Vietnam heritage n 46 march april 2015

2:5 MAR-APR 2015

CULTURAL HERITAGE ASSOCIATION OF VIETNAM

Hoan Kiem LakeThe heart of Hanoi

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Published by the Cultural Heritage Association of Vietnam Publication licence No: 1648/GP-BTTTT from the Ministry of Information and Communications of the SocialistRepublic of Vietnam for the English-language edition of The Gioi Di San (The World of Heritage) magazineEditor-in-Chief: Le Thanh Hai; Public Relations Director: Bui Thi Hang;Sub-editing: Erik Johnson; Assistant: Kha Tu Anh; Production: Nguyen Hoang Kim Long; Contributing Photographers:Nguyen Ba Han, Hoang Quoc Tuan, Hoang The Nhiem, Huynh Van Nam, Le Hoai Phuong, Nguyen Anh Tuan; Ngo Nguyen Huynh Trung Tin; Tran Viet DucCorrespondent: Pip de Rouvray; Advertising and Circulation: Green Viet Advertising JSC Advertising and Subscriptions Service: Email: [email protected];Duy Huong 0903 630 489 Email: [email protected] Advertising and Subscription: The He Moi MHN Viet Nam Co.Ltd, Mr Song Hao: 0903 476 999Nha Trang Advertising and Subscription: Bach Cat Co. Ltd,; 22/6A Bach Dang Str. Nha Trang CityTel: (58) 360 7070 Fax (58) 387 0099, Email: [email protected] in the US for subscription and advertising: 2628 Sturla dr. San Jose, CA 95148 Vietnam Heritage is published monthly, produced in Vietnam and printed at Army Printing House No 2. © All rights reserved.

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COVER STORYPreservationHoan Kiem Lake - The heart of Hanoi

No 2, Vol.5, March - April 2015

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ArchitectureLift up your heads, you mighty gatesCastles in the air

AdvertorialWaterfront in Hue: The place to stayHotel Equatorial Ho Chi Minh City; an oasisin the heart of the citySaigon sensation at Liberty CentralRiverside Hotel

MusicAncient folk singing faces the sounds of silence

24ArtWitnessing the portrait of a lady

CustomAvatar animals are forbidden foods

26WarfareOrganic body armour

28FoodSnake follows mouse after pig

30DestinationThe simple life

Cover photograph:Hoan Kiem LakePhoto: Bui Dang Thanh

Vietnam Heritage

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VIETNAM HERITAGE - MARCH-APRIL 2015 • 5

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Vietnam Heritage Editorial Office:l 4th Floor, 1/1 Hoang Viet St., Ward 4,Tan Binh District, Ho Chi Minh City

Tel: (84-8) 38 11 88 46 Fax: (84-8) 38 11 87 75

Email: [email protected]@gmail.com

www.vietnamheritage.com.vn

Gianh River, Quang Binh Province, 2014.The photo was exhibited in Vietnam Heritage Photo Awards 2014.

Photo: Le Duc Thanh

8 • VIETNAM HERITAGE - MARCH-APRIL 2015

PRESERVATION

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HOAN KIEM LAKE - T

PRESERVATION


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THE HEART OF HANOIBY LE HUU TRUC


PRESERVATION

HistoryA rich history of national mythology, a

favourable location and convenience forshopping, walking and contemplation allwork together to give the lake a specialcharm. Since the colonial days, the Frenchhave done much to add value to this spot byapplying modern urban planning. Theyscraped the bottom of the lake, built astone embankment, planted trees, and sur-rounded the lake with parks and squares,adding more functionality with each com-ponent. After the liberation, the lake be-came a space for the occasional promenade

and for people from the countryside to stopfor an ice-cream, crowded only during theNew Year days. Then, little by little, theneed for a leisurely walk grew. Water, biggreen trees, a feeling of space and spiritual-ity combine to make the place more relax-ing than elsewhere in the city.

The symbolic value of waterOriginally, Hanoi was surrounded by

rivers and protected by dikes. The change offlow formed countless lakes, some con-nected by underground channels. The lakesare a signature feature of Hanoi that con-

tributes to the feng shui, architecture andpersonality of the city itself. The lake’s quietblue mirror seems to reflect our gloriouspast and impresses with tranquillity andfertility. The water and trees represent Viet-namese human nature and way of life.

