Sunday, December 23, 2012

Kim Hy nature resere in Bac Kam province

Kim Hy Nature Reserve is located in Vu Muon, Cao Son communes in Bach Thong District and Luong Thuong, An Tinh, Con Minh communes in Na Ri District, Bac Kan Province.
Covering an area of over 14,000ha, the nature reserve has hundreds of rare flora and fauna species which must been managed and protected closely, Vietnam travel news.
Kim Hy Nature Reserve-Bac Kan province
Kim Hy Nature Reserve - Bac Kan Province
It is assessed as the reserve of primeval nature by Vietnamese and foreign scientists with hundreds of rare flora and fauna species. Among them Presbytis francoisi francoisi, squirrel, monkey are endangered species all over the world. Specially, in Vietnam tourism, visiting Kim Hy Nature Reserve, you will see diversity of bat species reputed most species in Vietnam. In addition, the natural reserve is large valuable wood-store of Bac Kan Province with hundreds of thousands of nghien, lat, dinh trees, mountain pine, etc.


Kim Hy is also home to endangered flora species such as stone-pine (thiet san gia) which is only present at 4 mountainous provinces of North Vietnam and two provinces of Guangdong, Guangxi (China). Besides diversified fauna and flora, the Kim Hy Natural Reserve is abundant in minerals, especially gold.

From Dusk To Dawn at crocodile lake

Nestled deep in the middle of the more than 70,000-hectare Cat Tien national park is a large freshwater lake that local forest rangers call Bau Sau (Crocodile Lake).
The aptly-named lake is home to over 100 crocodile species but to see them requires patience and effort. The local ranger informed us that the best time to observe the long-tailed, hard-skinned and big-jawed reptiles are either when dusk is falling or dawn is breaking.
Dawn and dusk are the quiet periods at the lake for the crocodiles to emerge from the tranquil waters and rest on the banks which are bordered with grass bushes. However, most trips to see the crocs are at night when a ranger with a battery-fueled light accompanies his guests on a trip along the banks of the lake to protect them and to show tourists where crocodiles sit onshore at night.
When the ranger sees two red spots in the distance, he will tell his guests to be silent as he moves in slowly toward the spots that he knows are the eyes of a crocodile.
If luck is on their side, the ranger and tourists can get real close to the crocodile and they may also catch the sight of a herd of deer looking for food on the outskirts of the forest as a reward for their trekking for hours in grass bushes and in the dark wild.
The search for crocodiles often ends some hours before midnight, as guests are advised to go to bed early so that they can wake up in the wee small hours in preparation for a boat ride on the lake before the sun rises in the east. It can be a hair-raising trip and not for the faint-hearted.
Crocodiles are not usually afloat on the water to wait and greet curious and nervous people on the boat, but sometimes they hit the boat when they move underwater in the lake. A common scene is of currents
Tourist shoots pictures of Crocodile Lake at dusk
of water created by the crocodile when the reptile swims away when the boat approaches.
It’s a nice surprise that many birds of different colors are seen perching in the trees and wandering in grass bushes on islets in the lake in search of food. In the early morning and at sunset, these birds sing in chorus and help visitors forget their fears about what is lurking a few feet away under water.
The water of the lake is so transparent that it reflects beautifully-shaped old trees and birds flying in the sky, making the lake and surroundings like a picturesque painting. Of course, this painting looks different when the crocs are ready to pounce.
Cat Tien National Park is around 150 kilometres from Ho Chi Minh City. A 10 kilometre car drive from the park’s management office will lead to a path, on which adventurers have to trek five kilometres through vast areas of trees to reach Crocodile Lake. It’s worth the effort.

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Dalat City- A Rhythmic Land of Flowers and Romance

For any couples who are falling in love, staying at Dalat city will be a perfect choice. Considered as a rhythmic land of flowers and romance, Dalat will refresh your love and turn it into a happy ending for sure.


