Posted by admin on May 9, 2011 under Vietnam Travel in the North, Vietnam festival, Vietnam travel News | 
The famous love market of ethnic couples of the northern Vietnamese mountains was recognized to be provincial cultural and historical relic of Ha Giang province.
Nguyen Trung Thuong, director of the Ha Giang Department of Cultural, Sport and Tourism, told Tuoi Tre that the recognition will lead to the improvement of the aged relic targeted to be ranked in the list of national cultural and historical relics.
The plan of restoration is also sketched out in order to turn Khau Vai love market into Ha Giang province’s tourist hot spot.
“We will soon start restoring the Ong and Ba temples as well as the more than 90-year-old Khau Vai Market. Building more tourist hostels is also in the to-do-list. The entire project is expected to be completed by 2015,” Thuong said.
The Khau Vai market, taken place in Meo Vac district’s Khau Vai commune on annual lunar March 26 and 27, attracts large number of locals including Giay, Nung and Muong ethnic people and tourists.
It offers ex-lovers, who could not marry, a chance each year to meet each other before returning to their daily routine and families.
The market also provides entertainment to tourists who can enjoy the humorous side of the market’s legend. Tourists can watch performances, learn about various ethnic groups, get unique ethic items and clothing, as well as take part in traditional games.
Source: Tuoi Tre
Collected by Vietnam hotels
Posted by admin on April 27, 2011 under Vietnam Travel in the North, Vietnam festival, Vietnam travel News, Vietnam's World Heritage |
A laser, sound and water performance lasting up to 90 minutes will be at the heart of the annual Ha Long Carnival held in the northern province of Quang Ninh from April 29 to May 5.
The provincial authorities have invested a record sum of more than VND138 billion (US$6.57 million) in preparation for the performance, titled Mysterious Ha Long By Night, to be held on Bai Chay Beach on May 2.
The Ha Long Sparkling with Colours street festival will hit the town on May 1, along with a series of cultural events including a poetry – music show, a competition for MCs, a culinary festival, a tennis tournament, a bonsai exhibition and a cock fighting festival.
“The carnival is even more important than usual, with the vote for Halong bay as one of the New7Wonders of Nature at its peak,” said Ha Quang Long, director of the Quang Ninh Culture, Sports and Tourism Department.
The local authorities have prepared facilities for tourists to vote for Ha Long during the week by telephone. Tourists can dial +2 392 201 055; +1 869 760 5990; +1 649 339 8080 and +44 758 900 1290. After hearing the introduction, tourists can press 7712 to vote for Ha Long Bay.
The bay is currently second in the polling behind South Korea’s Jeju Island. In total, there are 28 finalists on the New7Wonders list.
The New Open World Corporation will end voting and announce the seven new wonders on November 11 this year.
The tourism week is expected to attract around 500,000 tourists to the bay, accounting for eight to ten per cent of the average annual visitors to the province.
Source: VNS
Posted by admin on April 14, 2011 under Vietnam Travel in the North, vietnam beauty |
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What goes on behind the bland-looking shops in Hanoi’s Old Quarter? To find out, you need to sign up for a tour with Hidden Hanoi.
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The Old Quarter of Hanoi, Vietnam, is every tourist’s destination. The narrow streets offer a slight refuge from the throbbing traffic of the city’s main thoroughfares but the main attractions are the craft shops that line the sides of every lane.
Here you can find the city’s oldest goldsmiths and silversmiths, and traces of other crafts that have almost died out now. Nowadays, there is little call for the work of traditional ironmongers, and the sugar trade largely takes place elsewhere. Instead there are small shops selling beautiful paper, bamboo bowls, posters from the Vietnam war and elegant lacquerware.
The Old Quarter
There are also workshops that will copy for you, with immense skill, almost any work of art — Picassos, Warhols and a dozen versions of the Mona Lisa (one with Jennifer Aniston’s face) jump out at you from small courtyards and the long narrow shops that characterise the Quarter. Provide these artists with a photograph or picture, and they will copy it for you for the price of a few dollars.
