Thanh Toàn Bridge (Updated)

Most tourists call it “The Japanese Bridge,” but its not Japanese at all.  I suspect some call it that for its resemblance to the covered Japanese bridge in Hoi An. 

In fact, the original bridge was built in 1776 by a lady of the village who had the good fortune to marry a wealthy mandarin.  Taking pity on her former neighbors, Trân Thị Đạo built the bridge with her own money so they would not have to wade or ferry themselves across the small creek.  However, she also wanted a son, and building the bridge was part of her prayers.  Another local legend has it that she indeed had a son who fell deathly ill at the age of sixteen.  The illness was traced to the ghost of a young girl who had died before she married and had children, and being unfilled, her spirit fell in love with the young boy, inhabited his body and made him ill.  To this day, some local people make offerings to the girl at the small shrine in the middle of the bridge.  Regardless of which of the two stories you believe, it is recorded that her good deed brought great fortune to the village.  The King noticed her virtue, and in November 1776, proclaimed that from henceforth, the villagers were exempt from being drafted into either the army or doing forced labor for the government.

The bridge was severely damaged by typhoons in 1844 and 1904 and rebuilt each time, and restore in 1954 and again in 1971.  Today it’s a great place to sit on the benches that span the length of the bridge. enjoy some conversation, and watch Việt Nam go by.

The village used to be named Thanh Toàn, hence the name of the bridge.  The name was changed to Thủy Toàn some time ago, but near the edge of the village is a shrine dedicated to venerating Trân Thị Đạo - - the lady of the bridge.

(My thanks to Steve Boswell for the information about the bridge and its builder.)

Comments

[Miss Kitty]

Absolutely gorgeous. And I love the legend(s) behind the bridge as well.

Doug,

I loved the old men who were there when I visited. In particular one 98 year-old man with severe cataracts talked to us through an interpreter and allowed us to take his picture. He said, "I used to work these rice fields and now I cannot even see my granchildren." He was a beautiful man and so was the bridge.

Thanks for your hopspitality.

Tom Murray & students

[vi]

Your legends about Thanh Toan bridge really makes sense. As you know we have like thousands of stories like this in Viet Nam, and i wonder if you believe in them or not, or how is your opinion towards those legends?

[Doug]

Wow! Tough questions, Vi.

But, I will give them an honest try.

I care about legends that have deep meaning. I do not care if the legends are literally true. I tend to believe the first story rather than the second, but who am I to say there wasn't a con yieu in the boy's body? In either case, virtue was rewarded by the king.

Do I believe in spirits? As a practicing Christian, you bet I do. I deeply believe every human being has a soul - a spirit. I diverge from widely held Vietnamese beliefs in that I do not believe human spirts have power over other humans. Only a Creator God has that power.

I love the many legends of Viet Nam. Your culture is much the richer for them.

[Khanh]

I love hearing those stories. Can you ask about the famous Tran Tieng bridge too. My father said that in the old days there was (I don't know if it's still there) an all girl school at the end of the bridge. When school let out, you can see all the young ladies wearing their school uniform, the white 'ao dai' and white pants, walking across the bridge. The soft wind blowing the hem of their ao dai, making it a beautiful sight.

[Duong Lam Anh]

Yes, Khanh’s father is right; the school is still there but it is not at the end of the bridge; further up actually and it is now co-educational (unfortunately). Quoc Hoc High School and Dong Khanh High School stand next to each other. In the past, Quoc Hoc was for boys and Dong Khanh for girls. The funny thing is a long time ago, my family lived at the other side of the river, far away from the two schools. My parents decided to move with the hope that when we grew up, we would be able to attend such well-known schools; brothers to Quoc Hoc and sister to Dong Khanh. But when the time came, both schools became co-educational and it turned out I went to Dong Khanh and my sister to Quoc Hoc. Sometimes things happen against all expectations. Also, one can see girl students in ao dai trang crossing the bridge but not as often as before.

[Triet]

I'm curious as to how long the promise not to draft the villagers into the army or to force them to do government labor lasted. Anybody know?

[dofus kamas]

the time came, both schools became co-educational and it turned out I went to Dong Khanh and my sister to Quoc Hoc. Sometimes things happen against all expectations. Also, one can see girl students in ao dai trang crossing the bridge but not as often as before.