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Hoi An ancient town
Hoi An
pronunciation is a small city on the coast of the South
China Sea in central Vietnam. It is located in the Quang
Nam province and is home to approximately 88,000
inhabitants.
The city possessed the largest harbor in Southeast Asia
in the First Century and was known as Lam Ap Pho (Champa
City).
The former harbor town of the Champa people at the
estuary of the Thu Bon river was an important Vietnamese
trading centre in the 16th and 17th centuries, where
Chinese from various provinces as well as Japanese,
Dutch and Indians settled down. During this period of
the China trade, the town was called Hai Pho (Seaside
Town) in Vietnamese. During the French colonial period
(1883-1945), it was called Faifo. Originally Hai Pho was
a divided town, because across the "Japanese Bridge", it
used to be the Japanese settlement (16th-17th century).
The bridge (Chua cau) is a unique covered structure
built by the Japanese, the only known covered bridge
with a Buddhist pagoda attached to one side.
The town is known to the French and Spanish as Faifo,
and by similar names in Portuguese and Dutch. A number
of theories have been put forth as to the origin of this
name. Some scholars have suggested that it comes from
the word "Hai-pho" meaning "sea town", while others have
said that it seems more likely to simply be a shortening
of Hoi An pho, "the town of Hoi An", to "Hoi-pho" which
became "Faifo".
In 1999, the old town was declared a World Heritage site
by UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization) as a well-preserved example
of a Southeast Asian trading port of the 15th to 19th
centuries, whose buildings display a unique blend of
local and foreign influences.
Today, Hoi An is still a small city, but it attracts a
fair number of tourists, also being a well established
place on the backpacker trail. Many visit for the
numerous art and craft shops and tailors, who produce
made-to-measure clothes for a fraction of the western
price. Several Internet cafés, bars and restaurants have
opened along the riverfront. Some popular evening
venues, especially with Western visitors, are Tam Tam's
restaurant and bar, the Before and Now bar on Le Loi,
the Mango restaurant as well as the Salsa on the other
side of the river.
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