The Old Quarter is the heart of Hanoi, bustling, noisy and endlessly fascinating, its picturesque buildings containing treasure troves of handicrafts and providing chic little cafés to rest limbs weary from too much sightseeing. It is the oldest, continuously developed area of Vietnam, with some estimating settlement here to date two thousand years back.
But even if that is a little optimistic, there is no disputing that the Old Quarter celebrated its 1,000 year anniversary in 2010. When King Ly Thai To moved his capital to the area, he wrote in a royal proclamation, “The land here is spacious and flat, such a fresh spot and a hub of commerce for the whole country.”
I doubt that he would describe it as a “fresh spot” today but as with most successful commercial areas of the time, it was trade that made the city thrive and its inhabitants rich. But to find this richness, you have to go behind the scenes.
It’s difficult to exaggerate the change that occurs when you get behind the shopfronts on the busy main streets and start to explore the alleyways behind them. The shop fronts themselves are narrow because storekeepers were taxed according to the width of their storefront. The financially astute solution, therefore, was to have buildings that were narrow but went back a long way.
The passages are so narrow, shoulders touch both walls.
Alongside them are alleyways to gain access to the rooms that lie furthest back from the road. Often the entrances to these are so tiny that you will find your shoulders touching the walls on either side. Some are poor, almost derelict; others contain surprising richness. Almost all take you past tiny cramped dwellings, often single rooms, and under the strings of washing that festoon the tiny courtyards.
Many of the families of the Old Quarter live around these tiny courtyards and in these tiny rooms, which is odd when you consider that property prices here are extremely high. Prices, I was told, are as high here as in Tokyo and New York. This is seriously expensive real estate.
So why the apparent overcrowding and poverty?
The answer lies in the politics of succession. Over generations, these properties have been handed down, and each time they have been passed on, they have been divided between more and more people. Each person’s share has got smaller and smaller. But no-one wants to give up their share or to leave. So the density of population gets higher and there is less and less to go round.
Your chances of finding the world behind the shopfronts is small if you leave it to chance, but there are now small businesses that are in love with their heritage and culture that will take you to sights that you would never find on your own.
Some alleyways lead to rich temples. — MARTIN SPICE
Our tour with Hidden Hanoi started inauspiciously outside a very ordinary-looking shop selling small tourist items. But down the side of the shop was a very tight alleyway, and within a few steps we were in an entirely different world.
After walking the not-inconsiderable length of the building, we went under an arch and through a fine wooden doorway to emerge in a brightly painted yellow courtyard, at the end of which was a flight of steps. Up the steps we climbed, only to find ourselves in a chic little rooftop café with stunning views over the Old Quarter. From the street outside, there was no indication that this little jewel even existed.
This was truly refreshment for those in the know. On the way back down the same steps, we stopped to look at the family’s chapel, full of intricate sculptures and treasures handed down from heaven knows how many years ago. Despite the inheritance divisions, this was clearly an affluent family home.
Over the next hour, the pattern was repeated. We would turn off the main streets into little alleyways and find ourselves in labyrinths of tiny lanes leading to who knew what?
We found more resplendent chapels but also stumbled across an old woman living in a sparsely furnished single room, betel juice seared like a red scar across her face. These lanes were nothing if not varied.
Our tour finished with a traditional cyclo ride around the main streets of the Old Quarter, but my appetite had been whetted for the scenes and the life that lay tantalisingly behind the bland shopfronts.
The next day, we tried to retrace our steps but much of what we had earlier discovered now eluded us. Hidden Hanoi had clearly decided to live up to its name.
By Martin Spice
Source: thestar
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Posted by admin on March 29, 2011 under Vietnam Travel Guide, Vietnam Travel in the North |
A group from the US expressed their excitement when they related their trip to Ho Village, 20km northwest of Sa Pa.
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| Northern trekking: Foreign travellers visit Ho Village. — VNA/VNS Photos Pham Hau |
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| Relaxing destination: Jumping Stone Waterfall in Ho Village. |
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| Panoramic view: An overview of Ho Village. |
It was a fairytale region, said group leader Duong Quang Thieu.
The group of seven people had been transported to an inn in the village where they hired local guide Vang A Duong, a Tay ethnic man whose household was among the first to co-operate with tour agencies.
