On the Thu Bon River 30 km to the south of Da Nang city and eight km from the Sea, the town of Hoi An attracts tourists and researchers. It is a well-preserved example of a South-East Asian trading port dating from the 15th (to the 19 th) century. About 50 pagodas and assembly halls still exist in Hoi An. The main parts of the buildings are decorated with wooden scrolls on which are verses, written in Chinese characters but with spiritual improvisations of the Vietnamese. A song of friendship in architecture is in the Pagoda (Japanese covered) Bridge. It is constructed in the Japanese style of "the upper part of a house and the lower part of a bridge", with elaborate carving. The single span is 18m long and 3m wide and is build over a small canal leading to the Hoai River.

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