Cultural strataFew places in Hanoi have as many inter-

mingling cultural layers and features as theHoan Kiem Lake. Remnants of the feudalera seem so timid among the modern struc-tures. Something French still hangs ontight here. Many new boxy structures try to

Describing the image Hoan Kiem Lake or Sword Lake, and analysing its delicate but no-less-important role in creatingthe architecture and urban signature of Hanoi is absolutely not

easy. The lake is considered as the culmination of myths, thefoundation of beauty, the heart of Hanoi, a wonderful bucket offlowers in the centre of the city. It’s the place people live in the

present, the past and the future at the same time.

PRESERVATION


stand tall to show a new vitality, but theirimmaturity is quite obvious. The dwellersaround the lake have also changed a lot.Newcomers have replaced those who usedto make the place feel unique. But some ofthe old habits have survived. Young onesstill love to date here. Aged people seem tonever have left their chess boards and mar-ble benches. Some even come here to dis-cuss literary issues. The lake is really thebest place to learn about the city’s life, be-cause its look and feel changes constantlyand yet remains constant. It is the centrewhich blows life into all activities. It wit-nessed all the ups and downs of history.The very special Hanoi way of life seems tohave spread out from right here.

Urban hubModern cities boast vertical high-rises

which grow taller and taller. In Hanoi, thespace over lake surfaces creates a balanceand difference for the city. A lake is an en-tity in its own right, and also a vital compo-nent of the whole. It gives air and space tothe city, reduces population density, and re-lieves pressure and anxiety. By its location,the Returned Sword Lake creates a mutu-

ally beneficial relationshipbetween the Ancient Quar-ter and the French Quarter.It is the most poetic feature acity like Hanoi can dreamabout, and it has it all.

Legend and symbolIt is one of the last oases

in the city where one can findopen-air refuge from the fussof the ever-advancing real es-tate business. Perhaps that’sbecause the lake is a legend and a symbol,spiritual and sacred, mythical and poetic.The legend of the sword and the golden tur-tle is mentioned often, and each time anenormous old turtle emerges on the lakesurface, the people Hanoi once again feel asurge of deepest emotions. It is also theplace that hosts many cultural and socialevents, where cultural values and spiritualbonds have crystallized through a thousandyear history. Hoan Kiem Lake is part of thecity and the country it represents, a materi-alization of what our people have purifiedand refined, which is simplicity, spontane-ity, harmony and sophistication.

References:- ‘Ho Guom ngay va dem’ (Sword Lake,

day and night), by Phan Cam Thuong,printed on Ray of Light journal no. 3/2004.

- ‘Ha Noi va hinh tuong cua nuoc’(Hanoi and the symbolism of water), Chris-tian Pðdelahere de Loddis, in the book ‘HaNoi Chu Ky Cua Nhung Doi Thay’ (Hanoi,cycle of change), Science and TechnologyPublishing House, 2003.n

Opposite, left: Hoan Kiem Lake from theair in early 20th century. Photo from thearchive of Nguyen Anh Tuan Bottom: A turtle in Hoan Kiem Lake.Photo: Ha Dinh Duc

Photo: Duy TuongPhoto: Duy Tuong Photo: Lai Dien Dam Photo: Lai Dien Dam


ARCHITECTURE

Since ancient times, the village gate hasserved as more than just an entrance or exit.Many villages have more than one gate, eachfacing different directions. Originally, these

may have been made of spiked bamboo to preventwild beasts from entering. Later, they became partof the general defense against any intruders. In theflourishing middle Le Dynasty, the gates were builtstronger, longer lasting, and more beautifully withmaterials such as bricks, stones, laterite, and limemixed with salt and honey or cane sugar. In manyplaces, the gate has strong wooden doors, whichonly opened at a certain times, as deemed necessaryby the village. Some even have moats on both sides,and were reinforced with bamboo inside, like a bar-ricade. Before 1945, Hanoi and former Ha Tay hadabout 1500 villages with multiple gates. Time andwars have destroyed many of these. But the remain-ing gates, such as those of Uoc Le village in ThanhOai, Chi Quan village in Thach That, Mong Phu vil-lage in Duong Lam, and Son Tay are truly culturallegacies left by the previous generations.

An important part of a gate is the top, which isoften built in the form of an arch. The arch is usu-ally covered, so travelers can hide from the tropicalsun and rains. In many places, there is a floor or twoon top of the arch, each adorned with boat prow-shaped roof corners, like those of temples andpagodas. On each sides of the arch, there are tallpillars, with reliefs of parallel sentences, designed tointroduce the village’s good traditions. Some gates,besides the big entrance, have two smaller sidedoors, like those at pagodas. Some gates have aroom on top of it, like those of Thach Than villagein Quoc Oai, Lai Xa village in Hoai Duc, and partic-ularly, the gate of Mông Phụ village in Duong Lam,built during Lê dynasty.