“Duong led us to tour Hoang Lien National Park, where fauna and flora are abundant, to see the Da Nhay (Jumping Stones) Waterfall, and we took advantage of the 18-25oC temperature to soak in a fresh clean stream,” Thieu said. “It was one of my best memories.”
After lunch at Duong’s house, they were led to a Dao ethnic hamlet further up the mountain to have a bath with 18 traditional medicinal herbs.
“Although you must trek 3km up to the hamlet, you should not miss this rare opportunity because the Dao people have to go deep in to the jungle to collect the herbs,” Duong said. “They are then dried and buried under the earth for a month before use.
“Soaking in the wooden tub with hot herbs leaves you comfortable and certainly more cheerful,” he said.
Ho village deputy chief Nguyen Van Minh said the traditional herbs had been handed down through generations of the Dao group.
“They are already approved by the Traditional Medical Institute,” Minh said.
In the area, the Lave and Muong Hoa streams weaved through boulders, hills, mountains and terraced paddy fields of Mong, Dao and Tay ethic groups in the breathtaking Valley of Muong Hoa.
Minh said Ho Village encouraged tour guiding.
“We’ve trained 50 guides and given them English lessons so they can introduce the traditional culture and unique habit and customs of each ethnic group to travellers.”
In addition, volunteers from Sa Pa had opened a cooking class and tour guide courses for other young people in the village, Minh said.
Duong said Ho Village was worth the somewhat difficult journey to get their because of its views and the opportunity to discover the daily activities of the Tay people.
On the way to the Jumping Rocks Waterfall, which was named by locals after seeing fish jumping out of the water in the old days, Duong’s group passed water running along bamboo pipes which locals had laid down to channel water to their terraced paddy fields.
The channels also fed the wooden houses perched on the sides of rolling hills and ensured the wild flowers flourished, Duong said.
In the dry season, the boulders in Lave Stream resembled works of art; in the wet season from May till September the water formed colourful sprays as it hit the boulders.
Ho Village is divided into three hamlets: Ta Trung Ho, Xeo Trung Ho and Hoang Lien. Nearly 50 households in the village had signed tourism contracts with travel agents and welcomes 500,000 visitors a year.
In the evening Thieu’s group walked around the village and watched brocade weaving, bought brocade souvenirs for VND25,000 each, or joined locals performing folk songs and dances at a traditional house.
“We joined locals performing the bamboo pole dance which was not so difficult,” said group member Frank Robert, adding that he could thoroughly recommend a visit to the village and the region.
The trails and roads from Ho Village also led to the peaceful Red Dao Village of Nam Toong and other ethnic communities, where trekkers enjoyed even more beautiful scenery.
Transport to Ho Village is mainly by motorbike (VND30,000 each way) or jeep (VND300,000 return).
Collected by Vietnam hotel
Posted by admin on March 28, 2011 under Vietnam Travel in the North, Vietnam tour, Vietnam travel News |
VIETNAM – In a fitting tribute to its French colonial history, Emeraude Classic Cruises is now offering guests complimentary crêpes on every journey through the splendors of Ha Long Bay.
Guests will enjoy this new interpretation of an old tradition on the sundeck of the paddle steamer every day from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. The Emeraude’s award-winning cuisine is displayed to best effect with this crêpe station, which will offer a selection of fillings inspired by European and Asian dishes.
The first Emeraude paddle steamer was built by a French family, the Roques, who were investors in Indochina in the late 19th century. The current near-replica, which comes complete with en suite bathrooms, air conditioning and classically appointed cabins, hearkens back to the days of French colonial adventures in Vietnam.
Crêpes, an enchanting afternoon treat reminiscent of the Emeraude’s origins, are a delightful addition to the variety of amenities Emeraude Classic Cruises offers its guests in ongoing efforts to add variety and flair to its renowned Halong Bay cruises.
Posted by admin on March 11, 2011 under Vietnam Travel in the North, vietnam beauty |
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 For these H’mong and Dao ethnic women, life is a hard struggle. To make their living in Sapa mountain, these women, including young girls, have to walk around 10km per day to sell brocatelle. |
| Sapa mountain, Lao Cai, is located in the North of Vietnam. With the natural beauty and the cool climate, Sapa attracts thousands of tourists every year. Tourists from all corners of the world come here to enjoy their vacations amidst the beautiful nature. However, not all people you find in Sapa have the privilege of such a luxurious lifestyle.
