Love story across the ocean

The story goes that when Hoi An became a major trading port, ships from many countries came and went busily. One day, a merchant ship of a Japanese father and son docked at the port to sell goods.

Because he had to stay for many days to do business, the Japanese man had time to socialize with many people in Hoi An. One day, when the sun was about to set, the father saw his son holding the hand of a Vietnamese girl next to the Japanese Covered Bridge and guessed that his son's love was budding. During dinner that night, the son told his father about his love and hoped for his father's approval.

With his father's consent, the young man was extremely happy and immediately met the girl who informed him that after returning to Japan, her family would bring gifts to propose marriage. But when the merchant ship of the father and son docked at Hoi An port with the full engagement ceremony, a bad news spread that the Emperor had ordered the country to close, all Japanese people had to return to their homeland. The son asked his father to hold the wedding immediately so that he could stay in Hoi An, but his father did not agree, advising his son to return and wait for a favorable opportunity to return for a more thoughtful wedding ceremony.

The tomb of Mr. Tani YaJirobei has been located in the middle of Truong Le field for hundreds of years.

Before parting, the boy promised the girl that he would return under any circumstances, and the girl also swore to wait. However, when they returned to their country, their trading license was revoked, banning all ships from going abroad. During the days living apart from his lover, the boy was always tired, bored, and even more desperate when he knew that he would hardly see the girl again. Finally, the boy thought of a way to ask to work on a Japanese fishing boat that often fished for long periods in the southwest sea.

After many days drifting at sea, the young man guessed that the ship was near the sea of Hoi An, so he prepared the means to escape from the ship when he saw Cu Lao Cham Island appear. Due to hunger and cold along with the battering of the waves, the young man fainted, when he woke up he found himself stranded on Ong Beach, and was taken home by the people on Cu Lao Cham Island to take care of him. Following his wishes, the people rowed the boat to Hoi An, but when he met his lover, he just smiled contentedly and then fainted. And the Japanese man forever remained in Hoi An. That young man's name was Tani YaJirobei.

This love story is associated with historical events in the late 16th and early 17th centuries when Hoi An became a major trading port of Dang Trong, a trade transit point, so foreign merchants came here to trade quite crowdedly, most of whom were Japanese. These foreign merchants were allowed by Lord Nguyen to establish two residential areas, the Japanese settlement area was Nhat Bon Dinh, Hoi An people often called it Japanese town. The village of Japanese merchants became more and more bustling because at that time, most of the Japanese merchants who anchored in Hoi An often married Vietnamese women and had children.

According to the documents of the Institute of International Cultural Studies - Showa Women's University (Japan), since 1601, Lord Nguyen Hoang established a partnership with Japan, so from then until the beginning of 1635, there were 71 ships with the red seal of the Shogunate (the Shogunate was the head of the Japanese government in feudal times) carrying many Japanese merchants to Hoi An port to trade. At the end of 1635, the Shogunate ordered all Japanese to withdraw to their country and from then on, Japanese merchants gradually left Hoi An to return to their homeland. The last ship bringing the Japanese back to their country was in 1637.

Today, Tani YaJirobei's tomb, located in the middle of Truong Le field, Cam Chau ward (Hoi An city), has been ranked as a provincial relic. Unlike many other ancient tombs, Tani YaJirobei's tomb has 4 stone tablets engraved in 4 languages: Vietnamese, Japanese, English, French with the content: "Because the Japanese emperor decided to close the country and close the port to trade with overseas, he had to return to his homeland from Hoi An, but later found every way to return to live with his lover, a girl from Hoi An...".

Source: https://baodaklak.vn/van-hoa-du-lich-van-hoc-nghe-thuat/202506/chuyen-tinh-vuot-dai-duong-5d40fdd/