The front side of the gate is the most important.There is a relief of a seal, with flowers and leaves,and above the gate, a relief of the village name or

Lift up you you migh

ur heads, hty gates

BY ANH CHI

ARCHITECTURE


slogan which shows the villagers’ aspirations. Forexample, Uoc Le village gate, one of the most beau-tiful ones in the North, has a big relief of the villagename. Phung Xa village gate has two big charac-ters; ‘Loyalty and Righteousness’. Ha Tri village gatehas: ‘Good traditions preservation’. Many villageshave the three characters for ‘Mankind for beauty’,meaning that beautiful human qualities are thehighest values. Many others have the three charac-ters for ‘Little Tall Big’, which were taken from thestory about a high court mandarin named Vu DinhQuoc, who told his descendants to make the villagegates higher and bigger so that horses and carriagescould pass through. It expressed the wish that thevillage’s descendants study hard in order to have asuccessful career.

There are often a couple of nghê guarding at thegate. A nghê is an imaginary animal, half lion andhalf dragon, covered by scales, with wide shouldersand big forehead, which has two strong horns. Oneof the sacred animals, it is loved and revered. Bigbright eyes and wide mouth full of teeth makethem look like they are laughing to the villagers,but seem ferocious to intruders. Some are made ofstones, some are ceramic, and some built from amix of sand, lime, salt and honey. Some are big, sit-ting in front of the gate as if guarding it day andnight, preserving the peaceful life of the village.Some are slim and elegant, sitting on top of thegate’s pillars, or in a roofed compartment above thegate, looking out far away beyond the fields andrivers, toward the horizon.n

Opposite from top: Uoc Le gate village inThanh Oai Dist., Hanoi. Photo: Bui Dang Thanh;

Phu Hau gate village in Vinh Phuc Province,Hanoi. Photo: Bui Dang Thanh;

Van Du gate village in the suburb of Hanoi. Photo: Nguyen Viet Binh.

From top: A gate village in Dong Anh Dist.,Hanoi. Photo: Nguyen Viet Binh;

Duong Lam gate village in Hanoi. Photo: Nguyen Ba Ngoc


It’s called ‘new long house’ because thisis a variation of the traditional longhouses, which are culturally, the typicaldwelling place of some ethnic minori-

ties of Tay Nguyen (and Truong Son), whostill maintain a matriarchal social structure.

Improved economic conditions and ex-tensive cultural exchange between differentregions and ethnicities have almost wipedaway this form of dwelling. Instead of longstilted houses, people now build houses onthe ground like in the low lands. But the GiaRai and Ba Na people in Ia Pa, Phu Thien dis-tricts and Ayunpa Township (Gia Lai

province) have another idea. Instead of low,narrow thatched roof long houses built onthin poles, they use big strong poles to buildspacious long houses with high ceilings,wooden walls and tile or tole roofs.

Another significant change is that in-stead of 9-10 families as before, the new stylestructures, although quite long (10-25m),house only at most three households (orkitchens, as they call it); that of the parentsand the unmarried children, and those ofmarried daughters.

As a product of economic development,the long houses of the people of Ia Pa, Phu

Thien, Ayunpa, Krong Pa, Konchro districtshave undergone many improvements to sat-isfy the modern needs of their inhabitants.Today, beside the main long house, there areauxiliary structures to form an L, T or IIshape. There are also multiple-storey longhouses. ‘The house must be big, beautiful,long-lasting and full of comfort…’ That’s whatpeople think nowadays.n

Clockwise from top: An area of ‘new long houses’ inKa Xom Village, Po To Commune, Ia Pa Dist.; The mul-tiple-storey long house in L shape with Thai roof-stylelaunching in Po To Commune, Ia Pa Dist; A new longhouse with a distance of 2.5 m - 3 m from the ground tothe floor for keeping agricultural food and machines

