Nghinh Phong Tower Square in south-central Vietnam wins Asian Townscape Award (Photo: Minh Toan)

Cao Dinh Huy, chairman of the People’s Committee of Tuy Hoa city, Phu Yen provinces, said on Saturday that the city received the award at a ceremony in Busan, South Korea on Friday.

The 2023 Asian Townscape Awards were given to nine projects in five countries, including Japan, China, South Korea, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam.

Nghinh Phong Tower Square is the only representative in Southeast Asia to win the award.

The tower square is located in the heart of a coastal park in Tuy Hoa. It was designed in April 2019 and inspired by local tourist site Ganh Da Dia, also known as the Reef of Plates, and the legend of Lac Long Quan and his wife, Au Co, who are believed to be ancestors of the current Vietnamese people.

The two highest columns of the tower, which are 35 and 30 meters high, represent Lac Long Quan and Au Co. There are 50 stacked stone blocks below each of these two towers representing the legendary story of 50 children following their mother Au Co to the sea and 50 others following their father Lac Long Quan to the mountains. They are divided in the middle by a slot to welcome the wind, thus the tower is called Nghinh Phong.