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KON TUM |
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| Some 246km north of Buon Me Thuot, northbound Highway 14 crosses the
Dakbla River and runs into the southern limits of diminutive KON TUM , a
sleepy, friendly town which serves as a springboard for jaunts to its
outlying Bahnar villages . Phan Dinh Phung forms the western edge of
town; running east above the river is Nguyen Hue, and between these two
axes lies the town centre. Kon Tum had a hard time of it during the
American War, and yet a stroll along Nguyen Hue still reveals some
red-tile terraces of shophouses left over from the French era. At the
base of Tran Phu stands the grand, white-washed bulk of Tan Huong Church.
Further east is the so-called Wooden Church , built by the French in
1913, and recently revarnished. A statue of Christ stands behind glass
over the front entrance; below him, a stained-glass window neatly fuses
the classic Christian symbol of the dove with images of local resonance
- a Bahnar village and an elephant. In the grounds, there's a scale
model of a communal house. |
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