Gia LaiprovinceCastles in the air

TEXT AND PHOTOS BY HUYNH VAN MY

Need a place to stay in Hue? I rec-ommend you get as close to thewater as possible. Unlike inHanoi or Saigon, which have

grown up mainly on one bank of the river, inHue, the river is the very soul of the place. InVietnam's largest cities, you can conduct allyour business or do all your sightseeingwithout ever glimpsing the river. In Hue,both locals and tourists cross the river everyday. And what a lovely name it has too - ThePerfume River. No, it is not that the watershave the smell of Chanel. Upstream, thewood from certain trees, when burned, givesoff a fragrance. ‘Per fume’ originally means‘by smoke’. The Century Riverside Hotel Hueis the best choice for soaking up the Hue am-biance. This full-service, four-star hotel haswell-appointed rooms, good food and bev-erage, beautiful gardens, a spacious swim-ming pool, a spa, a fitness room, a tenniscourt and even a small clinic. Above all, itsterrace bar, its restaurant, and its riversiderooms with balconies each afford a ring-sideseat for Hue's star performance-the quietflow of the river.

It is a mark of the friendliness and atten-tion to customer care of this hotel that thereceptionist remembered me from my visitthe year before. She made sure I got the samefifth-floor riverside view with ample balcony.The room itself had bright, white-washedwalls, which contrasted with the dark cherrytropical hardwood furnishings. A string ofroyal Hue purple orchid petals adorned thebed and a framed photograph of old Huehung on the wall behind it. You know exactlywhere you are in this hotel. This is no world-wide chain hotel that could be any old where!

So it was that I sat down with a glass ofBordeaux, whose name aptly translates as‘beside the waters’, to enjoy another Hue sun-down with the waters lapping below. The sungradually descended over the Western Hillswith a sky of ever-deepening hues of blue, or-ange and tangerine. The neon lights of ad-vertising boards across river were reflected inthe water, gradually forming broad bands of

sea-blue, green, silver and purple, reachingright up to the banks of the hotel. Directlybelow, birds were beginning to roost in thecoconut and fan palms. A flock of egretsskimmed over the water, their whiteness con-trasting with the darkening sky. The chug-ging of a tourist dragon boat also contrastedwith the paddling of a lone punter in hisdugout canoe. Such a poetic and relaxing wayto end a day!

I awoke the following morning to thesound of birdsong. Rubbing my eyes, I spot-ted the little troubadour out on the balconywall - a sparrow! Then after freshening up inthe bathroom-cum- shower using the sweet-smelling complimentary toiletries, it wasdown to the Terrace Restaurant to enjoy asubstantial breakfast and morning medita-tion by the river.

Naughty, I know, but I could not help butlaugh at the antics of local people using per-haps for the first time a toast machine. Thefact that the Vietnamese warm their breadleaving it still white rather than actuallytoasting it to a brown, I find merely different.Sticking whole baguettes onto the grill ismore curious. But on this morning, I wit-nessed a lady put a large knob of butter ontoa slice of bread and then put it into the ma-chine. Within a while, there was melted but-ter all over the toaster. I sharply told her thecorrect procedure was to spread the butter onafterwards with a small knife called a butter

knife which is something rarely seen in Viet-nam. I should not have done so, but I told hershe had probably ruined the machine. I felta bit bad about embarrassing her, but later Ithink I made amends by entertaining herand her family by singing a Vietnamese lull-aby to her young child.

It was a lovely, warm, bright morning andeveryone was enjoying their buffet breakfastout on the terrace; the river now looking ascheerful by day as it looks romantic and mys-terious by night. There was a notice on thewall ‘Smoking Area’.

There was a time, not so long ago, whenthe Century Riverside Hotel Hue practicallyhad the monopoly in this end of the city.Now, a whole tourist enclave of guest housesand one-to-four star hotels has sprung up be-hind her. Some of these places I know arevery fine hostelries indeed and like this grandold dame are excellent values for money. Yet,none of them have the full range of facilitiesas this one, and none of them night and daybrings you so close to the waterside, to thisbeautiful, ever-rejuvenating river, which as Ihave already opined, is the very heart andsoul of Hue.n

Century Riverside Hotel Hue49 Le Loi St, Hue

Tel: (054) [email protected]


