Friday, May 31, 2013

Cat Co Beach-Ideal destination for the weekend

There are hundreds of large and small beaches in Cat Ba but Cat Co beach including Cat Co 1,2,3, is the tourist attraction with romantic and poetic landscapes.
Visiting the large beach of Cat Co, visitors will have the chance to enjoy the fresh air of sea and swim in the blue and warm water, so clear that you can see the golden sand bneath.

The white-sand Cat Co beach make a great place to lounge around for the day. They are about 1 km southeast from Cat Ba town over a steep headland; and can be reached o­n foot or by motorbike. Cat Ba is the biggest island (100 sq. km) out of the 366 islands o­n the Lan Ha Bay. It is a tourist spot, attractive for its natural beauty and wonders endowed by nature. Right from the moment you set foot o­n Cat Ba gangway, looking afar to contemplate the enchanting scenery of immense sky and magnificent mountains and breathing the fresh air from the sea, you will feel comfortable and your tiredness after a long trip will disappear. Surely, you want to go o­n with your journey at o­nce.

Cat Co Beach is separated by a small hillock that can be climbed over in about 20 minutes. However, you can take the easier route along a new wooden seaside walkway around the mountain. The beach offers simple accommodation and camping. The mountain adjacent to Cat Co Beach has a tunnel and fascinating caves and grottoes, such as Hang Luon, Khe Sau, Trung Trang, Gia Luan and Kim Cuong.

Visiting these caves and grottoes you will get the feeling of the explorers, discovering the wonders and mysteries endowed by nature. The fauna living o­n the Cat Ba National Park is diverse: 20 kinds of animals, 69 kinds of birds, 20 kinds of reptiles, rare wild white - headed langurs. Coming out of the caves and grottoes you should spend a little time to contemplate the sunset over Lan Ha Bay. o­n the golden background of the horizon and the dark blue of the sea, the heaving islets become multiform, the white sea-gulls hover and sea-eagles make circles in the sky, all beautifying the immense and fascinating space, and enchanting the visitors. Cat Co Beach is a tourist spot, attractive for its natural beauty and wonders endowed by nature.

Tuan Chau island: a paradise for tourists

In order to make pristine Tuan Chau island to be “a paradise for travelling and resting”, Au Lac LLC (Tuan Chau corporation) has played an important role in the development of tourism, making the brand name of Tuan Chau, a comprehensive international tourism and recreation complex.
The highlight on sea tourism map
Tuan Chau tourist area was founded in 1997. Its first project was to build  the road connecting the island to the mainland. It was considered as an adventurous and impracticable project. However, after executing in 13 months, the road with the length of 2.145 kilometers and the width of 15 meters was officially completed in April 8, 1999. The total expenditure was more than 80 billion VND.  Nowadays, Tuan Chau has become a tourist attraction not only in Quang Ninh but also in Vietnam.
Tuan Chau port
After that, Au Lac company invested for a recreation area with famous constructions such as: the most beautiful and longest artificial beach (over 6 kilometers), food garden being 20,000 square meters in width, villas, four-star hotels with 1,000 luxurious rooms.

Especially, the first marine mammal showing club in Vietnam with fine designs won the second prize in the 2002 Vietnam architecture competition. In addition, the water performance zone, which is able to serve 12,000 people, shows laser and films on water. This rich blend of music, light, water and modern technology gives tourists an hard-to-forget experience when they set foot on Tuan Chau Island to discover part of Halong Bay-the wonder of nature. The construction is one of impressive constructions in Tuan Chau international tourism and recreation complex.

Marina in Ngoc island
Besides building waterway route, Au Lac Company built a system of modern ports with international standard. Tuan Chau is the first artificial port in Vietnam built by private capital. Waiting rooms are equipped air-conditioner, coach, cable television, internet and bar exclusively for VIP customers and merchants. In addition, there are villas and plazas designed in Italian and Japanese style and other high-end recreation area. Therefore, Tuan Chau attracts a lot of foreign tourists and travel agencies such as Saigontourist, SmileViet, Viettravel, Indochina,etc. Tourists often choose Tuan Chau as the first destination in their visit to Ha Long Bay.

