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Heritage site of Mỹ Sơn Sanctuary was             schoolchildren shouting “hello!” greeted
            once the religious and political capital of       me—a joyful return to the present.
            the Champa kingdom between the 4th and                On the way to Hoi An, I stopped at the
            13th centuries AD. Here, near the source of       Marble Mountains, a cluster of five lime-
            the sacred Thu Bồn River, magnificent tem-        stone peaks just outside of Da Nang. As
            ples and shrines once stood. Much of the          the name suggests, these peaks were once
            site was tragically flattened during a 1969       the source of marble for the highly
            bombing raid, but the ancient ruins are now       sought-after statuary crafted by local ar-
            being meticulously restored.                      tisans.
               Arriving early to beat the crowds—and              Thuy Son (Water Mountain) is the only
            the heat—the place was eerily quiet, save         peak open to the public. Equal parts pil-
            for the hypnotic buzz of cicadas. Walking         grimage site and tourist trap, it’s accessed
            among the remnants of a civilization that         via a steep 156-step staircase—or, for the
            ruled this land for over 1,500 years, I was       less ambitious (like me), a 15-story glass
            reminded of the Buddhist tenet of imper-          elevator. At the top, visitors find pagodas,
            manence—the idea that change is the only          temples, statuary gardens, and shrines
            constant. It certainly puts daily worries into    tucked into several grottos.
            perspective. Maybe it was a Zen moment.               Near the elevator exit, an ancient Viet-
            Or maybe just heatstroke. Either way, time        namese woman in a conical hat hawked in-
            to hydrate.                                       cense, while a man with a Bic lighter stood
               As I exited the grounds, a chorus of           by, offering to ignite it—for a fee. The cave

















































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