ADVERTORIAL

Waterfront in Hue: The place to stayBY RITCH PICKENS

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The panorama from the window ofmy room-looking out down thewide boulevard, beautifully framedwith rows of giant maranti trees

nearly reaching the level of the 11th floor withtheir sprawling tops and the city centre withthe sky-high lotus-shaped Bitexco Tower andhigh-rises of office buildings and malls at thedistance was utterly impressive. Minutes ago,I enjoyed a slightly dizzying taxi ride througha labyrinth of lanes packed with patchworkgroceries, tailors, motorbike repair and forg-ing shops, food and fruit stands. The beewaysof streets suddenly interspersed with wide avenues jammed to the rafters with vehiclesof all possible and impossible kinds, outlinedwith smoking old pagodas and temples in

fringes of whimsical ornaments, boiling mar-kets and streams of wandering hawkers. Thetaxi finally moored to the entrance of thefive-star Hotel Equatorial and I totteredthrough the spacious and refreshingly coollobby to the check-in counter. The HotelEquatorial’s ground floor pleased the eyewith elegant interiors and tasteful decor aswell as with huge spaces, an inviting and ca-sually elegant cocktail lounge, delicately ac-centuated with glass and wooden carvedscreens and Chit Chat restaurant-cum-caféwith a showcase displaying tempting Frenchpastry and Lunar New Year sweets.

The Deluxe Room looked elegant andwell-appointed, tastefully furnished with aneye for utter comfort and functionality,

equipped with a big working desk and win-dow lounge chair to contemplate a spectac-ular long-range view of the city. The roomboasted lots of natural light and a pleasant,unobtrusive palette of beige and chestnut in-terior colours. The pleasant surprise that fol-lowed was the access to Equator Club Loungewith separate front desk, cosy restaurantwhere gourmet breakfasts and afternoon teaand drinks are served to the Deluxe Clubrooms’ guests. The on-floor briefing roomand separate spacious smoking room are alsoavailable for Deluxe Club Room key holders.

Hotel Equatorial features 333 gue-strooms and suites, ranging from elegantDeluxe and Premier to sumptuous Senatorand Presidential suites with grand Rome-


ADVERTORIAL

Hotel Equatorial Ho Chi Minh City;an oasis in the heart of the city

BY NATHALIE SOKOLOVSKAYA

Photos: Hotel Equatorial Ho Chi Minh City

ADVERTORIAL

style balconies, terraces overlooking theopen swimming pool with bar and appeal-ing arched patio.

The hotel combines, in an excellent andwell-thought-out way, the full range of facil-ities and services for both business andleisure guests. Its favourable location on theintersection point of the city’s four most vividand colourful districts with abundance ofinimitable oriental ambiance to plunge in,including the famous boiling markets ofCholon, makes it a perfect place to give one’sprivate southern capital discovery its kickstart in an impressive and non-trivial way.Situated on a quiet shadow alley eight min-utes’ shuttle bus ride from District 1, HotelEquatorial makes one feel like they are stay-ing not in a hotel in a bustling city, but in aresort with a peaceful and relaxing atmos-phere which is great to immerse oneself inafter a day of dizzying city street medley ex-plorations or tense business meetings. Tostrengthen the feelings are state-of-the-artFitness & Leisure Centre with full gym, spacentre with extended spa-menu and private

massage rooms and sauna; steam room andhot Jacuzzi pool.

Award–winning and atmospheric ChitChat Restaurant fascinates with the full illu-sion of an Asian street food market with gar-lands of bunches of exotic herbs, colourfulstalls and live-cooking action stations, withrows and rows of Vietnamese, Japanese, Chi-nese and Malaysian dishes galore, went aliveon the hotel ground floor. Over 75 dishes arepresented here in the culinary collection ofdaily dinner buffets.

Chit and Chat institution offers exclusivethemed buffets, not to be missed while in thecity, such as ‘Delightful Weekend Dim Sum’every Saturday and Sunday and ‘Seafood Ex-travaganza’ every Sunday. The last one con-quered my palate forever with freshest of thefresh oysters bursting with the flavour ofocean depths, tamarind crab and a head-spinning mosaic of sashimi and rolls.

Exquisite Orientica Restaurant, on thefirst floor of Hotel Equatorial, with its ele-gant Asian-style interiors and feng shui inspired décor, offers its guests an insightful

and stylish outlook on the enigmatic andmultifaceted philosophy of Asian gastro-nomic culture, with impressive pieces of highAsian cuisine.

The culinary side of one’s stay at HotelEquatorial provides a truly healthy andflavourful whole-day buffet option and canbe easily turned into a gourmet food therapyto rehabilitate one’s precious self after a yearof workday’s hectic meals too.