Au Lac Company still continues investing for new places for entertainment such as supermarket, commercial center, cinema, Ngoc Chau marina, golf course, international school, hotels and villas, as well as a system of ports to trade with other countries and territories such as: Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, China, etc. In particularly, the focus is to build Ngoc Chau marina in the Southwest of the island. The port is 11 times bigger than Tuan Chau port with the length of 6 kilometers. The port is entirely built on wetlands. It is the biggest port not only in Vietnam but also in Southeast Asia. One day, there will be about 600-800 luxurious international yatches docking here.

According to Mr Dao Hong Tuyen, CEO of Tuan Chau Corporation: in order to make Ha Long tourism a good brand name, it is necessary to have a good infrastructure. A good port system is essential to replace Bai Chay port. Therefore, the mission of the corporation is to complete Ha Long Bay marina in 2013.

Ha Long Bay marina in Tuan Chau island will be definately the first specialized tourism port in Vietnam, connecting to Cat Ba biosphere reserve and the marina system in the region. 

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Exploring the pristine Nam Du Archipelago


Nam Du archipelago is located in Kien Giang with many large and small islands that appeal to lots of tourist coming to explore.
It takes you five hours to reach the Nam Du Islands, 52 miles off the coast of Rach Gia City. The archipelago has 21 islands, which can only be reached by boat and covers only 40 square kilometers. The archipelago stretches over two communes of An Son and Nam Du with a population of 10,000 people working in fishing and sea-related services. Formed from a volcano, it has numerous six-meter creeks which are advantageous for transportation. As it is endowed with high mountains, Nam Du also is suggested as a great spot for offshore fishermen to flee rough storms.

You should start the exploration with conquering Hon Lon, the largest and highest island in the center of An Son commune. When reaching to the top of island, you will have the chance to see an overview of 20 other islands in Nam Du; it is an extremely interesting feeling. Overlooking the East is An Son fishing village, the West is Bai Ngu fishing village; a distance is Hon Ngang island including house, boat close together floating on the sea. Besides, Hon Lon has a big and bright lighthouse. At night, the lighthouse is considered as the light heart of island.

Lighthouse in Nam Du
Next, you can travel to other islands: Nom Ngoai, Nom Giua, Nom Trong in the south; Dam, Hang, Moc, Tre, Nhan Island in the North. Here, there are many beautiful cliffs, created from countless rocks, formed the vivid sculptures. Besides, you should not miss Ngang Island because it is center of Nam Du commune; even you can rent rooms overnight with cheap and affordable prices. Not far from here, there are Mau, Dau islands and some peaceful fishing villages; so you will have the opportunity to feel salty taste of fish, of sea, and the friendliness of local people.


Monday, May 20, 2013

PAGODA BELLS IN VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST CULTURE


The image of the pagoda and the sound of pagoda bells have become familiar to Vietnamese people, helping them feel relaxed and calm. For many Vietnamese people, the sound of the pagoda bell is closely associated with nostalgic memories and reflects the cultural beauty of the country.

Pagodas are very popular throughout Vietnam. Many of them are hundreds of years old. Vietnamese pagodas are unique for their architecture while the pagoda bell makes them more sacred and solemn.

The history of Vietnamese pagodas reflects the long history of Buddhism in Vietnam. According to Buddhist concepts, the sound of bell is the sound of intellectuality because it awakens people’s mind.

There are three daily sessions of bell ringing. Each session has 108 tokes. Buddhist concepts say that when the sound of the bell reaches heaven, those in heaven rest in peace, when it reaches hell, those down there are released from their sufferings.

The sacred sound of pagoda bells reminds Buddhist followers and laymen to share their love with other people and pray for peace. For Vietnamese people, the Buddhist conception of the universe is profound and easy to understand.

In modern life, the sound of the pagoda bell recalls the sacred soul of the nation. So for Vietnamese people, bell casting and ringing are of great importance. A bell must be cast by skillful and moral craftsmen. Before casting, several rituals are held and then step by step, a batch of bronze is cast with gold contributed by donors.

According to the traditional bronze casting technique, a certain amount of gold mixed with the bronze in casting will make the sound of the bell travel farther. Gold is expensive, but, many people want to donate gold to bell casting to show their belief in Buddha, considering it an honor for their family.

Vu Thi Minh, a gold donor for bell casting in Hanoi, said: "I donated gold for bell casting today. I pray for happiness for my family".