These pictures from VnExpress show that in the quiet beauty and glamour of Sapa, many H’mong and Dao women are busy fighting for their lives in Sapa.
In the early morning, these H’mong women have to walk about 10km per day to sell brocatelle in Sapa
Two 3 and 4 year-old girls engage in selling brocatelle wallets and cellphone cases to tourists. They speak Vietnamese quite well
These women have to walk many streets, wait outside many sapa hotels to find customers for their brocatelle handicraft
This 10 year-old H’mong girl also follows her mom to the market
Dao women are sewing brocatelle for customers
Approaching hotels, or food stores, to find foreign customers
At Sapa market, this 70 year-old Dao woman is selling and sewing brocatelle
Source: tuoitrenews.vn
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Posted by admin on March 3, 2011 under Attractions, Vietnam Travel Guide, Vietnam Travel in the North |
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Black H’mong women sell tho cam (ethnic fabrics) in Sapa. One of the most wonderful highlands in Asia, Sapa is a magical combination of landscapes, ethnic cultures and fresh mountain air.
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It was too early. I struggled to peel my eyes open, wondering what the commotion outside was all about. The clock pointed to somewhere between 4 and 5 a.m.
It was Sunday, and I was at a hotel in Sapa. Cursing the thin walls of the hotel, I walked to the window to peer into the dawning light outside.
I had expected to see a few people milling about their morning business. Instead, I saw the streets flooded with hundreds of H’mong and Red Dao people in colourful ethnic attire heading to the Sapa market.
It was an exotic orchestra of people speaking foreign tongues, children running, babies whimpering, chickens clucking and pigs snorting.
It was impossible to sleep with all the noise, so I decided to get out and experience the traditional Sunday market myself.
Black H’mong women sell tho cam (ethnic fabrics) in Sapa. One of the most wonderful highlands in Asia, Sapa is a magical combination of landscapes, ethnic cultures and fresh mountain air.
Love in the marketplace
The sights, sounds and smells of Sapa’s market are as distinctive as the ethnic tribes jostling about. Locals go to the market not just to buy and sell but also to unwind after a long, hard week.
I had been watching H’mong girls wearing garlands of dried mushrooms on strings around their necks, when suddenly, a H’mong man caught the arm of one of the girls and tried to pull her away.
I was alarmed, but a shopkeeper explained, “It is cướp vợ custom. When a H’mong man finds the girl of his dreams, he and his friends try to pull her away. If they succeed, they take her to the man’s house for a few days before visiting the girl’s family to ask for her hand in marriage.”
Rustic grub
Just inside the market gates were stalls full of mountain fruits such as peaches, plums, chestnuts, and Indian taro.
But the locals were eating hearty breakfasts of mèn mén (corn wheat cake), and thắng cố (horse meat soup). The better off leaned over steaming bowls of ph^, an expensive treat in these mountainous regions.
To the right are stalls full of trinkets and local products. Here you can find everything from ethnic silver jewelry to mushrooms, tam thất (notoginseng), honey, and linh chi fungus.
I bought a kilo of dried buds of the tam thất to gift friends back home. The tam thất bud tea is believed to aid good sleep.
Fabrics in Sapa
Next, I headed to the second floor of the Sapa market, which is known as the heart of the market. This is the arena of women selling brocades from their little workshops.
Many of these local artisans have been working in dimly-lit, cramped shops for decades, weaving yards of intricately designed brocades. Owing to the fabric’s popularity among tourists, a lot of the women here can converse quite well in English.
Heavily embroidered colorful blankets, pillow shams, table covers beckoned from all around. I found myself attracted to the more esoteric designs of the H’mong people.
A Sapa native told me that H’mong girls are taught to weave, sew and dye fabrics from a very young age. When they grow up, they are entrusted with the responsibility of making clothes for her family. The better her needle work, the better a girl’s prospects for marriage.
The market continues bustling until late afternoon, when locals begin to pack up their goods and head back to their homes in the terraced hills of Sapa.
