PERFUME PAGODA

Getting there is half the battle

One of the sites near Hanoi that I was told should not be missed is the famous Perfume Pagoda, or Chua Huong. At only sixty kilometres southwest of Hanoi, you’d assume it would take maybe 30 minutes to an hour to get there. This is Vietnam, however, and things are very different here. The trip to My Duc, the little town where you transfer to a boat for the remainder of the journey, took approximately two hours. The trip is fun right from the time you leave Hanoi in the early hours of the morning, as the roads are absolutely packed with frenzied motorcycles going in all directions. There were even a few people on the bus who were so amused by the scene that they leaned out of the windows to try and get a good photograph.

Calmness & Serenity

Once in My Duc, we were escorted down to the water’s edge, where we were put into groups of three or four and loaded into tiny tin boats. It would have been a more authentic experience if we weren’t in these factory-fabricated boats, but after noticing dozens of sunken wooden boats in the area, I was suddenly very grateful for our little tin watercrafts. The boat trip offered stunning views of limestone cliffs enveloped in a light fog. It was very peaceful, with only the sounds of nature surrounding us, and the occasional scream from a tourist. Along the way we passed by families moving, what seemed to be, an entire house on one of these boats.

Trek Till You Drop

The trek up to Chua Huong, which is actually a cluster of shrines and Pagodas, took approximately 1.5 hours. This is not an adventure for the artery-clogged heavyweights. The path was at best muddy, and at worst slippery rocks with very little to hang on to.

What's That Smell

Four kilometres later, we arrived at Huong Tich Mountain, which translates to 'Moutntain of the Fragrant Traces' in English. I immediately figured out how the cave got its name: there was a thick cloud of incense covering the top half of the Pagoda, and the lack of a breeze helped the cloud stay in its place. What I saw inside the cave not terribly impressive from a photographer’s perspective, but very important from a spiritual one. I was expecting to see an actual temple inside the cave, but there were only colourfully decorated altars with statues and offerings. Thousands upon thousands of all ages make the trip each year to this location. I can’t imagine how packed the area must be during the festival.

Downhill From Here

The trip back seemed quite a bit faster, but not much easier. With my body now completely drained from climbing and descending the hills, my mind was focused on the meal awaiting us at the bottom of the mountain. After inhaling my rice, vegetables and nems, we had some time to wander around the other religious sites in the area before heading back to the river. The Thien Tru Pagoda, which means Heavenly Kitchen, was quite an interesting sight, but I don’t really know the significance behind it. I only know that it was built in 1686 and destroyed under French rule only to be rebuilt in 1954.

The boat trip back started out just as pleasantly as our trip there, but all of that changed when we started to approach our destination. Our smiley boat driver all of a sudden whispered to us, “nice tip for driver.” Sure. We figured she wanted a tip before we got to shore so that she could keep all of the proceeds instead of giving a portion of it to her boss. The three of us agreed that she deserved a little something extra for her fine rowing ability. We each chipped in a descent amount of money, but she refused to take our bills, yelling out “small money!” and changing her look to one of pity and sadness. We added a little more, but she still wouldn’t take it. Now knowing that what we were offering was quite a bit for a local, we waited on shore to discuss the tip situation with our guide. At this point our driver was still insisting that we were not tipping enough and had gotten one of her friends to start hassling us as well. Our guide basically told us that what we offered was quite generous and well above what she should expect. So we left, but the incident left a sour note on what was otherwise a very fun experience.

Tag: perfume pagoda, pagoda

DUONG LAM ANCIENT VILLAGE

Two of Vietnam’s kings, Phung Hung (761-802) and Ngo Quyen (896-944) were born in Duong Lam, giving the village its prestige. Both men led resistance wars against northern invasion and after winning national independence, were crowned kings. After their deaths, the local people built temples in their honour.

The ancient village has a history of about 1,200 years with many houses dating back up to 400 years. One special thing about the village is that most of the buildings here are made of laterite and mud, two materials that are abundant in the area. Laterite is used on house walls, gates, wells, temple walls, and so forth. The mud is taken from ponds. Apart from its historical and tourism values, Duong Lam ancient village is an important place for scientists to study resident communities in ancient agriculture. The village gate, banyan, well, communal house are important factors in classifying Duong Lam ancient village.

Well

The common well was built in every hamlet in Duong Lam village. The well brings the name of the hamlet it is located. At present, each family possesses its own well but the common well has been protected because it maintains many imprints of the villagers.

Communal house

The communal house is a worshipping place of the god – founder of the village. The ancient village consists of 5 villages so it has 5 communal houses. Doai Giap and Cam Lam communal houses dedicate to Phung Hung – the national hero who won the victory against invaders under Duong Dynasty; Cam Thinh communal house dedicates both the founder of the village and great mandarin Cao Phuc Dien – the hero under Le Dynasty. Dong Sang communal house worships the God but it was destroyed by fire and was restored by financial support from people. The god Tan Vien Son was dedicated in Mong Phu communal house. So far, Mong Phu communal house is a gathering place of the villagers for cultural activities. The communal house was made carefully with sophisticated decoration details. It is considered as a flower of unique sculptural architecture.

