Papua New Guinea.
Anyway, I liked looking at those works of art spread over a nicely manicured garden - a testament, in a way, to the collective spirit of APEC member economies. Ganda!
Trivia: did you know this is not the first such APEC Garden of Sculptures? Yep, many of you reading this, may even have already seen a previous version in Manila (1996).
That [1996, Manila] version is the APEC Sculpture Garden - which is the 'front lawn' of the "Delegation Building" of PICC or Philippine International Convention Center.
Let's move along...
Nearby Attractions!
Just as I was done with the sculptures, a groupmate called to say that I was already 'wanted' at the cathedral. OMG hehe! I heeded, though so tempted to peep at these:
Oh yes, those are two of Da Nang's tourist attractions, just across the road from the APEC Sculptures. But I skipped this time, as the busloads of "wakangas" were there!
The old building at left (with a bluish grayish concrete fence) is Chùa An Long or An Long Temple since 1657, although that present structure is from a 1961 renovation.
Beside the temple (that pinkish building where a red car is parked), is Bảo tàng Điêu khắc Chăm Đà Nẵng or Da Nang Museum of Cham Sculpture. Are you not curious?
I was and still am curious, but opted not to drop by because 1) I needed to be at the cathedral; and 2) it looked like the busloads of "wakangas" were in both attractions!
Anyway, I now know a few things about the "Cham Kingdom". Still in my bucket list.
Now, while I stood looking at those 2 buildings, a number of Cyclos passed by!
There were many but scattered, so I chose to click at the intersection - I caught only 4 of them. Can you see those? The first 3 are way to the right, ahead of all vehicles!
What is a Cyclo? It's a "pedicab", "padyak", "trisikad" kumbaga sa atin. It's pronounced as "siklo" in Vietnam, by the way! Tanggalin lang yung "motor" sa "motorsiklo" natin.
I love looking at them, especially that they're a disappearing mode of transport, due to the advent of motor engines. Let's take pics and vids before they become extinct!
Vietnam's Cyclo is a tricycle (without the engine), and there are many things like that in all our planet, right? But I like it that their passenger cabs are in front of the driver!
Trivia: I still see similar trikes in Indonesia, Cambodia, or even in Malaysia (Penang), but mostly just for touristic nostalgia. I think soon, they will be gone from our roads.
Trivia pa more: wala nang ganyan sa atin unless gumawa ka. Sa atin, nasa gilid ang pasahero -which I think is most economical to build kasi aattach ka lang ng sidecar.
I think I better write a separate story about all these tricycles, ano? Sige soon!
Meanwhile, let's talk about those famous bridges. Next!
=====
Update: days after I posted this story, a friend told me that:
1) the 'local' sculptures I saw above were there temporarily;
2) a bigger park with event building/museum is planned for the area;
3) all local and APEC sculptures ill be in that planned new park.
Ta! Another good reason to return to Danang. I won't mind hehe!
NB: yes, in Danang or Da Nang City, Vietnam! Not the Han River in Korea :)
The reason for opting to walk along the Han Riverside was: it's just near the Danang Cathedral where my group was holding our Christmas activity with the parishioners!
Shhh, I did not want to 'escape from' or 'skip' the activity. I am just no expert at what was being conducted. My role/s came before and after the main program activities.
So it was time to take a leisurely walk!
Bạch Đằng St., along the Han River is just a block away from the cathedral. The Han Market is a similar walking distance from the cathedral but this was my best choice!
Sculpture Park?
First to greet me at the promenade were these sculptures, many of them...
There are quite a number of them along this boardwalk, as if an outdoor museum.
I could have spent more minutes ogling at each one of them, but no infos, so I went walking (southwards), since there are too many things to see - at pumuslit lang ako!
Many things to see like what?
Bridge Views!
Like there are 5 famed bridges (of many) crossing the river, and this is one of them.
Trash Bins!
Made out of recycled materials, they're everywhere on this riverside promenade.
