By chance, a group of young friends invited me to visit Tri Nguyen Island. Standing in front of the new ferry, looking across the sea at dusk with rippling waves, boats passing by, I saw layers of fishing villages leaning against the hillside, making me feel nostalgic. The ferry is now closer to the island than the old ferry, so I feel closer because everything is right in front of me. I paid 5,000 VND to get on the boat, and after about 5 minutes the boat gently docked. People who work in Nha Trang City return home to the island in the afternoon, calm, gentle and relaxed. Perhaps that is the style of the old fishing village here, still intact like the color of the water, the color of the sky, the green of the hills on the island.
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| Many families still keep souvenir photos taken at Tri Nguyen Aquarium in the early 80s. Photo: LN |
I remember more than 40 years ago, when I was a teenager, I followed my friends to Tri Nguyen Aquarium to play on a weekend. Tri Nguyen Aquarium - the most famous sea tourism destination in the South before the country was liberated until the 80s. Anyone who comes to Nha Trang to play or travel always remembers the Institute of Oceanography, Bao Dai Palace and Tri Nguyen Aquarium. The aquarium on Tri Nguyen Island is a legendary man-made structure built by a local named Le Can in 1971. Many people still remember the 3 square ponds in the strait, in which there are ferocious fish such as sharks, stingrays, and bream...; the aquarium has blue parrotfish, lionfish, angelfish, and a mixture of all kinds of fish such as pompano, raft fish, and mullet, especially hundreds of tortoises swimming around in the aquarium, entertaining visitors.
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| Boats on Tri Nguyen Island. |
In the early 80s, when taking over, the provincial tourism sector further renovated and built a floating house on the lake for tourists to eat and watch fish and shrimp swimming around their feet. The image of Tri Nguyen fish pond was printed on postcards across Vietnam and the world as a symbol of Nha Trang - a city of white sand and sparkling aquatic colors. Unexpectedly, decades later, we discovered a world-class coral reef to form the "Hon Mun Marine Park", now the Hon Mun Marine Reserve. Many people like the aquarium built on the foundation of 3 old fish ponds, but I still like its pristine nature. It is the most creative fish pond in Vietnam by "engineer" Le Can: He did not build concrete but used rocks and corals layered into a wall to connect the seawater with the pond, so the sea is clear and the pond is also clear. Tourists stroll along the wall to watch, under the clear water, schools of fish happily wag their tails, following every step of the passerby, waiting for gifts of bread.
At that time, Tri Nguyen island had a few fishermen living on the west and south coasts towards Mui Chut - Cua Be. People traveled by basket boat or rowboat. Later, when the population grew, they took motorboats from Cau Da port. The wildness of Tri Nguyen made tourists at that time fascinated at Bai Soi, Bai Tranh... We, the children, crossed the small slope, crossed the hill covered with green, swaying Dao trees to camp and swim in the sea. I still remember that time after the night rain, the sea here was white, calm and cool. A friend lent me a book of Andersen's fairy tales, opened it and saw the story "The Snow Queen" which fascinated me...
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| An afternoon snack shop on Tri Nguyen Island. |
Now that I have returned, I have not been able to go to the old fish pond because I know that there is a big tourism project here, so I wandered around the village, stopped by the somewhat deserted market at the end of the day, and walked along the small road to see ancient houses with deserted grass and trees growing all over the yard. I felt the coastal village spirit still lingering in this place through the eyes, smiles and gestures of the people here: the modest woman sitting selling goods on the roadside, the men sipping beer in the dark yard, the young man sitting on the embankment fishing for silver pomfret, or the children running into the deserted schoolyard shaded by trees. All are sincere and honest. A woman who went with me told me that everything on the island is a bit different from Nha Trang, that is, living peacefully and freely. The pace of life is relaxed. Goods from food, drinks to household items are sold at very reasonable prices. Therefore, it is not by chance that many acquaintances often go to the island in the afternoons to relax and eat. I secretly wish that when Tet comes, I will have the opportunity to return to the island village to feel the spring atmosphere of the distant past. Perhaps time has passed, but the fishing village here still retains all the past. Anyone who has ever been to Tri Nguyen fishing village will feel like finding a corner of Nha Trang in the land of waves...
MY ANH
Source: https://baokhanhhoa.vn/van-hoa/nhung-vung-ky-uc/202406/nho-ho-ca-tri-nguyen-xua-cca4837/
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