In the midst of spring weather, taking the ferry across the Truong Giang River from Tam Quang commune to Tam Hai island commune (Nui Thanh district, Quang Nam province), we felt the peaceful, rustic life of the people here.
Sacred ancient well in the middle of the oasis
Tam Hai island commune "fascinates" tourists from near and far thanks to its long, clear blue beach in an arc shape, rows of shady green coconut trees leaning towards the sea, and countless rugged rocks stacked on top of each other creating a majestic scene.
One of two ancient wells in Tam Hai island commune.
The small road winds through the houses located close together. The closer we get to the ancient well, the quiet space is broken by the sound of waves crashing against the Ban Than rocks, accompanied by the chattering sounds of women trying to carry and pull buckets of clear, sweet water.
Taking us to visit two ancient wells, Mr. Nguyen Tan Chinh (76 years old, Thuan An village, Tam Hai commune) said that he did not know exactly when the ancient wells were built. Behind each well there is an ancient marble stele, but it has been eroded by time, so the words are now unclear.
"In the village's genealogy book, there is no mention of the ancient well, so information about it until now is just people's guesses," said Mr. Chinh, who believes that perhaps these two ancient wells have existed for hundreds of years, built during the Champa period, and that the locals often call them the wells of the Cham people.
The well is about 2m wide, 10-12m deep, the water is clear and sweet.
The two ancient wells have similar architecture, located about 500m apart, about a kilometer from the coast and separated by a clay hill. The wells are designed in a circular shape, about 2m wide, 10-12m deep; built with large laterite stone slabs stacked on top of each other, creating a solid system, with no intrusion of seawater from the outside.
Despite going through a fierce war period and being trampled by bombs and mines, the two ancient wells remain intact.
The well is built of stacked honeycomb stones, and at the bottom of the well there are many mysterious black rocks.
According to the elders, in 1964, hearing the sound of the ancient well's delicious water, the American troops stationed in Tam Hai tried to dig another well nearby, but it did not work out as expected. In 1970, a division of the Republic of Vietnam also dug a similar well but could not find the same water vein as the ancient well. From 1934 to now, the ancient well has been restored four times by the villagers of Thuan An.
Mr. Chinh mused: " It must have been under the sacred protection of its owner (the Cham people) that it remains intact, despite the ups and downs of history and the changes of time. All the villagers consider the two ancient wells as "mother's milk", nurturing many generations."
No matter how drought, it will not dry up
The well has an underground water source that seeps from the foot of Ban Than Mountain, so the water is always clear all year round and especially sweet. In the summer, the water is shallower than in other seasons.
Ancient well water supplies thousands of people living on Tam Hai island.
Ms. Huynh Thi Thuc (48 years old, Thuan An village) said that for many years, she has used water from an ancient well for cooking, although her family has a well with a machine, but it is only used for bathing and washing. The well water is clear and sweet, there is nothing better than drinking tea or making wine.
“This well has never dried up. In the summer, when the water level is at its lowest, the youth union members of the commune will come to clean the bottom of the well. We are always conscious of preserving the island’s “treasure”, the source of life for many generations,” Ms. Thuc shared.
According to village rules and culture, these two wells can only be used for cooking and drinking, but absolutely not for bathing or washing.
According to Tam Hai residents, the two ancient wells have never dried up no matter how severe the drought.
Mr. Huynh Than’s house (70 years old) is about 40 meters from the ancient well, and there is also a well dug more than ten meters deep. However, like any other well on the island commune, the water from Mr. Than’s well cannot compare to the water from the ancient well.
“The person who dug the ancient well was probably very knowledgeable about geography and the principles of underground water. In the summer, hundreds of people lined up for kilometers to get water, some of whom had to wake up in the middle of the night to carry dozens of liters of water home to drink,” said Mr. Than.
Previously, only the people of Thuan An village used water from the ancient well, but since about 2007, the whole Tam Hai commune has been looking for this special source of sweet water.
To properly manage this invaluable asset, the people of Tam Hai island commune agreed and assigned each other to protect the well and distribute the water source.
To properly manage this invaluable asset, the people of Tam Hai island commune agreed and assigned each other to protect the well and distribute the water source.
Households around the well can use it for free, while those who come from far away must contribute 1,000 VND for each time they draw water. The money raised will be used to repair the well every year.
Tam Hai island commune, Nui Thanh district is more than 30km southeast of Tam Ky city. The area of Tam Hai island commune is about 1,500ha with three sides facing the sea and one side facing the river, so more than 50% of the area is water surface.
Tam Hai attracts tourists with its long, crescent-shaped beach; tall, shady coconut trees leaning toward the sea, and countless large and small rocks stacked on top of each other.
LINH NAM
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