Note that one side of each bin is in English: keep the country CLEAN AND GREEN for better life. I only wish that they put a stern Chinese warning/translation on all sides!
Bakit kelangan ininsik "on all sides"? Ah, basta, alam nyo na yan!
iDanang Vans
These are Mobile Tourist Information Centers roaming mostly around tourist areas.
It's like a mobile library - full of brochures and tourist-related information. Nice one!
Hey, I chanced upon that one with no humans in or around - and everything seemed closed. When I curiously went near (uzi-sero), a staff came running to attend to me!
His smiling opening line was "good afternoon sir, how may I help you". Aba sosyalin ang Ingles, hindi tunog Vietnamese! And this is where I learned about the 5 bridges.
Bridge Underpass!
I moved on southwards, passing via an underpass below the Dragon Bridge.
Sorry na, that pic is blurry. But I got a clearer one when I emerged on the other side!
Dragon Bridge West Park!
And just like that, I was in yet another "park" of the same continuous riverbank!
A great thing to have nowadays, where touristic events happen left and right.
Note there's another bridge in the background. That's Cầu Trần Thị Lý or Trần Thị Lý Bridge, that I passed-by last night, traveling from the airport to Holiday Beach Hotel.
We'll also talk more about that bridge later.
Then I saw that boat (or barge if you like) at right. Can you see it in the pic above?
Han River Dragon Boat (A Cruise Boat)
I went near it, half-expecting it wouldn't be operational at this time of day (2PM).
I smiled telling my self "ah, baka me hinahakot"! But why does it look so festive?
Argh, how would I know, eh sarado! Me mga tao pero parang nagpapahinga o tulog! But someone called out to say "hi, hello" - from those kiosks and shrubs on the side.
I quickly went there to perhaps ask about the boat. And that is where I learned that: 1) indeed it is the Han River Sightseeing and/or Dinner Cruise Boat; 2) it sails only in the evenings - at 6PM, 8PM and 9:30PM; 3) it costs VND 135,000 - excluding dinner.
Wow! So mga PHP300 kung sasakay ka lang (walang dinner). But you can buy food on board, as there's a restaurant and bar/cafe. Tickets with dinner are VND750,000.
So, mga PHP1,500 with dinner for an hour and a half sightseeing cruise. Pwede!
Meanwhile, those kiosks amid the plants and flowers (where I went) is already open during the day (a garden-style bar/cafe). Nag-Coke lang me while asking questions!
Nice find!
More Promenade Views!
Beyond the cruise boat docking area, this seemingly endless promenade continues.
Look at the young trees lining the road. Uniform and lovely to look at. None of them, include anything you see, was here 2 decades ago. Everything was spruced in 2017.
There are things at right, across the road. But before we go there, let me titillate you with that line of so many buses by the young trees. When I saw them, I said "oh no"!
Those were the buses carrying the 'battalion' of annoying noisy unruly tourists from "mainland", who were at the cathedral earlier. Kung mamalasin ka nga naman. Over!
But I observed the people across the road..., few and quiet. Maybe those "wakanga" people weren't yet where I was going. Maybe they were at the museum. So, let's go!
APEC Sculpture Park!
Yes, this is the commemorative park of/for the APEC 2017 Meeting in this city.
I triumphantly told my self "good the wakangas are not here". OMG I was wrong!
They were just being unloaded here for safety and convenience, but I think their tour destination this time, was that temple across the road. I silently said "hay salamat"!
I abhor them. It's disgusting enough seeing these unruly tourists, and hearing them noisy at ultra-high decibel levels. It's more horrible if I am mistaken as part of them!
Anyway, back to this APEC Sculpture Park, I took time looking at each artwork. They were crafted by artists from each of the APEC member countries as gift to Danang.
Each artwork has a label telling the title and the country where it comes from.
There are supposed to be 21 sculptures, representing the 21 APEC economies.
These are artworks. I wouldn't know what each means, unless I read a full writeup!
They 'probably' celebrate each country's contribution to the cooperative group.
