My Son

Quang Nam's efforts to market My Son as the "Angkor of Vietnam" are a little misguided but that's not to say it isn't well worth seeing.

Those who make the trip expecting to see a well preserved city on par with the one across the border will likely be disappointed to see only a few crumbling towers of stone. It is, however, an interesting site worth a daytrip to see.

It's unique due both to its size and for its historic importance as a holy city for the Cham. Visitors should be warned that most of the My Son complex is either inaccessible, or so destroyed that there's little to look at. What remains are three areas of ruins — crumbling piles of bricks that are often propped up with supports to keep them from falling over completely. There are a few headless statues in state, and one of temple houses some of the decorative stonework pieces that used to adorn the exteriors — those that haven't been carted away to museums.

The fact is, there are Cham towers scattered all over southern Vietnam that are much more beautiful, much less touristy, and in much better shape. The best of the Cham stonework can be viewed in museums, and might as well be. However, this doesn't mean that a daytrip to the Holy City doesn't make sense. The setting is spectacular, especially when combined with a boat ride, or on a sunrise visit. But you'll have to muster up the enthusiasm of an amateur archaeologist to get more than that out of your visit.