Architecture of the house

The wooden house mainly has 5 or 7 spans with 2 wings. It has 5 rows of columns, sometime 1 row disappears. The house has specialized by sophisticatedly carved details in the form of flowers, leaves, clouds.

A system of wooden doors is very firm. Each span has 4 leaves of the door with upper and lower joints. Thresholds were made of firm wood above 40-50cm from the ground and 10cm from the floor. This distance helps to ventilate well, avoid humidity for the thresholds. The whole system of the thresholds is the tie system linking all spans together.

For tangible culture relic, Duong Lam has 21 relic sites, consisting of temples, pagodas and tombs and ten of which have been classified as national and provincial relics. For intangible cultural relic, Duong Lam has preserved various festivals, customs and literature on the people and land of Duong Lam through different period of time. For ecological environment, Duong Lam has many beautiful scenes linked with legendary stories such as Guom Hill, Ho Gam Hill and tales on the two kings Phuong Hung and Ngo Quyen.

In recent years, many relics in the villages such as Mia Pagoda, Phung Hung Temple, Ngo Quyen Temple and Mong Phu communal house have been restored. However, it is important to preserve not only the tangible cultural relics, but also intangible cultural relics and ecological environment and they should be carried out synchronously.

The construction of new cultural buildings which aims to honour the history, national heroes and boost tourism activity should be ensured the harmony between traditional and modern cultural values and the relations between preservation and development.

Nowadays, preserving, restoring and developing the value of Duong Lam ancient village are very important, since it contributes to preservation of the national cultural heritage.

Souce : http://indochinaexplorertour.com/en/travel-blog.nd625/duong-lam-ancient-village.i336.html

Paradise Cave waken up!

A forest of stalactites that tells a thousand stories awaits visitors at Thien Duong Cave
From the historic Ho Chi Minh Road (former Ho Chi Minh Trail), you veer off on a path through dense forest for about four kilometers, then you climb 519 rocky steps, and you’re in... heaven, well, Paradise.

Thien Duong (Paradise) Cave, labeled the world’s most beautiful and magnificent cave when it was discovered in the central province of Quang Binh in 2005, has been open to tourists since September 3.

Located in the middle of Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, a UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site in Quang Binh, the cave was formed around 300-400 million years ago, surrounded by underground streams and rocky mountains.

It is impossible not to be amazed at the huge stalactite structures of different shapes, with some mounds climbing more than 50 meters inside a cave that is about 60 meters high.

The cave is 30-100 meters wide, with the widest point measuring 150 meters, according to the British Caving Association, the Governing Body for Underground Exploration in the UK. There are two stalactite pillars, each about five meters high and a rock arch around 100 meters wide. Take a deep breath before you go further to prepare yourself for what is ahead, or you will think you have stepped into a primitive forest that aged into stalactite.

Stalactites that look like temples, cranes with their arched necks looking up to the sky and a pine tree with hundreds of branches are dotted throughout this underground world. With a little imagination, there is no end to the shapes to be found in the cave.

What’s more, around Thien Duong Cave are dozens of stalactite mounds 30-50 centimeters tall, resembling Buddha statues, some of them with diameters of more than a meter. One stalactite structure looks like the communal house of the Central Highlands people.

The ground water in the cave has, over millions of years, shaped stones into coins, neatly covering the slopes as though someone has carefully arranged them.

Deeper into the cave is an area where stalactites form a sand table.

The temperature in the cave is always at between 20-21 degrees Celsius, cooling you instantly as you step in from outside temperatures of 36-37 degrees Celsius.

Howard Limbert, a member of the British Caving Association, says Thien Duong Cave might be the longest dry cave in Asia.

British explorers found the cave in 2005 thanks to a local resident, Ho Khanh. Khanh has in fact made it somewhat of a hobby to find new caves.

He discovered the world’s largest cave Son Doong, in 1991 and claims to have discovered dozens of caves in the national park over the years.

Thien Duong Cave is around 36 kilometers long but the cave “developer”, Hanoi-based tourism and resort operator Truong Thinh, only allows visitors to go about 500 meters into it. The company introduces it as one of the destinations in a tour starting at the Sun Spa Resort in Dong Hoi Town and ending at the Tam Co Cave – a historic site where a group of young volunteers were killed by US bombs in 1972.

Given the number and shape of its stalactite formations, people say Thien Duong Cave is more beautiful than the famous Phong Nha and Thien Son caves in the area that attract many tourists.

The floor of the cave is a soft, sticky kind of soil. The slightest sound is echoed by the walls of the cave.

Listen carefully, and you may be able to hear the whispers of thousands of stories being told.