“Listening to the noon going down in the romantic town, a Da Lat-violet is filled with fog…” (Written by Minh Ky, Da Cam)  is lyric of a famous song about Da Lat – one of the top prioritized destinations in Vietnam for its romantic and flowerful beauty. Located in the South Central Highlands of Vietnam (Lang Biang Highlands), Da Lat was originally the playground of the French, and today’s “valley of love”, surrounded by cool, fresh and silently charming atmosphere.
Weather
Da Lat is extremely famous for mild weather. Thanks to the advantage of height and enclosing pine jungle, the town is featured with temperate climate, with an average temperature of 18oC – 21°C, highest as 30oC and lowest as 5°C.
What is more, Da Lat has two distinct seasons, the rainy and the sunny ones. The former is from May to October, and the former from November to April. Tourists in Vietnam travel should be prepared for sudden rains in sunny season, sometimes rocky ones.  Never in Da Lat could we ever catch a storm, which make it favorable for tourists to take any daytime leisure walk.
History
This pure land of romance was discovered by the French during their invasion in southern Vietnam. Before 1893, Lang Biang highlands, an extremely cool and fresh aired area, was the accommodation of the Viet highlanders. Yet there came the day the French would like to settle a convalescent zone in a European weather-like land in 1899. Of course, they could not miss Lang Biang Highlands then. Da Lat was later on built with all required French-style houses, villas, treatment places, and temperate flowers & plants, etc. This has step by step formulated today’s romantic and glamorous Da Lat, a clear mountainous air zone for escaping the heat and humidity of the coast and Saigon, or the today’s Hochiminh City.
Natural beauty
Dalat City- A Rhythmic Land of Flowers and RomanceIt’s no easy at all for travellers to choose the initial visiting place in Da Lat for its widespread covering beauty. On a whole, Da Lat looks like a cross between Vietnam and the French Alps. As mentioned, most of its hotels and houses were built in French style. The town spreads across a series of pine-covered hills, with a small lake in the center, while surrounded by high peaks, creating lovely scenery quite different from the rest of Vietnam. Temperatures are pleasantly warm by day and quite cool at night, down to perhaps 10oC.
Today, Dalat is undoubtedly a beautiful tourist town. The vast majority of visitors are both domestic and foreign tourists on short package tours, drawn by the scenery, vivid blue skies, fresh air, flower-filled parks, and local edible treatment. Dalat is a favorite destination for company weekend outings, family get-aways, and most of all, honeymoons. For overseas visitors, it offers a chance to cool down, view a bit of the French legacy, and enjoy the atmosphere. Also, Da Lat is surrounded by some of the best mountain biking, hiking and canyoning opportunities in Vietnam. Da Lat's high altitude of 1,500-2,000m and fertile landscape make it one among Vietnam's premium agricultural areas, producing a variety of fruits, vegetables and flowers that do not grow in the lowlands. In markets as far north as Hanoi, vegetables and flower vendors will tout their "made in Da Lat" produce.
Top visiting places
 Whoever has come to Da Lat could never forget Xuan Huong Lake (Hồ Xuân Hương), which is located in center of town. Xuan Huong Lake is now one of the main draws of Da Lat, and also where we can see honeymooners and locals to stroll its banks. Side by side Xuan Huong Lake is Top-peg Hill (Đồi Cù), where has grown up a vast golf ground. If you are fond of fresh flowers, Da lat Flower Park is your accurate choice. The park, around 7,000.00 square meters, is situated on top of the Top-peg Hill, northern bank of Xuan Huong Lake, and full of species of beautiful colored flowers to be extremely well-fed by planters. Tourists are all interested in the Da Lat’s flower festival, bringing them to a flowerfully fresh heaven!
Dalat City- A Rhythmic Land of Flowers and Romance
For couples, Valley of Love (Thung Lũng Tình Yêu) is the premium place to go. Its special name derived from its romantic view of silence, grace and green. The other choice is Lake of Sorrow or Lake of Sighs (Hồ Than thở), whose name came from a tale of two lovers, one of whom committed suicide after the other was called up to serve in the army. The romantic and beautiful Tuyen Lam Lake (Hồ Tuyền Lâm) (the lake where rivers, springs and forests meet), Prenn Falls, or Pongour are also worth visiting for their beauty and fun.
On the other hand, Da Lat is popular for French-style architecture. Examples are King Bao Dai’s Palace, Ngo Dinh Diem and Nguyen Cao Ky’s villas, Hang Nga villas, and so forth. All of those should really be visited since they demonstrate the deeply special beauty and somehow culture of the old French. 
Tourist activities
  • A striking, not-quite-finished fantasy house designed by the daughter of an independence war hero. Worth a visit if you are interested in architecture, or like Dr. Seuss-style surroundings.
  • A set of flower gardens centered on a re-constructed traditional Vietnamese teakwood house.
  • A hill-top pagoda coupled with a brief cable car ride over the pine forest
  • A ride in a land rover up to the top of Langbiang Mountain, with nice views of Dalat and the surrounding mountains and valleys.
 Paying a visit to Central Highlands and you are in Lam Dong in Vietnam travel, Dalat city will be a must-visit place that you should not ignore.

