Traveling in Vietnam that you must visit

Teluk Ha Long Bay (Pinterest)

Ha Long Bay is a bay covering an area of ​​± 1,500 km² in northern Vietnam with a coastline of 120 km. The bay is in the Gulf of Tonkin near the border with the People's Republic of China, 170 km from Hanoi. Since 1994, Halong Bay has been designated as a world heritage by UNESCO. Then in 2012, the bay became one of the 7 wonders of the world according to the New 7 Wonders Foundation.

The bay is made up of 1,969 limestone islands that rise spectacularly from the sea. Some islands have a large number of caves. Hang u Gỗ (Wood Stake Cave) is the largest cave in the Ha Long region. French tourists who visited it in the late 19th century named it the Grotte des Merveilles. The three chambers of the cave contain a large number of stalactites and stalagmites.

Legend

Vietnamese people have a belief that their nation came from dragons. In ancient times when the country was just founded, the Vietnamese had to face invaders from the North who attacked through the sea. To protect Vietnam, the Jade Emperor sent the Mother Dragon and her child to earth to help the nations protect their country. The Dragon Mother and her child burned the enemies with fire and took out a large emerald stone as a defensive wall. The colonizers finally drowned and it is said that thousands of years after the incident, the emeralds turned into islands of various sizes and shapes.

It is said in the legend that the Dragon Mother and her child did not return to heaven, but lived on earth as humans and helped the inhabitants to cultivate crops, raise livestock, and expand the country. To commemorate the services of the Dragon Mother and her child, the people who lived in the bay where the battle took place called the bay Halong, while the bay where the dragon child descended was called Bai Tu Long (meaning thanks to the dragon child).

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Goa Thien Cung (Pinterest)

Stones in Thien Cung . Cave Within the Halong Bay area, there are several caves that have become tourist attractions, such as Thien Cung (Heaven Palace Cave), Dau Go (Drift Wood Cave), Sung Sot (Surprise Cave), and Tam Cung (Three Palaces Cave). Some of the caves are decorated with lights that make the rocks in them look luminous and attractive.

The rocks, stalactites, and stalagmites found in these caves are sometimes shaped like animals or other objects and generally each cave has its own legend. For example: according to legend, Thien Cung Cave was the place where a woman named May married a dragon prince which lasted seven days - seven nights. The wedding is celebrated by elephants, snakes, fairies, and so on which are similar to the shape of the stones in the cave.

Halong Bay Access

From the city of Hanoi, Halong Bay is about 170 km and can be reached by land vehicle for about three hours. You can go directly to Bay Cay Pier to choose a junk boat that you will use to explore the Halong Bay area. If you don't want to bother, you can choose the Halong Bay tour package which is usually offered by the hotel where you stay in Hanoi.