After casting, the bell is kept in the pagoda and in the morning and late afternoon, will toll slowly to help people feel relaxed in their busy life.

Dr. Pham Minh Khang, a folklore researcher, said: "The sound of the bell is the sound of the sacred world. When it echoes, people feel sacred and solemn reflecting people’s wish for a better life. They ring the bell to pray for good luck and drive away all the bad luck. The sound of the bell reflects people’s souls and their wish for peace, good weather, and prosperity”.

In Vietnam, the image of pagodas and the sound of pagoda bells are closely associated with rural life and farmers. When the bell echoes in the morning, it wakes people up to go to the field and in the afternoon, it signals the end of the working day. The sound of the bell gives people relief from their daily hardship and refreshes their minds.

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Sour tamarind soup with prawns- perfect choice for your meal

On cool days, a bowl of sour tamarind soup with prawns will surely be an attractive dish for you family!

This recipe requires to prepare tamarind pulp. It's good to use wet seedless tamarind typically sold in 14 oz blocks instead of juice or concentrates, although you certainly could if pressed for time.

Ingredients:

6 cups of water or fish stock
1/2 lb large prawns, cleaned
1 cup tamarind pulp puree
1/2 sweet pineapple, peeled, sliced into bite-sized pieces
2 tomatos, cut in wedges
2 tbs sugar, plus additional to taste
1 tbs koshar salt, plus additonal to taste
1 tbs fish sauce
1-2 elephant ear stems, peeled and sliced on diagonal 1/2in thick
1 cup okra, sliced diagonal
2 red chilli, sliced (optional)
1/2 cup of bean sprouts
10 springs of rice paddy herb, roughly chopped
fried garlic

How to cook.

Combine the tamarind pulp in equal amout (i.e 14 oz block, 14 fl oz water, roughly 1 cup) of hot water in a large bowl and soak for 15 minutes. Work the pulp with your hands until dissolved, squeezing out the puree and then tossing away the membranes. You're left with just the thick brown pulp puree. You can also strain the pulp through a fine sieve instead of using your hands.

In large pot bring water to boil and then add prawns, tamarind pulp puree, tomatoes, pineapple, okra, fish sauce, salt and sugar and bring back to boil.

When prawns are pink and tomatoes are just tender, add bean sprouts and elephant ear stems and season with additional salt or fish salt and sugar to taste. It should be sweet, sour, and savory.

Remove from heat and transfer to serving bowl. Finish with rice patty herb, fried garlic and optional chili.

Monday, May 6, 2013

Riding elephant in Buon Don, Vietnam


Travel to Buon Don Village are memorable for an experience of a lifetime – riding on the back on an elephant.
Buon Don village is the only place in the country where it is legal to ride these great beasts in the beautiful Central Highlands. If tourists with Vietnam travel guide  fancy braving it from Saigon you take National Road No. 14 for 500km to Binh Phuoc and Daklak Province. Located about 50 kilometers northwest of Buon Ma Thuot City, is Buon Don which is home to the M’Nong, Ede, Lao and Thai ethnic minority groups and for the last two centuries has been the center of elephant hunting and taming in Vietnam.

Buon Don is the name for the three villages of Yang Lanh, Buon Don and Buon Tri in Krong Ana Commune, Buon Don District in Daklak. The elephant riding festival is annually held at the old airport area in the immense forest and it attracts thousands of tourists from over the country and beyond. The festival is amazing due to its number of fun performances such as elephants playing football and wading down the river.
Walking along the stilt houses under the shade of giant trees, tourists in Vietnam tours will be amazed to see elephants tramping on the street with locals or tourists on their back. Sitting on the elephants’ back and ambling with careful steps, tourists will feel life in the slow lane and more peaceful. You can ride elephants through the forests and rivers to explore splendid and wild scenery after getting some valuable advice from mahouts who take care of these amazing animals.
If you have time and feel adventurous, you can hire an elephant to cross the Serepok River. Then walk across the 100m-long Buon Don Bamboo Bridge under the shade of banyan trees. It is veiled by vines and roots but the swinging bridge is not for the feint-hearted.
To have more fun, tourists in Vietnam tours should buy some sugarcane or some other fruits to lure the elephants.