Hoi An's reputation

Is it appropriate to start an article about Hoi An now with a few lines of poetry from the poem "Hoi An" written by Che Lan Vien 35 years ago (printed in "Che Lan Vien's Posthumous Poetry", Volume III)? Probably not, because during that time, people know that Hoi An is not Che's hometown, that's clear; but as for the fragrance in "Huong? Oh, how easy..." (to forget), no one has yet revealed what kind of fragrance it is, so let's continue to explain.

Surely the author of "Dieu tan" used beautiful words in this verse. "Huong" is close to the word "Que" but not necessarily the same meaning as homeland, village in Thoi Hieu's poem "Nhat mo huong"

(鄉) quan ha xu thi/ Yen ba giang thuong su nhan sau" (Tan Da translated: Homeland hidden in the sunset/ Smoke and waves on the river make one sad); and "Hương" here is the fragrance, the taste (香), like "The image of the lamp shines in vain/ The heart is filled with the wonderful fragrance" (Dai Van Tu Tan Cong Phong Ky - Du Phu)... Applying to the context of composing the poem "Hoi An" associated with the love of poet Che for a girl from the Central region at that time, we know that "Hương ư? Oh how easy..." is the fragrance of love, the scent of the city - the passionate and unforgettable affection of the author for this famous land of gentle and kind people.

Tiếng thơm Hội An- Ảnh 1. — Hoi An's vitality shines through small alleys covered with green moss

Becoming an official member of the UNESCO Global Creative Cities Network is an extremely important event, contributing to the goal of enhancing the position and brand of Hoi An, contributing to promoting the image of the country, Vietnamese people, and Hoi An - Quang Nam people to friends around the world" - Mr. Nguyen Van Son, Chairman of Hoi An City People's Committee (photo), emphasized.

URBAN FRAGRANCE OR STREET FRAGRANCE is a very unique characteristic of Hoi An. Anyone who sets foot in the ancient, quiet city on the Hoai River, just needs to pay a little attention, will clearly feel the scent of Hoi An.

The most pleasant and easy to feel is the scent of agarwood. Agarwood is a specialty here, the craft of making agarwood has a tradition of hundreds of years. Walking around the streets on any day, we can easily smell the faint scent of agarwood. On full moon nights, lantern festivals, Mid-Autumn Festival, especially the days before Lunar New Year, the scent of agarwood wafts from the offerings along the rows of ancient houses, or from the Hoai River, or from outside Cua Doi..., it sounds so "satisfying". It seems to wrap around the wandering footsteps, forcing people to walk very slowly to feel the gentle rhythm of life here.

The scent of incense makes people calm down, especially in the late afternoon or at night, along with the lantern light, dark brown tiled roofs, small roads and deep alleys, flower lanterns on the river..., as if bringing people back to the life of a port city from a thousand years ago. Take a walk through Tran Phu, Nguyen Thai Hoc, Bach Dang streets on the afternoon of the 30th of Tet, stop for a few minutes in front of the year-end offering tray that the homeowner has placed in front of the porch, inhale deeply the scent of incense until your chest fills, you will never forget Hoi An. Believe me...

That is the flavor of heritage.

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THE OLDER HOI AN GETS, THE MORE VALUABLE IT IS. Just like moss walls, in other cities people are often "allergic". In Hoi An, moss walls are also a... specialty.

After the cold and rainy winter days, the warm spring mornings, the sun burst out, pouring golden color down on the streets. Suddenly, I was surprised to realize that on the roofs of ancient houses and the two walls of deep alleys, the green moss was blocked. The vitality of Hoi An is expressed very diversely.

Tiếng thơm Hội An- Ảnh 2. — Nostalgic yellow walls, true to Hoi An style. Photo: Vo Van Tien

Moss walls have become interesting check-in spots for young people and tourists from all over the world, and are photo spots for many brides and grooms. I have a cousin who, although he had already chosen the "Vu quy" date, had to ask his parents to postpone it, just to wait for "Hoi An moss" to take wedding photos. It's amazing, looking at his photo album, looking at the photos taken in the moss alley at 51 Nguyen Thai Hoc, it's as beautiful as in a fairy tale. Many photos by domestic photographers who won international photography awards were also born from these moss alleys.

The moss wall is not green, but mottled, once very famous in Hoi An, is the old wall on Hoang Van Thu street. Just stand there, pose, and you will have impressive photos for life. I thought it would not be beautiful, but it turned out to be incredibly beautiful! One day, the wall was repainted in a bright yellow, lighting up a corner of the street. There was a bit of regret, but then the new wall continued to become a check-in spot for many domestic and foreign tourists. A nostalgic yellow, a nostalgic yellow, truly Hoi An! And the beautiful photos from there "flew" around the world, further promoting the Hoi An brand.

I suddenly remembered the poetic line "The scent of time is clear" in the poem "The color of time" by Doan Phu Tu. In Hoi An, there is never a lack of green - the color of vitality mixed with the nostalgic yellow of the old town. Thanks to knowing how to blend and connect the present and the past in such a subtle way, this World Cultural Heritage is always attractive. Is there any place that knows how to create its own attraction with the "scent of time" like Hoi An!?

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ON THE EVENING OF DECEMBER 31, 2023, THE ANCIENT TOWN OF HOI AN WAS CROWDED AS NEVER SINCE THE MID-2020 WHEN THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC FOUND. The crowds of people flocked to the ancient town not only because of the irresistible appeal of an internationally attractive tourist destination, but also because that night this heritage city witnessed a solemn moment: the announcement of Hoi An joining the UNESCO Global Creative Cities Network.

This is the result of a long process of determination by local leaders, along with the strength and many great values of the ancient city that cannot be disputed.

What factors help Hoi An join the above network? Those are two areas of strength: handicrafts and folk arts. Regarding handicrafts, Hoi An currently has more than 50 traditional occupations that are being preserved and developed. Regarding folk arts, singing Bai Choi is a specialty here. Looking at the broader picture, Hoi An's strength is culture. In the Creative City project submitted to UNESCO, Hoi An affirmed: "Culture is the backbone of our city's economy today with direct contributions from cultural industries and indirectly by providing resources for tourism services and tourism-related value chains. The entire cultural sector and related services contribute 73.85% (in 2019) and 49.46% (in 2022) to the city's GDP".

Speaking at the announcement ceremony on the evening of December 31, 2023, Mr. Nguyen Van Son, Chairman of Hoi An City People's Committee, affirmed: "Over the past two decades, since Hoi An ancient town became a World Cultural Heritage, Hoi An has always put culture at the center of its construction and development process, considering culture as the leading key factor to promote socio-economic development and increase people's income".

This way of defining is very correct. Coming to Hoi An today, it is easy to see that local residents are participating in many crafts with high economic value such as making agarwood, lanterns, pottery, carpentry, bamboo, coconut, sewing, growing vegetables... Visitors also feel that they are living in a city of colorful arts, such as photo exhibitions, musical instruments, street dance, singing, folk songs - bai choi, teaching and performing opera, programs such as Hoi An Memories, Old Town Night, Heritage Journey...

How can I praise Hoi An enough? There are so many international titles that have been bestowed upon this city, more would be redundant. The charming old town thanks to its excellent preservation, the kind-hearted people and the depth of culture are the "good reputation" that helps Hoi An become known and sought out by tourists from all over the world. "A thousand miles have fragrance"! Thanks to that, Hoi An maintains its title as the leading tourist city in Asia and the world.

The scent of Hoi An, therefore, as Che Lan Vien felt: "it is not easy" to forget...