[Da Nang Travel Diary] First Night: Dragon Bridge Event & Savoring Seafood!

Hi there! I'm Yuki, a Japanese man living in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and this is Gock, my Vietnamese wife. On this blog, we share information about living in Vietnam, relocating to Vietnam, and travel information from all over the country. If you find an article that interests you, please follow us first! ♪ We'll continue with our Da Nang travel diary from day 1. Last time, we enjoyed a massage at the Panda Relax Spa near Mee Khe Beach in Da Nang. This time, we'll continue exploring the area around Mee Khe Beach. Here's where to walk in the bustling area next to Da Nang's beach.

Da Nang's My Khe Beach stretches north and south, and the town layout follows suit, so it seems many people are unsure about 'where to walk.' For such people, I really recommend taking a walk on 'Nguyen Van Thoai St.' According to Google Maps, it's around this area. The Panda Relax Spa that we just enjoyed is also there, and besides that, there are souvenir shops, stylish cafes & bakeries, convenience stores, and more.

As you stroll down Nguyen Van Thoai Street toward the sea, you'll spot this at the T-junction. It looks like it just opened! The beautiful building houses several restaurants inside. It appeared to be a barbecue and international cuisine spot, so we decided to skip it this time. The place we headed to first was this charming seafood restaurant called Lang Ca (Lanca).

I thought it would have a nice view since it's facing the sea, and while I did walk around this area a bit (along the coast), the seafood restaurant wasn't open, so unfortunately there weren't many options available. (-_-;)

At this seafood restaurant, every single item is priced at "market rate," and you choose it yourself by pointing at the fish in the tank. Having been ripped off at another place like this once before, it made me a bit nervous, so I couldn't bring myself to order that way (also, since it's a tourist-oriented restaurant, the prices were about 20% higher than the going rate). Because of that, I ended up ordering only the items whose prices were clearly listed on the menu. We ordered Vietnamese fried noodles, fried spring rolls, clam soup, and Vietnamese fried rice, among other things. These weren't all that expensive. However, one thing that was a bit tough was that since the seating is semi-open-air, there's no air conditioning, just a fan. Climate control also seems difficult to manage, so at the time we went, it was quite hot. My husband was sweating and said, "I couldn't really concentrate on the meal. I felt a little regretful that I should have called a taxi and moved to a different place instead. Recommended Seafood Restaurant "Brilliant

After exploring various options, we found a nice-looking seafood restaurant near the coast. It's called Brillant Restaurant Da Nang (Brilliant) - quite a large establishment. The prices were actually a bit cheaper than the seafood restaurant we visited. It seems they offer not just seafood, but various Vietnamese cuisine, Chinese food, and much more~!   Reservations│Restaurant "Brilliant" (Da Nang) | "Brilliant," a popular seafood restaurant at TabiSpa Da Nang. Located right next to My Khe Beach, offering various dishes in addition to seafood. It's a large-scale restaurant with a scale not found in Japan. tabispavn.com Participate in the Dragon Bridge event in Da Nang

This is the Dragon Bridge event held from 9 PM for three days, Friday through Sunday. I arrived around 8:50 PM, but a large crowd of both locals and foreigners had already gathered. First, fire burst out with a boom, boom from the dragon's mouth on the Dragon Bridge, and the heat reached all the way to where we were. After about 5 minutes of breathing fire, it then began spraying water!

This creates an unexpectedly massive amount of spray, and everyone around Dragon's Mouth, including us, got completely drenched. However, since this appears to be a famous spot, many people came prepared with rain ponchos or umbrellas, and the children and rowdy foreigners deliberately went out of their way to get soaked! Absolutely position yourself at Dragon's Mouth (towards the DHC Marina). One key tip.Dragon Bridge is located right next to the Cham Sculpture Museum and spans across the river to the opposite shore toward My Khe Beach. During events, vehicle traffic is closed off and the bridge itself becomes a pedestrian paradise. Also, since the dragon's mouth that shoots fire and water faces the sea side, you won't be able to enjoy it at all from the tail side (museum side).After the event ends, you can simply walk down the bridge to reach DHC Marina, so you can continue your night sightseeing without taking a taxi! Da Nang's Night Spots: Walking at DHC Marina & Bridge of Love

We then walked to DHC Marina. It was 9:30 PM. This Merlion-style statue is what's called the "Carp Climbing the Waterfall" statue. Anyway, we took a commemorative photo. Also, next to it is a bridge called the Bridge of Love, where couples apparently like to attach padlocks that can be bought at the nearby shop to its lattice. Well, you see this kind of thing everywhere, don't you?

Since the earlier Dragon Bridge event was surprisingly lively, honestly this one wasn't all that interesting by comparison. Though it might be nice for young couples. On to Son Tra Night Market. Those planning to go might want to be a bit careful.

Across the road in front of DHC Marina, the Sonchai Night Market spreads out. It's divided into sections for miscellaneous goods, clothing and fashion, and food areas—quite a sizable night market. However, perhaps because it was after the Dragon Bridge event ended, there were so many people that walking was really difficult. It might have been better to visit on a weekday. Also, there's one more thing I want you to be aware of, and that's the 'way back.There were no cruising taxis around, and I couldn't easily find a Grab either, so in the end I used every trick I could—Grab and other ride-hailing apps combined—and it took me about 30 minutes to finally catch a taxi. I was completely exhausted ( ;∀;) Summary and next time's preview… A tour of night spots can actually be completed in just one day! Da Nang's iconic nightspots are the classic trio: the weekend Dragon Bridge event, DHC Marina, and Son Tra Night Market. Since they're all within walking distance of each other, you can visit them all in a single evening. For the rest of your stay, it's nice to take a stroll through the lively streets along the beach. Coming up next... Day 2 is Hoi An! Checking into the hotel♪ In the next installment of our Da Nang travel diary, Day 2 covers sightseeing in Hoi An.This time we're staying one night in Hoi An, so let's check in first thing in the morning! I'll introduce you to the hotel where we stayed in Hoi An♪ Please take a look! Hen Gap Lai! ※ In Vietnamese, it means 'See you again!' (^^)/