Hoi An, formerly called Fai Fo, was a port town used as a relay trading base for Southeast Asia. Wooden tradesmen's houses, Chinese merchants' club-houses according to the person's origin, Emperor Kwang's Shrine, etc., stand along Kyanhou, running parallel with the Thu Bon River, and facing two streets: Nguyenchiminhkai and Nguyentaihok. It is supposed there was a Japanese town, similar to oÂne in Ayutthaya of Thailand, between the 15th and 16th centuries, and Imari ceramic ware was discovered as evidence of the trading. Although the town has come to assume its present appearance since the latter half of the 18th century, the mixture of various cultures it embraces has been attracting a great number of tourists.