Monday, December 10, 2012

Tran Bien Literature Temple- a peaceful and silent space


Tran Bien Temple of Literature, built in 1715 under King Nguyen Phuc Chu, was the first temple of its kind in the South. It is a place to honor Confucius and also serves as an educational center. Tourists in Vietnam travel will learn a great deal about the history of Vietnam through the stories of the national heroes and icons.
Architecturally inspired by the Quoc Tu Giam (Temple of Literature in Hanoi capital), the Tran Bien Temple of Literature was rebuilt twice in the Nguyen Dynasty and then destroyed by the French in 1861. Then It was restored in 1998 and the first phase was inaugurated during the Tet holidays in 2002. The last phase is under construction.
Nestled near Buu Long Cultural Park, about 3 kilometers from the center of Bien Hoa City, the temple is emerging as a peaceful and silent space, with curved domes and majestic rooms under the shade of green trees standing in harmony with the surroundings.
The first sight in the temple is Van Mieu Mon (Mon temple of literary), a traditional stele house carved with the glorious epic of Vu Khieu about the process of building the country, building the temple, typical national revolutions as well as educational and cultural traditions of Bien Hoa City.
Visitors in Vietnam tourism can also discover more about Vietnamese history in the tranquil setting of Tinh Quang Lake, as well as at Khue Van Cac, Dai Thanh Mon and especially the stele house of Confucius.
The most striking aspect of the temple is the Bai Duong sanctum, built in old style architecture with red-lacquered designs with parallel sentences hung on pillars. In the center is the altar of the Vietnamese late president Ho Chi Minh in front of a picture of a traditional bronze drum behind.
18 kilograms of soil and 18 kilograms of water from Hung Temple symbolizing the 18 Hung kings and the origin of Vietnam were displayed in the temple. The temple also honors some cultural icons such as Chu Van An, Nguyen Binh Khiem, Nguyen Dinh Chieu, Le Quy Don, and Le Quang Dinh.

Duong Long Cham Tower, a beautiful architecture


Duong Long Tower was built in the 12nd century with very beautiful architecture. It is also called Thap Nga meaning "ivory tower". 
The Tower is located at Go Dang, Binh Hoa Commune, Tay Son District, Binh Dinh Province.

This towner comprises of three biggest towers. It was built in the 12nd century with very beautiful architecture. Duong Long Cham Tower, also called Thap Nga meaning "ivory tower" is located  about 40km from Quy Nhon and 270km from Danang City. The highest tower, 35m high, is in the middle, and the two others are 22m.
Built of bricks, its corners have got motifs with stone carvings of sacred animals such as Garuda birds, elephants, and eagles. Its gate faces the east and is rather high (about 1.5m) and the gates frame is made of big stones. Its upper part is built of big stones, which are skilfully superimposed on each other. Many big, body leaf-shaped bas embossments describing monks, dancers and singers are found on the walls.
These figures with rather big heads wear corner hats. Particularly, the top of the tower looks like a great lotus with its rising petals. All the decorative motifs of the tower are very big and carved on sandstone. This tower complex is one of the most beautiful in Central Vietnam

My Son Temple


My Son is perhaps the longest inhabited archaeological site in Indochina, but a large majority of its architecture was destroyed by US carpet bombing during a single week of the Vietnam War.
Located near the village of Duy Phu, Duy Xuyen district, Quang Nam province in Central Vietnam, 69 km southwest of Da Nang. The My Son temples are in a valley roughly 2km wide that is surrounded by two mountain ranges.
From the 4th to the 14th century AD, My Son valley was a site of religious ceremony for kings of the ruling dynasties of Champa, as well as a burial place for Cham royalty and national heroes. Closely associated with the nearby Cham cities of Indrapura (Đồng Dương) and Simhapura (Trà Kiệu). At one time, the site consists of over 70 temples as well as numerous stele bearing historically important inscriptions in Sanskrit and Cham.
The My Son temple complex regarded one of the foremost Hindu temple complexes in Southeast Asia, is the foremost heritage site of this nature in Viet Nam. It is compared with other historical temple complexes in Southeast Asia such as: Borobudur of Java inIndonesia, Angkor  Wat of Cambodia, Bagan of Myanmar and Ayutthaya of Thailand. In 1999, My Son has been recognized by UNESCOas a world heritage site.


Most of the temples at My Son were made of red brick, and only one (the temple labelled "B1") was made of stone. Even the decorative carvings on the Cham temples were cut directly onto the bricks themselves, rather than onto sandstone slabs inserted into brick walls as is observable for example in the 9th century Cambodian temple of Bakong.
Today, the construction techniques used by the Cham builders are not completely understood. One thing that have not been completely resolved include issues about the firing of the bricks, the mortar between the bricks, and decorative carvings found on the bricks.

