Bao Thap Tower rises up from the side of Bao Son, the tallest man-made mountain range in Vietnam

A private amusement park graces Vietnamese culture and history with its man-made marvels.

Launched in 1999, the first phase of the US$171 million project has been completed to create a vast temple with adjacent hotel, an open zoo, an amusement park, a water park with machine-made waves, and an imposing set of mountain peaks.

Dai Nam opened to the public on September 1 1 last year.

When stage two is completed in 2010, Dai Nam will be the biggest theme park in Vietnam, many times the size of its nearest rival, the 55- hectare Suoi Tien Park in HCMC.

The 450-hectare amusement park is still under construction. Excavators and bulldozers are still digging and flattening the ground in places but nearly all the roads are finished and the free trams are carrying visitors around the park.

It doesn’t yet boast shady trees in abundance but it will when the staked saplings grow taller. In the meantime, don’t forget to pack a parasol and plenty of water!

Marvelous

The 5,000-square-meter temple isn’t an exact copy of the main temple in Hue city but it’s still impressive with its lotus-shaped flag tower and 13.5- kilometer wall that also encloses a 5,000-room hotel.

Kim Dien Temple could even be mistaken for an emperor’s palace with its long red carpet leading to the entrance.

The carvings on the temple walls feature the four sacred animals in Vietnamese culture (dragon, kylin, turtle and phoenix) and the four symbolic flora of the four seasons (apricot, orchid, daisy and bamboo). The artwork and the doors are gilded with pure gold.

Inside the temple is a central chamber with gilded statues of the Buddha, the Hung kings, and the Emperor Tran Nhan Tong, who founded the Truc Lam School of Zen.

Its two wings house altars for President Ho Chi Minh, the Emperor Tran Hung Dao of the Tran Dynasty, and Au Co, the legendary mother of the Vietnamese people.

Also inside are two giant candles named “The Everlasting Candles” and a red board engraved with 2,000 common Vietnamese family names.

Outside is Bao Son which, at 63 meters tall and 250 meters in length, is the biggest man-made mountain in Vietnam. The five peaks and the Bao Thap Tower are a scaled-down version of Ngu Hanh Son Mountain in Da Nang on the central coast.

Inside Bao Thap Tower are nine theme-based altars, one on each level, to venerate the country’s founders and later heroes and heroines like Ho Chi Minh, Tran Hung Dao and the warrior sisters Hai Ba Trung, who lived from 12-43 AD.

Fun and games

Built as a spiritual tourism spot that preserves the traditional culture and history of Vietnam, Dai Nam is also well worth a visit by fun-seekers.

An assortment of thrilling rides such as the roller coaster on square rails, electric car racing, water plume ride and the swing across the waterfall are similar to the offerings at Dam Sen, Suoi Tien or Nha Trang’s Vinpearland except that they are larger in scale to challenge action enthusiasts.

Believe it or not, visitors can even experience life after death in the Ky Lan Cung (Kylin house) where there are a dozen levels of Hell.

A state-of-the-art 4D cinema may be a good alternative if you don’t mind the sudden drop in temperature to minus 12 degrees Celsius inside Snow World, which is just around the corner.

The 22-hectare water park with wave pool is a must on a scorching day. The admission price of VND60,000 (kids under 140 centimeters get in free) includes free floats, chairs and shower.

Dai Nam also houses Vietnam’s first zoo where visitors can get a close-up view of formerly wild animals.

The 12.5-hectare zoo has 76 species of birds, reptiles and mammals, including many rare animals such as white peacocks, white tigers and white hippos.

These animals have given Dai Nam another national record, this one for having the most “white animals” in Vietnam.

Reported by Mai The