(Source: Thanhniennews)

Ha Giang has heaven gate

Ha Giang has waterfall, Nho Que River as a white silk contingency squeeze the primeval forests Na Lead in Xin Man district. July, August smog hung matte surface of the river. Ha Giang is also a Quan Ba ​​Heaven Gate, there is a marked son Lung Cu flagpole on top, between the wind of thousands around the cloud,

This place also has the Dong Van Plateau. Highland washed the steep upland rice, corn to feed the peoples Lo Lo, Pu Peo, Thai, Dao, Pa Then.

According to a French tourist, Ha Giang as a mystery of human nature has not been explored much.

Coming to Ha Giang you must stay the night in town to get the best for a day Ba, rock domain to Heaven Gate. Mountain where the sun hung with the buffalo, goats grazing leisurely fog. In Ba Brocade Lung Tam village with bright colorful pattern brocade of the Red Dao, deep jet or brocade with Thai.

Although in Khau Vai, Van shareholders linen China spill into fashion, but the Pa Then ethnic White Thai, Tay in Meo Vac, Quan them still fresh, year-round garment fabric .

To Quan Do not forget to enjoy pink beads, enamel glaze, fresh baked corn and dust beyond description. Just a day enough to climb the northern Ha Giang where Lung Cu flagpole, then visit to shareholders Van drink tea Lung Phin, food storage vessels, smoked beef jerky, enjoy honey, mint flowers.

Should also try to set foot in the village of Pu Peo ethnic, have filled approximately, heaving, roof roofing cement but the embankment wall, stone embankment, keep climbing trees around the house. Place year-round throughout the month did not hear a motorcycle engine noise, only heard the chicken, train Nightingale and bird crow.

Most need to visit the Dong Van Plateau winter and summer full of yellow flowers pharmaceuticals. From wading Plateau to Meo Vac, go to the market of Khau Vai, look couples, boys and girls drunk asleep on the road. On the way to visit the village of Lo Lo ethnic, white plum blossoms late in the top of the Ma Pi Leng.

The culture, sports and tourism week of Mu Cang Chai terraced fields scenic site 2012

On the occasion of the 55th anniversary of the foundation of Mu Cang Chai District (18 October 1957 – 18 October 2012), People’s Committee of Mu Cang Chai District (Yen Bai Province) will hold the culture, sports and tourism week of Mu Cang Chai terraced fields scenic site 2012 from 14 to 20 September in the town of the district and 4 communes of La Pan Tan, De Xu Phinh, Pung Luong, Che Cu Nha.

This event aims to introduce the beauty of Mu Cang Chai terraced fields as well as to promote the potentials, strengths and unique cultural characteristics of Mong ethnic people in Yen Bai to domestic and international tourists.

As scheduled, the cultural week will include 8 main contents, of which the highlights are the opening ceremony with specific art program with theme “The myth yellow terrace waves” (Những sóng vàng bậc thang huyền thoại) at the stadium in the district center (14 September); the contest “Harvest quickly, plow well” (Gặt lúa nhanh, cày bừa giỏi) and the Mong wedding ceremony in La Pan Tan Commune (17 September). Besides, other attractive activities will also be held such as the exhibition “The yellow terraces” (Những nấc thang vàng) in the center of Mu Cang Chai District (13-19 September); the trade-tourism fair at the stadium in the district center to introduce specific local products (agricultural products, brocade items, traditional instruments...); the mountainous market in Kim Noi Bridge (15 – 20 September) to display and sell culinary products (thang co, bamboo shoot, rice, salt, vegetable, fruit) and performance of folk cultural activities; organization of tours (Mu Cang Chai terraced fields; Mong, Thai ethnic villages; traditional craft villages; eco tourism; adventure tourism to explore primeval forests, Mo waterfall, Pung Luong top...) from 17 to 20 September; the contests of folk sport games (day gay, danh quay, keo co, ban no…) from 18 to 20 September.

On this occasion, Viet Nam National Administration of Tourism plans to organize the survey of terraced fields in Yen Bai – Lao Cai (Viet Nam) – Yuanyang (China) and attend the culture, sports and tourism week of Mu Cang Chai terraced fields scenic site 2012.

Mu Cang Chai terraced fields cultivated by Mong ethnic people since hundreds years ago cover the area of ​​2,300ha and concentrate mainly in 3 communes of La Pan Tan, Che Cu Nha and De Xu Phinh. Visiting here, tourists will have opportunity to admire the terraced fields spreading endlessly along to mountain slope. The most ideal time to visit the terraced fields is in May (transplantation season), June - July (green rice season) and September – October (harvest season). In the recent years, Mu Cang Chai has become a tourist destination attracting a lot of domestic and foreign tourists. On 18 October 2007, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism recognized 500ha of terraced fields in 3 communes of La Pan Tan, Che Cu Nha and De Xu Phinh (Mu Cang Chai) as a national landscape heritage.

Souce: vietnamtourism.gov.com