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The History of Tao Đàn Park

Tao Đàn Park is a popular attraction for visitors and locals alike. The park behind the Reunification Palace and ancient temples covers an area of over 10 hectares as a green space in Ho Chi Minh City. It is known for its beautiful gardens, playgrounds, and cultural events. It has a pool, tennis courts and a sculpture garden. However, few people know about the dark history of the park’s creation.

**The Green Lung of Ho Chi Minh City**: A beautifully crafted topiary of a dragon in Tao Đàn Park, showcasing the park’s artistic landscaping among the lush greenery. // Source: Diego Delso, delso.photo, License CC BY-SA

The park was built in the late 19th century during the French colonial period in the 1860s and called it Jardin de la Ville. After the French left in 1954, the Vietnamese took the park back and named it Tao Đàn Park.

Now, it is a lit up and green place for relaxation and fresh air. But those who have seen the park grow, have also seen its darker times a couple of decades ago when it was more drugs, robberies and suicides happening in the park after dark.

Haunted Stories and Legends Associated with Tao Đàn Park

A legend told about the Tao Đàn Park is the ghost of the murdered man. In this story, a man was walking through the park with his girlfriend in 2007. They were attacked and murdered, at least the man. His girlfriend was most certainly attacked and in need of help.

Now the man is roaming around the park as a ghost, looking for the love he lost. Although his motives are honorable, it is said he is frightening the visitors who have wandered into the park after dark. Especially the first days of July you can hear his mournful cries throughout the park.

The Motorbike Murder

Did the murder really happen though, or is it simply a widespread legend? According to the park officials and the police, there never was such a murder inside of the park, at least not the way the story tells it.

According to Cong An Newspaper, the official murder that happened in the park was in July, 1989 when Nguyen Diet Hoang Tuan, a young man on a motorbike was robbed and murdered by one he believed was his friend and his accomplice. He had been told to be in the park to potentially sell his bike, but the men he met lured him there to murder him and steal his bike instead.

He was found dead in a pile of trash in the corner of the park, but the case was soon resolved as his sister saw the perpetrators on his motorbike.

Even so, the legend about the ghost of the man wandering the park has taken hold. Some who know the story about Nguyen Diet Hoang Tuan, say that it is in fact him haunting the park, looking for his murders and seeking revenge.

A Part of a Paranormal Marketing Strategy?

Many visitors to Tao Đàn Park have reported strange and eerie experiences. Some have reported seeing ghostly apparitions, while others have heard mysterious noises and voices. One visitor reported feeling a cold breeze and seeing a shadowy figure near the lake, while another reported feeling an invisible hand touching their shoulder.

**The Mysterious Tomb:** In the park, there is also an old tomb that has given root to many legends. However, according to many studies by archaeologists, the tomb was built in the year of At Mao (1795). The person in the tomb is Mr. Lam Tam Lang who died in the fall of At Mao (1795) and Mrs. Mai Thi Xa – his wife. The Lam family was originally from Guangdong. // Source

On the other hand, there are the locals that deny that anything spooky has ever happened in the park and that the whole story of the park being one of Vietnam’s most haunted places is laughable at best. So what is it? A ghost story crafted from the outside as a marketing scheme or a true local legend?

The Mystery of the Tao Đàn Park

Tao Đàn Park may be a beautiful green space, but it has a dark and haunted past that few people know about. From the tragic history of the park’s creation to the eerie sightings of ghostly apparitions, Tao Đàn Park is steeped in a history of horror and mystery.

Despite its haunted reputation, the park remains an important part of Ho Chi Minh City’s cultural heritage. In fact, many believe that the ghost story was invented for the tourist looking for the spooky side of the world. It is a popular destination for locals and tourists alike, and its beautiful gardens and cultural events continue to draw visitors from around the world.

Whether you’re a fan of ghost stories or simply looking for a unique and eerie experience, Tao Đàn Park is a destination that should not be missed. So, are you brave enough to visit?

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References:

Saigon Urban Legends: Haunted Tao Dan Park

Thực hư chuyện Tao Đàn có… ma

Lời đồn đoán ma ám và những bí ẩn trong công viên Tao Đàn

Death on the Bridge

**The Ghost Bridge:** Several reports about paranormal happenings and ghosts comes from this bridge that were built on the labour of prisoners.
Source: vetaucondao.vn

To build infrastructure on the island with the prison, they needed material. In 1930, French colonialists made the prisoners carry rocks to the Núi Chúa mountain to build this bridge. The purpose of the bridge was to make transportation of materials to Ong Dung Beach to be used as building the infrastructure of the Côn Đảo island. It is said that around 356 of the prisoners forced to build this bridge lost their life, either starving to death, poisonous drinking water, horrible abuse from the French or even the climate or the rugged terrain became too much for them.

However, in spite of how much effort that was made to build the bridge, it would never be completed. In August 1945 after the revolution, the work on the bridge was left as the French left Vietnam and only parts of the bridge were complete and stands today, now only standing as a reminder of the bloody labour the prisoners were forced to.

The Lingering Ghosts

Many encounters from the locals have been told of the paranormal kind. One villager that was drinking with his friend told about a man with long hair, white shirt and black trousers, watching him from a distance before suddenly disappearing.

A female villager saw a woman in a white dress at dawn, standing on the bridge at dawn, and as the villager told, she recognized the woman as a hungry ghost. Another female villager met the ghosts of two boys, none of them were wearing a shirt as they forced her to give them dessert.