Remembering the old wooden bridge

Việt Nam•31/05/2024

I first learned about that wooden bridge when I got lost more than 30 years ago. The bridge spanned the Dong Bo River around the 1990s.

The bridge was made of forest wood. The supports were made of tree trunks, the surface was paved with smaller branches, and the railings on either side were rudimentary. The bridge was narrow, only wide enough for one person carrying firewood to cross. Some people didn't carry the firewood but loaded the bundles onto the back of their bicycles, secured them tightly, and walked across, relying on someone carrying a cart of coal behind them to help push the cart across the bridge. I remember hearing the rhythmic thudding of the wooden planks with every step on the bridge. Occasionally, people would stop in the middle of the bridge to compose themselves, reminding each other not to "steal a glance" at the swirling river below for fear of trembling. I heard that someone, trembling, had knocked over their cart of firewood and fallen into the water...

The Ba Thang Bridge currently spans the Dong Bo River (the section passing through Phuoc Dong commune).

Back then, the forest was dense, and people from Nha Trang only had two ways to get to Dong Bo. One was by ferry, the ferry landing was in Binh Tan village, a small dirt road ran through the village leading down to the landing. Or they could follow the old Lu Gia road (now Le Hong Phong road), turn down to Phong Chau, turn left, and cross a wooden bridge. Phong Chau road didn't have a name then; it was a small, steep dirt road, like a newly built rice field embankment.

It is said that before the wooden bridge was built, those who specialized in cutting firewood had to wait for the lowest tide, when the river was narrowest, to swim across. On the return trip, they would tie two bundles of firewood together at either end of a carrying pole. One person, usually a man, would swim ahead, holding the pole and pulling it along. The person behind, usually a woman or teenager, would help push the bundle of firewood across the river. The riverbed often had deep, basin-like holes created by swirling sand. These holes were not fixed in one place but constantly shifted, and it is said that many people had been victims there. That river crossing was called Diep Wharf.

After some time, the forest began to be inhabited, and a wooden bridge appeared at Ben Diep. From then on, no one had to risk swimming across the river anymore. People also didn't need to wait for low tide; they could cross any day, just paying a few coins to the "toll booth" run by the people who had invested in building the bridge. Although they weren't always present in the hut to collect the money, people would pay if they saw them, and leave if they didn't.

Here's the Dong Bo River. The water is a clear, salty mix. It's low tide, and the river's surface is calm and gentle, a stark contrast to the muddy, overflowing river of the past during the flood season. Following the trails marked by buffalo and cattle footprints, I found a wooden bridge spanning the river. It was indeed a wooden bridge... but this one was clearly larger. The bridge deck was paved with large, sawn wooden planks. Two rows of wire railings were bolted onto square wooden beams, like house pillars. The bridge's supports were concrete pillars. However, it looked abandoned for a long time. A long section of the railing was broken and missing, leaving a bare surface. The wooden planks on either side of the bridge, used to bolt the railings, were either missing or intact. In many places, the planks on the bridge deck were rotten and sunken, forming pits filled with wood chips.

"It's not the Ben Diep Bridge," I thought, bringing up the wooden bridge made of forest trees in my memory for comparison, even though I knew my memory might be inaccurate. But this bridge was clearly large, with sturdy concrete pillars and even steel reinforcement. After a long wait, someone finally crossed. I asked the woman what the bridge was called.

- Ba Thang Bridge.

Are there any other wooden bridges along this stretch of river?

- Is there a bridge here?

- And where is Ben Diep?

- It's right here.

- It's not like Ben Diep has a small wooden bridge made of forest trees...

- That's the old bridge. That's the real Ba Thang bridge; I used to fall off it all the time when I was a kid. This bridge was built by the government later.

So, Ben Diep was the name of the river port before the bridge was built. The bridge I accidentally wandered past back then was called Ba Thang Bridge. This bridge was built later by the government and now bears both names.

How can you expect a simple wooden bridge to withstand decades of rain and sun? Knowing this, I still felt a little disheartened, like meeting an old friend who had grown old.

That evening, I sent a photo of the wooden bridge to an acquaintance living abroad, excitedly showing off my "achievement" of finding it again. Unexpectedly, my friend said, "There are many wooden bridges like this in the mountains here. People have built sturdy bridges next to them, but in some places, they still keep these bridges as mementos." Then, suddenly, my friend asked me why I was looking for this bridge again.

Why? I froze, bewildered. I didn't know, for no particular reason. I just wanted to find something I thought had long since disappeared.

VAN HA

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