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HALONG & CATBA
Halong Bay
– 2,000 islands in 1,500 square km,
the World Heritage
Halong attracts around 90% of
visitors coming to Vietam
It's a
Bay that 1,500 square km wide
belonging to the Tonkin Gulf of the
South China Sea.
Though it belongs to the ocean, its
wave is calm and unusually emerald.
And it has nearly
2,000
islands
and islets, all are limestone and
dolomite, with numerous grottoes,
stretches on that 1,500 square km.
The tourist who have visited Guilin
(China) and Phuket (Thailand) often
make a comparison for their similar
shape and geographical structure,
just to note afterward that Halong
is much huger and more diversified.
So
after a very short time to consider,
UNESCO had acknowledged it as the
World Heritage in December 1994.
This is the 2nd of the
four listed World Heritages of
Vietnam.
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In 1991
a scene of the French movie
INDOCHINE
was
taken on the Bay. The film was
about the life of a French woman who
lived in Vietnam during the French
domination in Indochina from mid-19th
to mid-20th century, the
leading role was by Catherine
Deneuve, and all the French-speaking
tourist were amazed discovering a
spectacular seascape they've never
known before.
Despite
the distance of 170km East of Hanoi
that by 1995 took not less than
6-hour driving with 2 river ferries
to cross, with inconvenient in and
out from the bus, the tourists mark
Halong in their itineraries always.
Now, it takes not more than 3 hours
if you go straight to the Bay. But
the tourists love to stop, as they
cannot skip the paddy fields, the
daily life of farmers and clay
workmen, the greenbean town and the
ceramic town on the new way.
Halong may not be a good example for
comforts and modern facilities, but
from the other (better) side, the
area is preserved well from the
development of industry and massive
tourism.
Cat Ba island
A trip to Cat Ba island can be
separated or combined with a visit
to Halong Bay. This is the largest
island in the Cat Ba Archipelago
that consists of 350 limestone
outcrops adjacent to Halong. This is
an oasis where you can be apart for
one or a few days during a long
voyage. If starting from Halong
Wharf it will take you 4 hours by a
tourist boat, with stopovers for
swimming, visiting spectacular karst
and having fresh seafoods. In a
single word, you can contemplate the
beautiful scenery of Halong before
reaching the island. You can also
buy a ticket of the hydrofoil
departing from Hai Phong Seaport to
reach Cat Ba if your itinerary saves
Halong for another visit.
With an
area of 356 square km wide, Cat Ba
encompasses forested zones, coastal
mangrove and freshwater swamps,
beaches, caves, and waterfalls. In
1986, the Northeast side of the
island was designated a National
Park, including a protected marine
zone. Cat Ba Island supports a
population of over 20,000, most of
whom live off fishing or farming in
the South, in and around Cat Ba
Town. The town is small and ancient,
with clusters of fishing boats and
inspiring sunsets across the harbor.
You can check out the catch of the
day in the early morning , see
cuttlefish dried over hot charcoals,
or stroll around the old town. It's
a short hike from Cat Ba town
through a tunnel to Cat Co Beach,
whose mountains look like a throne
holding a marvelous sandy coast, or
if you hike further along, you will
reach the rockier Cat Vang Beach.
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As transportation on the town is not
so well-developed, motorbikes is the
most helpful means to get you to
the larger Trung Trang Cave with
many chambers, or to the National
Park, or to discover other beaches
around the island. A tourguide is
necessary to help you communicate
with the local drivers and introduce
these viewpoints. The national park
contains stringy trees, thick
undergrowth and slippery vines.
There is a great view that includes
a French, now Vietnamese, farming
village from the top of the mountain
and a lake in the middle of the park
that takes a half day to reach.
Hai Phong – the old charm within an
exciting seaport
Unlike
the two neighbours Halong and Cat
Ba, Hai Phong attracts less tourists
unless they arrive in Northern
Vietnam by cruiserships. Yet, the
city maintains many charming
architectures with evident influence
of early 20th century
colonial style the French invested
to build up the old town as an
important seaport. Passing Hai Phong
is an exciting experience as soon as
you go by the way crossing Cam River
Ferry, from where you can go to
Halong by the landway or take a boat
(usually reserved) and run upstream
12km till you reach the sea, from
where you go on either to Halong or
Cat Ba island. Both ways offer
wonderful views and seascape with
plenty of islands belonging to
Halong and Cat Ba archipelago, and
few tourists choose this way to
avoid repeated itineraries.
There
are still remarkable ancient
Vietnamese architectures in Hai
Phong. Du Hang Pagoda, the centre of
Buddhism in Hai Phong, is a very
pure and graceful temple that was
built in 17th century
with some renovations afterward. The
pagoda contains a lot of brilliant
woodworks, bronze statues, and a
bonsai collection right in the front
ground. An array of Buddha and
Bodhisattva statues highlight a
circular pond of water lilies in a
flowery garden and a tranquil
towered-grave yard, where buried the
monks who had resided in the pagoda,
make the place a wonderful sanctuary
to reduce any pressure. If you
luckily arrive in the new moon and
full moon days' morning, you will
have a chance to catch fascinating
pictures of Hai Phong religious
women in black velvet scarves and
brown long dress, with respectful
faces
and manners, sitting in and around
the main shrine of the pagoda while
the monks pray or give lectures of
Buddhism.
Not far
from the pagoda, at the end of a
very narrow market street is Hang
Kenh Pavillion, which is dedicated
to the Vietnamese hero Ngo Quyen who
lived in 10th century.
Being a Communal House of the Kenh
village in the old time, the
Pavillion is famous for its wooden
bas-relieves, sculptures and special
boat-shaped interior. If you prefer
to stroll our the city, your visit
should be started from the colonial
quarter around Dien Bien Phu street
and Tran Hung Dao street, from where
you can direct to the old Opera
House, and go for a walk surrounding
Tam Bac Lake. There are 5 roofed
kiosks in the Eastern side of the
lake with very fresh flowers sold by
smiling girls, and in the Southern
side is the exciting Hang Kenh
Tapestry producing woolen carpets
for export. |