Thursday, December 6, 2012

Pristine Xuan Dai bay in Phu Yen


From Phu Yen’s Tuy Hoa City, head north on Highway 1 for 45 kilometers and you will see Xuan Dai Bay in front of you, like a watercolour painting. The bay is ringed by a mountain chain stretching some 15km, providing a dramatic scenic backdrop. With a water surface area of approximately 13,000ha, the entrance to the bay, by the mouth of the Ky Lo River, is 4.4km wide and varies from 7m to 18m deep.
Listed among the most beautiful bays in the world, Xuan Dai Bay is a remarkable sightseeing spot in Phu Yen Province, offering both sea and mountain views. Recently, Xuan Dai Bay has become a famous destination attracting not only local people, but also foreign travellers who love relaxing on the beach.

Xuan Dai Bay

From Phu Yen’s Tuy Hoa City, head north on Highway 1 for 45 kilometers and you will see Xuan Dai Bay in front of you, like a watercolour painting. The bay is ringed by a mountain chain stretching some 15km, providing a dramatic scenic backdrop. With a water surface area of approximately 13,000ha, the entrance to the bay, by the mouth of the Ky Lo River, is 4.4km wide and varies from 7m to 18m deep.
Few bays have the topographical variety of Xuan Dai, with secluded inlets interspersed with mountain cliffs.  There are dozens of coves of various sizes and depths. Xuan Dai Bay is best viewed from the surrounding mountains, or islands and peninsulas, such as Ong Xa, Nhat Tu Son, Yen, Mom, Ghenh, Da Mai, Tai Ma, and Den. All are big, beautiful and pristine. Nhat Tu Son Island looks like the Chinese character for the number one, making a horizontal slash on the sea. Yen Island is famous as well, depending on your viewpoint you can see its shape as a sail, or as a tiger sitting carefree on the ocean.


Tourists can swim or take leisurely walks on wild stretches of beach to view the unique features of Xuan Dai Bay. Binh Sa, also called Dai Beach, is the most impressive, a gently curving beach stretching for 5km lined by poplar forest. All around the bay there are rugged islands emerging from the water surface, green with plants throughout all four seasons.
From the tops of the islands, visitors can see fishing villages with rows of coconut trees along the shore of Xuan Dai Bay and, in front of you, fleets of fishing boats bobbing gently on the sea. Visitors can also see the local people pass by on the way to their daily work on the sea.


Some areas around Xuan Dai can be quite difficult to be reach, as the landscape is still wild and primitive. The best time to visit is from November to April.

Monday, December 3, 2012

Wild Beauty Of Rai Cave


Rai cave has still remained almost the nature and mysteriousness for many years.
On the tour from Phan Rang to Vinh Hy, a tourist attraction you cannot miss is Rai cave. Beautiful caves are created by piled stones. The mountain is not high, the cave is not deep, but they are very impressive as one side is Chua mountain and other is sea.


Nearby Rai cave, there are a small sea, a reservoir whose water comes from Chua mountain and a fishing village hiding behind a row of cactus blooming all year round. People in the fishing village not only go fishing but also raise sheep in the rocky mountain and grow rice in the valley. This is not a big bay but being impressive by the various landscapes.

Visitors can enter caves and listen to the sound of wave. Sometimes, they can hear their voice reverberating from the cliff. In the other side of the mountain, there are plenty of bizarre shapes of rocks jutting out into the sea.
This is the place flocks of nomadic coats standing in the abrupt mountain slopes and calling its flock. A person living in the fishing village talked about the terrain here that the mountain holding back the wave and there are a lot of caves, so this is a habitat for otters. It is why people call this place Rai cave. Now, visitors sometimes see flocks of otters playing in the rock-top.

For people being interested in discovering and experiencing strong feeling, Rai cave is a suitable tourist attraction with a lot of attractive challenges like subduing high large rocks, going through big caves or small caves, diving to see colorful flocks of fish, or going with local men and diving under the sea to collect moon snails.
After that, if you are tired, you can choose a seat in somewhere to feel the wind blowing from the sea and go fishing, or contemplate beautiful pictures of nature in a small tea shop. You can ask sale person for help to cook cheap and fresh seafood.


Most visitors come here with their group of traveling. They choose cool caves located between cliffs for taking a rest. Groups of young people like scuba diving to see colorful flocks of fish swimming in range of coral. In the decline of day, when the tide goes down, you can follow local men to dive and find moon snails in the rocky caves. It is very interesting.