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HA LONG BAY INFORMATION
The legend of Hạ Long has it that, “Once upon a time,
soon after the Việt people established their country,
invaders came. The Jade Emperor sent Mother Dragon and her
Child Dragons down to earth to help the Việt people fight
against their enemy. Right at the time invaders’ boats were
rushing to the shore, the dragons landed down on earth. The
dragons immediately sent out from their mouths a lot of
pearls, which then turned into thousands of stone islands
emerging in the sea like great walls challenging the
invaders’ boats. The fast boats couldn’t manage to stop and
crashed into the islands and into each other and broke into
pieces.
After the victory, Mother Dragon and Child Dragons didn’t
return Heaven but stayed on earth at the place where the
battle had occurred. The location Mother Dragon landed is
nowadays Hạ Long Bay and where Child Dragons descended is
now Bái Tử Long. The dragons’ tails waving the water created
Long Vĩ (present Trà Cổ peninsula) and formed a fine sand
beach over ten kilometers long”.
Hạ Long Bay is located in the northeastern part of Vietnam
and constitutes part of the western bank of Bắc Bộ Gulf,
including the sea area of Hạ Long City and Cẩm Phả Town and
part of Vân Ðồn island district. It abuts Cát Bà Island in
the southwest. Toward the west is the shore with a 120
km-long coastline. It is located within 106o58’-107o22’
east longitude and within 20o45’- 20o50’
north latitude. The site is 1553 sq. km with 1969 islands of
various sizes, of which 989 have been named.
The islands in Hạ Long Bay
The islands in Hạ Long Bay are mainly limestone and schist
islands most lying in the two main areas: the southeastern
part of Bái Tử Long Bay and southwestern part of Hạ Long
Bay. These islands represent the most ancient images of a
geographical site having a tectonic age of from 250 million
to 280 million years. They are the result of many times of
rising and lowering processes of the continent to form a
karst. The process of nearly full erosion and weathering of
the karst created the unique Hạ Long Bay in the world. In a
not very large area, thousands of islands with different
forms look like glittering emeralds attached to the blue
scarf of a virgin. The area where many stone islands
concentrate has spectacular scenes and world-famous caves
and is the center of Hạ Long Bay Natural Heritage, including
Ha Long Bay and a part of Bái Tu Long Bay.
Viewed from above, Hạ Long Bay looks like an extremely
vivid huge drawing
The area is recognized as the World Natural Heritage that is
the area of 434 sq. km with 775 islands. It looks like a
giant triangle with Ðầu Gỗ Island (in the west), Ba Hầm Lake
(in the south) and Cống Tây Island (in the east) as its
three angle points. The nearby area is the buffer area and
areas classified as national beauty spots in 1962 by the
Ministry of Culture and Information.
Those stone islands have experienced unpredictable
changes over time and they take different shapes from
different angles of view.
Viewed from above, Hạ Long Bay looks like an extremely vivid
huge drawing. This is a wonderful and skilful masterpiece of
the Creation and of nature that turns thousands of dumb
soulless stone islands into fantastic sculptural and
artistic works of various graceful shapes, both familiar and
strange to human beings. Thousands of islands emerging
uneven in the fanciful waves look strong and magnificent but
also mild and vivid. Amidst these islands we feel as if we
were astray in a petrified legendary world. There are many
names given to islands according to their shapes and forms.
Stone islands into fantastic sculptural and artistic
works of various graceful shapes, both familiar and strange
to human beings
This one looks like somebody heading toward the shore: Hòn
Ðầu Người (Human Head Island); that one looks like a dragon
hovering above the sea surface: Hòn Rông (Dragon Island);
another looks like an old man sitting fishing: Hòn Lã Vọng;
some look like big sails struggling amidst the wind to set
off for the sea: Hòn Cánh Buồm (Sail Island); then two
islands look like a pair of chicken lovingly playing with
each other above the sea: Hòn Trống Mái (Male and Female
Chicken Island); and amid the vast sea stands an island like
a big incense burner like a ritual offering to Heaven: Hòn
Lư Hương (Incense Burner Island). All are so real that
people are taken aback by them. Those stone islands have
experienced unpredictable changes over time and they take
different shapes from different angles of view. Here, we
come to realize that they are not dumb inanimate things but
are vivid and soulful.
