Mỹ Sơn historical site: Vietnam’s little Cambodia
In the hinterland of the coastal region of Đà Nẵng, Central Vietnam, lies this archaeological site that houses some ruins of the Cham civilization, built over a period of about 10 centuries, starting in the 4th century AD.The site is located in a valley surrounded by high mountains covered by dense and lush forest, far from the noise of the surrounding villages.
In a modest version, these ruins are reminiscent of the more famous and majestic Angkor Wat in Cambodia. These are temples and attached structures dedicated to Hindu deities. The structures are made of brick, later carved into elegant floral friezes or busts of the Gods. The naturalistic setting contributes to the charm of these ruins, which now blend in with the mosses and vegetation that creep into the spaces between the bricks and lend a magical, wild atmosphere to the human handiwork.
Although the preservation of these monuments had begun as early as the dawn of the 20th century by French archaeologists who colonized Vietnam, Mỹ Sơn today consists mostly of indistinguishable ruins, with the exception of a few groups of temples that survived the vicissitudes of the last century.In fact, from World War II until the Vietnam War in the 1960s, Mỹ Sơn was mercilessly bombed, destroying most of its temple groups.
The site is fully visitable, but some areas are but a small pile of indistinguishable red bricks. The group worth paying attention to is the one designated with the letters BCD. A few steps away from this, group A has been mostly reconstructed, but lacking all the decorative part in our opinion it does not give too much excitement.
A dedicated addition for tourists worth seeing is the performance of traditional dances and music (lasts approx. 20 minutes) that takes place at 10:45 a.m. in the small open-air theater that one encounters on arrival in the temple area.
The entrance ticket costs 150,000 VND (just under 6 Euro) and also includes shuttle transportation that leaves a few hundred meters after the ticket office, and shortens part of the journey, which must be done on foot anyway, to the temples. Refreshment options are minimal, so equip yourself with the necessities. Mỹ Sơn can be reached within an hour's drive from either Hội An or Đà Nẵng.
Crowds of local tourists arrive copiously by midmorning, and arriving early does not repay the efforts as the Vietnamese are extremely early risers. The site opens as early as 6:30 a.m., so if you have the chance you can plan to arrive at dawn; alternatively, it is a good idea to arrive in the late afternoon. Approx. 2-3h should be devoted to the entire visit, including transfer from the entrance to the temples, and the dance show.