Though tourism is growing rapidly in this region, mercifully, the H’mongs and Red Daos have preserved their colorful culture. In the Sapa market, the ethnic people and their cultures come alive every weekend, fusing together the simple times of the past in a traditional, but evolving market.
Source: thanhniennews
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Posted by admin on under Vietnam Travel in the North, Vietnam festival, Vietnam travel News |
Located at Đông Triều district, Quang Ninh province, Quỳnh Lâm pagoda used to be the largest Buddhist centre for the entire country during the 17th and 18th century.
The pagoda was built at the Pre-Lý Dynasty (about the end of the 5th century, begin of the 6th century) and has been restored many times under the Đinh, Early Lê, Lý, Trần, Lê Dynasties.
Before the pagoda is a great lake, while the three remaining sides are surrounded by hills and mountains. It was embellished and completed in Lý, Trần Dynasties. During the 11th and 14th centuries, the end of Lê Dynasty, and in the 17th and 18th centuries, it developed into the main centre of Buddhism for the entire country.
In the 14th century, the Quỳnh Lâm Pagoda became an even more important Buddhist centre with the activities of the monk Pháp Loa Đồng Kiên Cương, a member of the second generation of the Trúc Lâm Buddhist sect. It was the centre for sacred books and for preaching Buddhism, as well as a training-site for future pagoda wardens. Many associations, famous in Vietnamese literature and history, were organized here.
In 1319, Pháp Loa calls for blood donation from Buddhist followers to print over 5,000 copies of Đại Tạng sutras, which are kept at Quỳnh Lâm Buddhist Institute. In 1328, he had a statue of Maitreya cast. A year later, he brought a part of the bone ash of Trần Nhân Tông (the 1st patriarch of the Trúc Lâm Zen sect) to put into the stone stupa in Quỳnh Lâm Pagoda.
In early 15th century, the pagoda was reduced to ruins and had to undergo many restorations. In 1727, the 7-storey Tịch Quang Stupa (grave of monk Chân Nguyên, who made great contribution to the pagoda) was set up, which measures up to 10 meters. The stupa’s top takes the shape of a banyan bud. To the stupa is attached a plate which notes down the biography of monk Chân Nguyên.
In mid-18th century, the pagoda underwent a major restoration. It now also has bronze bells and stone gongs.
This year’s ritual festivities of the Quỳnh Lâm Pagoda are held on March 5-8 (from the first to the fourth day of the second lunar month). However, the festive atmosphere often lasts through spring.
Source: quangninh.gov
Collected by Vietnam hotel
Posted by admin on under Vietnam Travel in the North, Vietnam travel News, vietnam hotel |
Northern provinces are accelerating efforts to woo investors into tourism development.
Deputy chairwoman of Yen Bai People’s Committee Pham Thi Thanh Tra said in the past six years the ‘Back to the Origin’ tourism programme in three northern provinces of Yen Bai, Phu Tho and Lao Cai has captured visitors’ special attention while stimulating investment into local tourism infrastructure development.
The statement was made during the launching of ‘Back to the Origin’ tourism programme 2011 which was jointly held by the three northern locations. Tra was also the head of these locations’ tourism cooperation board.
There are nearly 1,000 tourism residences, 500 hotels, 260 big restaurants and over 20 ecological and entertainment sites in these three locations currently. However, tourism infrastructure in these areas is backward.
Despite an abundance of state classified historical relics, biodiversity and picturesque landscapes, the tourism sector’s revenue in these areas is low due to the lack of quality tourism accommodations. As with Yen Bai, the province licenced 277 investment projects in the past five years, however the tourism sector only lured in several dozens of projects. The province’s leadership hopes the ‘Back to the Origin’ tourism programme 2011 would help bring more visitors to the province.
“Yen Bai is accelerating the construction of major tourism venues and strives to turn Thac Ba into a national standard resort,” Tra said.
Similar to Yen Bai, Phu Tho also remains unknown to many local and foreign visitors due to poor infrastructure. The province is concentrating efforts into bringing about a face-lifting to provincial hotel and restaurant system and popularising the homestay model to catch up visitors’ needs.
Deputy chairwoman of Phu Tho People’s Committee Nguyen Thi Kim Hai said the province would prioritise investment into tourism growth in the coming period.
