Weekend Trip to Hoi An, My Son

This weekend Team Scuppy traveled to Danang and Hoi An as well as the site of 8th century Cham ruins called My Son. This site was damaged heavily by American bombing when NLF soldiers occupied the complex. At left here is one of the libraries that miraculously survived all of the shelling and has stayed intact since the 8th century. It is made from bricks sealed together with a kind of oil made from a local tree resin. It once housed hundreds of ceremonial texts and histories written in sanskrit in palm leaf binders.


On our way through Danang, we stopped at the Cham Museum where the French in the 1920’s relocated most of the statues from this site. Here Scuppy inspects this unique kind of pedestal for a sculpture dedicated to the Hindu god Siva. Imagine a never-ending milk supply!












After stopping in there we headed south from Danang past China Beach, the beach where several hundred thousand American Marines made their way ashore. Adjacent to this is Marble Mtn where local stone carvers have set up tourist traps—er, shops—for selling their goods. Scuppy was interested in a variety of statues, especially the horses. However, we couldn’t help but notice all the pretty ladies standing just past the checkout counter. Right now the word "bottom" evokes howls of laughter. We spent two nights in Hoi An and managed to buy a little bit of silk for which the town is famous to make pajamas for Hong Anh. I bought one shirt ready-made. And Scuppy now has a few more stylish dresses to add to her collection.