Hoi An Things to Do

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Phuoc Lam is located about 2km north of the Old Town, not far from the Chuc Thanh Pagoda. It's home to a large group of monks plus features many different renderings of the Buddha, including a gold-covered 'Buddha as a boy'.

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Located about 2km north of the Old Town, this is the oldest Buddhist temple in Hoi An, originally built in 1454. An extensive renovation was begun in 2005, along with the erection of a new building. The first thing you see upon approach is a very ancient-looking gateway - to the left of which are three much newer pagodas. The temple itself isn't mind blowing so don't bother coming if your time is limited.

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The Museum of Folk Culture is notable for its eerie-looking plaster statues of Vietnamese peasants in various kinds of traditional garb, engaging in various peasantry undertakings. The point here is to document the physical culture of the people - wooden threshers, shovels, ploughs and so on. Of course, it all comes off a bit kitschy. Not a bad choice if you have to pick one from the list of museums to visit.

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This one storey old house was built over 300 years ago, in early 17 century. Its first owner was a Chinese man who came from Guangdong and who opened a Chinese herb shop here. This narrow-front wooden house has an architectural design in the Chinese style. It has a tube-shaped structure with double Walls (with an inner brick wall and an elaborately carved wooden wall). The first room (formerly used as the store), now reserved for worship, is followed by the sitting room, yard, and the last room intended for the family's daily activities.

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This museum was opened in 1975 and now displays 430 pottery exhibits that date between the 8th to 18th centuries. Most of them come from the Middle-East, India, China, Japan, Thailand and Vietnam. Among them are some antiques that were picked up from a wrecked ship in 1733. Others were collected by archaeologists in the excavations carried out at the sites of Hoi An. These include pottery of the Chinese Tang Dynasty (7th-10th centuries), of Middle East countries in the 7th-10th centuries and of Vietnam in the 15th century.

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Established in 1741, it was then called Duong Thuong Assembly Hall. However, many people think that it was built in the 15th century. Anyway, it is also one of the oldest assembly halls in Hoi An. It was the home of Chinese immigrants and dedicated to Thien Hau Holy Mother.

In 1928 it was renamed Trun Hoa Public Assembly Hall, then Chinese School, and finally Le-Nghia School. The house is a place for worshipping and for gatherings. It is also a school for Chinese overseas in Hoi An. Besides worshipping Then Hau Holy Mother, the house is also dedicated to other people such as Confucius, Son Yat-Jen (a leader of the Chinese revolutionary movement in the early 20th century) and soldiers killed in the anti-Japanese resistance war. The full text of Son Yat-Jen's Testament is found on the wall, in the backyard of the house.

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Originally, the hall was a thatched pagoda called Kim Son, which was built by Viet people living in Hoi An in 1692. The pagoda was dedicated to Buddha but, over the course of time, it was damaged. In 1759, the owners had to sell it to the rich Phuc Kien traders from China who came to Hoi An, so that it could be restored. After the restoration, the pagoda was renamed "Phuoc Kien Assembly Hall" and was dedicated to the Worship of Buddha, gods and former sages.

The main hall is dedicated to the statue of Avalokitesvara sitting in mediation in a glass cage. On the left of the incense table is the statue of the God of Thien Ly Nhan (thousand-mile vision) and the right is the God of Thuong Phong Nhi (thousand-mile hearing). These are masterpieces of the skilled workers of Kim Bong village. These gods are believed to have assisted Thien Hau Holy Mother in saving victims on the sea.

The rear of the main hall is dedicated to the worship of Thien Hau Holy Mother. Her statue sits in mediation. On the left, there is a model of an 1875 sailing boat. Behind the main hall is the back sanctuary and at the front is a small pond of ornamental fish.

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If you see one Vietnamese market, make it this one, by the river on the southeast side of the city before the Cam Nam Bridge. It has all of the cheapster t-shirts and bog-standard souvenirs you've seen at every other stop in Vietnam, but it also has plenty of fresh fruit, vegetables, seafood, and all of the other stuff they use in Hoi An's terrific restaurants. There are endless stalls of exotic foodstuffs and services, and a special big shed for silk tailoring at the east end. Check out the ladies selling spices, curries, chilli powders, cinnamon, peppercorns, and especially saffron.