Hai said tourism investment figures were upbeat. Particularly, the Viet Han Real Estate Company has joined hands with South Korea-based Samsung Group to engage in a big $5 billion resort which covers 2,500 hectares in Tam Nong district’s six communes. Site clearance will start from the second quarter of 2011 and the project will be put into use from 2018.
Besides, Xuan Truong Company Limited has worked on a building a road running from Hung Kings Temple to Xuan Son National Park and upgrading five stilt-houses of local people into tourism residences.
Phu Tho is calling investment for some major tourism projects such as those associated with Ao Chau resort or Thanh Thuy hot spring resort.
Of the three above locations, Lao Cai scores best in luring visitors. The province authorities recently licenced 11 projects by domestic investors worth more than $17 million.
Accommodating Sa Pa, a famous tourism site for its splendid beauty and special cultural diversity, Lao Cai is attracting many investors, including foreign ones.
Some effective foreign direct investment projects in the province currently are the Victoria Sapa hotel, a sapa hotel and foreigner-oriented electronic gaming project by Lao Cai International Hotel Joint Venture Company, or the Topas Ecolodge Sa Pa resort.
Source: VIR
Posted by admin on February 14, 2011 under Vietnam Travel Guide, Vietnam Travel in the North, vietnam beauty |
Travelers to Sapa in summer can feel the climate of four seasons in one day. In the morning and afternoon, it is cool like the weather of spring and autumn. At noon, it is as sunny and cloudless as the weather of summer. And it is cold in the evening.
With no advance warning of a thunderstorm short and heavy rains may come at noon on any summer day. Subsequently, a rainbow appears, transforming Sapa into a magic land, which for years has been a constant source of poetic inspiration, lights up the whole region.
The terraced fields in Sa Pa, Vietnam
The best time to witness the scenic beauty of Sapa is in April and May. Before that period, the weather might be cold and foggy; after that period is the rainy season. In April and May, Sapa is blooming with flowers and green pastures. The clouds that settle in the valley in early morning quickly disappear into thin air.
Sapa has many natural sites such as Ham Rong Mountain, Silver Waterfall, Rattan Bridge, Bamboo Forest and Ta Phin Cave. Sapa is also the starting point for many climbers and scientists who want to reach the top of Fansipan Mountain, the highest mountain in Vietnam at 3,143m. Hoang Lien Mountain Range is also called the Alps of the North Sea area since Fansipan Mountain is not only the highest peak in Vietnam, but also in the Indochina Peninsula. The pyramid-shaped mountain is covered with clouds all year round and temperatures often drop below zero, especially at high elevations.
The first thing you notice when approaching the resort town are some detached wooden mansions and villas perched on a hill top or hillside, behind thick pine forests and almost invisible on this foggy morning. Old and new villas with red roofs now appear and now disappear in the green rows of pomu trees, bringing the town the beauty of European towns.
Fresh and cool air in Sapa is an idea climate condition for growing temperate vegetables such as cabbage, chayote, precious medicinal herbs, and fruit trees such as plum, pear…
Sapa is home to various families of flowers of captivating colours, which can be found nowhere else in the country. When Tet, the Lunar New Year Festival, comes, the whole township of Sapa is filled with the pink colour of peach blossom brought from the vast forests of peach just outside the town. Sapa is regarded as the kingdom of orchids. Here, orchid lovers are even amazed by the choice, when trekking in the forest filled with several hundred kinds of orchids of brilliant colours and fantastic shapes, such as Orchid Princess, Orchid of My Fair Lady’s Shoe. Some orchids are named after lovely singing birds such as the canary, salangane’s nest, and more.
Cherries blossom in Sapa, Vietnam
Sapa is most beautiful in spring. Apricot, plum and cherry flowers are splendidly beautiful. Markets are crowded and merry, and are especially attractive to visitors. Minority groups come here to exchange and trade goods and products. Market sessions are also a chance for locals to promenade and young men and women in colorful costumes to meet, date or seek sweethearts.
Travelers to Sapa will have opportunities to discover the unique customs of the local residents.
For Sapa hotel recommendations, please check out at the website http://Vietnamhotels.net/
