Fun Fact: Da Nang was a city we decided to visit based solely off of an ad on TV. So the only thing that came to mind en route the city was that some bridge here got hands.

While that is true, Da Nang was a city like nothing I’ve ever seen. Often when we travel to foreign places, there are elements which strike us as similar to our home town or to other places we’ve travelled but Da Nang didn’t check any such boxes and each turn presented us with something new.

So, without further ado, Imma got through certain glimpses of Da Nang that bring out it’s uniqueness.

This was the view from our hotel room. Honestly, the first impression I had of Da Nang was that the city is one big party. Everything was lit up and there wasn’t a single dark street in sight. Besides the lights aren’t monochromatic, they are actual disco lights that change colour. Da Nang is sure to provide you with a free light show. All you need to do is lounge on the easy chair in your room’s balcony. Have a nice cup of Vietnamese coffee and watch the lights change.

With such a vivid lighting arrangement, one would expect Da Nang to have a flashy night life but the city closes all its shops by ten pm. And by shops, I mean everything, restaurants, cafes even the dining in the hotel. We were lucky to find one Pizza Cafe open and we were the last customers so our first meal in Da Nang was fried calamari, pizza and French fries. That’s Greek, Italian and Belgian cuisines blended together in a lovely city in South-East Asia. Talk of being unique.

This is a floor decoration at Ba Na Hills in Da Nang. It’s basically a black tiled floor with wooden miniatures of boats and lotus shaped tea lights. Ba Na Hills is the location of the Golden Bridge, aka the one with hands but the whole setup of the place is very vibrant. There’s a lot of European influence used to decorate the place but the lobbies have their share of Vietnamese art like lacquer work and the like. Almost everywhere you go, there’s a pretty pond or a floor decoration so the camera keeps focussing on all parts of the room.

This is the Peacock Garden in a place called Sun World, Ba Na Hills. So the Golden Bridge leads to this lovely hilltop theme park and this is one of the many gardens in the park. Visitors are not allowed inside the formation but there’s mini castles used as viewing points where you can climb and see the gardens. The whole park is set up like a fairy tale book and it gives me major Alice in Wonderland vibes. I love how they’ve planted flowers showing the peacock’s wings. It’s so neatly done that it almost looks animated.

A fun fact about Ba Na Hills is that you get to experience all four seasons in a single trip. There are times when it’s clear and sunny like summer, then there’s the flowers that indicate spring. And all of a sudden, the weather turns foggy and the chill sets in. This is like nature’s VR simulation and it’s almost eerie how the weather actually keeps changing.

This is a cathedral in another section of the theme park. Like I said, there is a lot of European influence in the decoration and this cathedral is one such example. If you look closely, you can see two newly married couples near the church. We were lucky to witness a wedding and this is quite a famous wedding destination in Da Nang. I like how these weddings were secretly attended by thousands of tourists as guests. It’s perfect for those of us who don’t get invited to weddings cause everyone in their family got married before they were born.

I meant me. Hehe.

Ok, this statue made me laugh. Da Nang has a rather strong obsession with stone hands. Two of them hold the Golden Bridge but this one here just points at you like you’ve been chosen to represent humanity during the Apocalypse. It reminds me of that meme with Daisy Ridley pointing at you through the screen. This picture here is a good postcard to send to friends and family with funny captions.

Like guess who’s the Queen of the World?

Damn right, that’s me. Hehe.

This is the most unique Starbucks I’ve ever seen. I mean, the greenery on the walls is actually flowering. I’d never thought people could get creative with something like a Starbucks but in Da Nang, there’s no dearth of creativity. I like how all the decor here involves nature without harming it. Like the gardens, the arrangement is manmade but the flowers give it beauty. The same can be said about this Starbucks. Moss covered walls have a fantastical element to them. It always fees like some sort of a gateway into a magic land. Da Nang honestly felt like that magic land.

This was another one of the gardens in Ba Na Hills celebrating the Year of the Pig. I love the statues and I’ve named all the pigs. I especially like how they’ve put glasses on two of them. There was a bench in front of this set-up which could be used as a Photo Booth and the place had good lighting so in order to get a picture, one had to actually run and sit on the bench before anyone else for like two seconds. It was like a game of musical chairs with all the tourists competing for a single bench. It had actually become quite an inside joke with all the tourists vying for the spot.

The final postcard is the Dragon Bridge reflecting in the river. This was one of my favourites in Da Nang. In the background, you can see another wired bridge along with the skyline. I like to think that this bridge was built by Daenerys Targaryen. I wonder if the dragon breathes fire if you say Dracarys. Something to try out, eh?

And that is a wrap!

Until next time:)

Auf Wiedersehen!