Da Nang in Vietnam is known for its exciting fusion of the past and present, epic landscapes, vibrant nightlife and so much more. Sumita Chakraborty, Editor-in-chief, TheGlitz, a die-hard wanderer, found two exhilarating experiences there that she just couldn’t get over. As part of the TheGlitz Getaway #StampingMemories, Sumita chronicles her ‘two special #StampingMemories’ experiences at Da Nang, Vietnam.
Hoi An VinWonder Theme Park
The first would definitely be Hoi An VinWonder Theme Park, one of the best amusement parks in South East Asia. It has five divisions – Harbor Corner, Island of Folk Culture which showcases the making of silk, lanterns, paintings, bamboo hats and more, River Safari, Adventure Land and Water World.
At the River Safari, we sailed in a boat through a placid waterbody in which ducks serenely swam and spotted on either sides, elephants, zebras, giraffes, antelopes, sloth bears and so much more. Our guide informed us that the playful white tigers were one of the most aggressive animals here. But besides this, there were lions, striped tigers, kangaroos and so many more exotic animals. The bird section had so many exquisite birds including colourful parakeets that swooped high and fed on peanuts from your hands). Besides this, the amusement park had the typical water park with exhilarating rollercoaster rides. All in all, the entire experience of this grand amusement park was magnificent.
Twirling Boat Ride
The next was the exhilarating twirling basket boat ride in the Cua Dai River. The river incidentally as dotted with numerous basket boats. Each basket boat had two passengers and was helmed by a boatman, who paddled to the middle of the river and then dizzily twirled the basket boats round and round.
I gingerly stepped into one of them and from there, the gentle paddling of the basket boat to the middle of the river gave me the feel of being plumb in the middle of an esoteric ‘clubbing spot’ – there was loud music and the boatmen adroitly twirled at breakneck speed to the lilting tunes as tourists clapped and took pictures.
The evening sky above was a stunning shade of peach as the dazzling river sizzled with so much excitement. My boatman decided join the daredevils and twirled the boat round and round at a dizzy pace as I clutched onto the edge of the boat for dear life. But indeed, it was a thrilling experience.
The Journey To Da Nang
It took me a comfortable four-and-a-half-hour journey (Mumbai to Ho Cho Minh) via VietJet to reach Tan Son Nhat International Airport, Ho Chi Minh City. My destination was the city of Da Nang and I took the connecting flight (the domestic carrier of VietJet) to Da Nang Airport where I smoothly landed exactly an hour later. Incidentally, there are direct flights to Da Nang from Mumbai now.