Inside the stone islands are various breath-taking caves,
such as Thiên Cung, Ðầu Gỗ, Sửng Sốt, Trinh Nữ, Tam Cung and
others. These are really magnificent palaces of the Creation
on earth. Long ago, Hạ Long Bay has been called by the great
national poet Nguyễn Trãi:“a wonder of the earth erected
towards the high sky”. Many men of letters from all over the
world have been taken aback at the grandiose scenery of Hạ
Long. They seem to get puzzled and incompetent as their
treasure of vocabulary is not rich enough to depict the
splendor of this place.
Male and Female Chicken Island
Inside the stone islands are various breath-taking caves,
such as Thiên Cung, Ðầu Gỗ, Sửng Sốt (Grotte des suprises),
Trinh Nữ, Tam Cung and others. These are really magnificent
palaces of the Creation on earth.
Hạ Long Bay is also attached to glorious pages of Vietnamese
history, with famous sites such as Vân Ðồn, a bustling trade
port in the 12th century, charming Bài Thơ Mountain, and not
very far away from here is the Bạch Đằng River which
witnessed two famous naval battles of the Viêt’s ancestors
against invaders. Also, Hạ Long is one of the cradles of
human kind with the glorious Hạ Long culture in the late
Neolithic age, discovered at such archeological sites as
Ðộng Mang, Xích Thổ, Soi Nhụ and Thoi Giếng.
Hạ Long is also home to great biodiversity with typical
eco-systems like mangrove forest, coral and tropical forest.
It is also home to thousands of plants and animals of
numerous species, for example shrimp, fish and squid. Some
species are particularly rare and can be found no where
else.
With such special values, at the 18th Session of UNESCO’s
Council of World Heritage held on 17 December 1994 in
Thailand, Hạ Long Bay was officially placed on the list of
the World Natural Heritage. In 2000, UNESCO recognized it as
the World Heritage for the second time for its geographical
and geomorphologic values. This confirms the global premier
value of Hạ Long Bay.
Wherever you come from, whosoever you are and however old
you are, you will certainly experience the same emotion and
feeling when admiring this wonder of stone and water. And
great experiences will always remain even when you leave the
place. The legend of Mother Dragon and Child Dragons sending
out pearls to form thousands of stone islands to stop
invaders still serve as the soul of this invaluable heritage
of the world.
Have you ever come to Hạ Long, the unique wonder of the
world of its kind, to admire and explore secretes implicit
in the place?
Current
types of tourism
Travelling by boat: tourists can go to Ha Long Bay to
view the landscape, visit the caves and grottoes and relax
and go swimming on the sandy beaches of the limestone
islands.
Travelling by boat
Kayaking: a romantic and adventurous kind of tourism.
A large boat carries small inflatable canoes or “kayaks” to
deserted, almost unknown areas of the Bay. Visitors can
paddle by themselves to explore remote wild islands and
caves.
Visitors can paddle by themselves to explore remote wild
islands and caves. A romantic and adventurous kind of
tourism.
Cultural – historical tourism: tours for people
interested in culture and archaeology. They stay a longer
time in Ha Long to visit archaeological remains, study
tangible and intangible culture and experience the beautiful
land and seascapes, along with the outstanding geological
and historical sites.
Tours for people interested in culture and archaeology
Eco-tourism on Ha Long Bay: visitors can visit
isolated ecosystems with beautiful sandy beaches, tidal
flats, mangroves, coastal wetlands and coral reefs.
Visitors can visit isolated ecosystems with beautiful
sandy beaches, tidal flats, mangroves, coastal wetlands and
coral reefs.
References:
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Guide:
http://www.halong.vn/guide.htm
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Hotel:
http://www.halong.vn/hotel.htm
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Travel Handbook:
http://www.halong.org.vn/details.asp?lan=en&id=423
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More
http://www.halong.org.vn/
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Google Map
(Source Tourism Information Technology Center & Quảng
Ninh Tourism)
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