The right panel of the pic-collage is: "Beginning: Creating New Dynamism, Fostering A Shared Future" from Korea. It's not only colorful, it's also one of the biggest (widest)!
They all get you to 'imagine the meanings'. How I wish there are longer narratives!
Many Pinoys know that. Our gumamela is bunga raya (great flower) in Malaysia. That is their national flower. Oh, the photo at right is "A Gentle Breeze" from New Zealand.
Sculptures are in a garden-like bermuda-grass setup amid concrete walking paths!
From a distance they look like chipping-off paint. But closer, it's something else...
Alams na! They swarm in droves! Ah, I'm not accusing. Just suspecting hehe!
Oh, before I forget.., that last sculpture in the above collage, is from the Philippines: "Unity In Community". Interestingly, that is the only "realist" sculpture I've seen in this park. I mean "a depiction of realistic appearance and proportions of people and things".
Except yung tamaraw - kung makikita nyo pa yun hahaha!
Actually, I cannot be too sure if Philippines is/was the only "realist" sculpture in this park, because, I think I missed 3 (CL, HK, PG) - unless they really did not isntall any.
There are 21 member economies of APEC or Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation. I have 17 sculptures above; 2 of them are from Vietnam; I have seen "Resilience" that huge maple leaf sculpture from Canada, though I can't seem to find it in my photos.
Therefore, I haven't seen sculptures from Chile, Hongkong and Papua New Guinea.
Anyway, I liked looking at those works of art spread over a nicely manicured garden - a testament, in a way, to the collective spirit of APEC member economies. Ganda!
Trivia: did you know this is not the first such APEC Garden of Sculptures? Yep, many of you reading this, may even have already seen a previous version in Manila (1996).
That [1996, Manila] version is the APEC Sculpture Garden - which is the 'front lawn' of the "Delegation Building" of PICC or Philippine International Convention Center.
Let's move along...
Nearby Attractions!
Just as I was done with the sculptures, a groupmate called to say that I was already 'wanted' at the cathedral. OMG hehe! I heeded, though so tempted to peep at these:
The old building at left (with a bluish grayish concrete fence) is Chùa An Long or An Long Temple since 1657, although that present structure is from a 1961 renovation.
Beside the temple (that pinkish building where a red car is parked), is Bảo tàng Điêu khắc Chăm Đà Nẵng or Da Nang Museum of Cham Sculpture. Are you not curious?
I was and still am curious, but opted not to drop by because 1) I needed to be at the cathedral; and 2) it looked like the busloads of "wakangas" were in both attractions!
Anyway, I now know a few things about the "Cham Kingdom". Still in my bucket list.
Now, while I stood looking at those 2 buildings, a number of Cyclos passed by!
What is a Cyclo? It's a "pedicab", "padyak", "trisikad" kumbaga sa atin. It's pronounced as "siklo" in Vietnam, by the way! Tanggalin lang yung "motor" sa "motorsiklo" natin.
I love looking at them, especially that they're a disappearing mode of transport, due to the advent of motor engines. Let's take pics and vids before they become extinct!
Vietnam's Cyclo is a tricycle (without the engine), and there are many things like that in all our planet, right? But I like it that their passenger cabs are in front of the driver!
Trivia: I still see similar trikes in Indonesia, Cambodia, or even in Malaysia (Penang), but mostly just for touristic nostalgia. I think soon, they will be gone from our roads.
Trivia pa more: wala nang ganyan sa atin unless gumawa ka. Sa atin, nasa gilid ang pasahero -which I think is most economical to build kasi aattach ka lang ng sidecar.
I think I better write a separate story about all these tricycles, ano? Sige soon!
Meanwhile, let's talk about those famous bridges. Next!
=====
Update: days after I posted this story, a friend told me that:
1) the 'local' sculptures I saw above were there temporarily;
2) a bigger park with event building/museum is planned for the area;
3) all local and APEC sculptures ill be in that planned new park.
Ta! Another good reason to return to Danang. I won't mind hehe!
Comments
Post a Comment