Hotel Equatorial has everything the mostdiscerning traveller may need for a memo-rable and truly five-star, international stan-dard stay, starting from elegant interiors anda full set of world-class facilities, throughgreat sightseeing city exploration optionsand up to the small details and surprises thatturn one’s stay into a unique experience to remember.n

Hotel Equatorial Ho Chi Minh City242 Tran Binh Trong St, Dist.5,

Ho Chi Minh City; Tel: (08) 3839-7777Email: [email protected]

www.equatorial.com

25-storey Liberty Central SaigonRiverside Hotel, built on the scenicesplanade of Saigon River, im-

presses one with an elegant look even from adistance. Its spacious foyer in light beige andchampagne colours with vibrant and stylishinterior design and futuristic satelite loungechairs look sparklingly refreshing. After aquick check-in, I was standing by the floor-to-ceiling panorama windows, watching the po-etic vista of the chocolate-coloured waters ofthe Saigon River with a picturesque quay anda line of leisure vessels at anchor. The wideplane of a neighbouring residential quarter,full of green groves stretching across the riverpleased the eye and was surprising to observefrom a hotel situated in the very centre ofbustling metropolis of Saigon, at half minutewalk to far-famed Dong Khoi Street.

The room featured tasteful modern de-sign with a fine combination of hazel, beigeand deep blue tones and minimalistic yet cosyfurniture, all together looking very spacious.Wide-screen LCD home cinema-size TV pan-els and glass wall bathrooms were also presentto add hi-tech touches to the room.

Liberty Central Saigon Riverside Hoteloffers a wide choice of well-appointed andupscale accommodation to fit any taste. Thehotel interiors boast a refreshingly dynamicyet peaceful ambience with cosy and stylishsitting areas, tastefully-appointed furnishingand creative design solutions to fit bothleisure and business travellers.

As for in-house facilities Liberty CentralSaigon Riverside Hotel offers a lot of optionsfor pleasantly surprising and impressive ex-periences to pamper all the senses: fine gas-tronomy and gourmet sessions at Bistro caféand Wine bar on the beautifully designedmezanine floor or at the Central restaurantwith contemporary decor and three exqui-site daily buffets, great breakfasts andevening Cocktail Buffet free service at Clublounge for business travellers on the 23rdfloor, renowned wines and a plethora ofcocktails at the Vertical sky bar on therooftop with views over Ho Chi Minh Cityat night and open swimming pool contem-plating the sunset from the rooftop deckwith iced coffee or glass of wine in handamid orchids in full blossom can also be-

come one of the highlights of one’s stay inSaigon. Aesthetic delights of spectacularcity panoramas are also available at hotelhealth and spa centre fully equipped withstate-of-the-art fitness machines, an excel-lent option to do an intensive or light work-out after gourmet sessions or to pamperoneself after a busy day of visiting city sites.The spa centre offers an extensive menu ofmassages and outstanding sauna and steambath private rooms with the bathtub setright by the panoramic window.

Boasting a prime location within fewminutes’ walk through an atmospheric cen-tral quarter straight to the city’s main attrac-tions, Liberty Central Saigon Riverside Hoteloffers a memorable stay with truly interna-tional standard of comfort, charming viewsand can become an excellent option to startone’s trip to Southern Vietnam (or to finishit) in impressive way.n

Liberty Central Saigon Riverside Hotel17 Ton Duc Thang St, Dist.1, HCM

Tel: (08) 3827-1717www.libertycentralhotel.com


Saigon sensationat Liberty Central Riverside Hotel

BY NATHALIE SOKOLOVSKAYA

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Curiousness and concern wouldcome at the same time once a her-itage item gained UNESCO status.Vi giam folk song, a cultural legacy

of locals in Nghe Tinh region in the Centralof Vietnam, is in just that situation.

People in other regions in the countryand around the world have begun their re-search on vi giam since December of last year,when it was honoured as a world culturalheritage item by the UN’s cultural body.

Certainly vi giamhas yet to vanish in mod-ern life, but it is no longer popular as it was inits glorious age. The old, natural environmentof vi giam has almost gone. The traditionalcraft workshop has been cleared out from thevillages in the region, which spans the centralprovinces of Nghe An and Ha Tinh.

No more hand-weaving workshops can befound at the localities, while conical hat-mak-ing has becomes a personal household joband is seen in only a few hamlets. There are,as well, fewer boatmen going across the rivers.

On rice paddies, machinery has replacedfarmers in almost all cultivation work. Urban-ization has also stopped the placement ofbanyan trees and wells in front of each village.

‘The original environment for vi giamhasgone. We now have only re-enacted scenesof rural and agricultural activities for vi giamon stages,’ says Pham Tien Dung, vice direc-tor of Nghe An Department of Culture,Sports and Tourism.

That fact gives much concern for the con-servation of the folksong, as vi giamwas bornin the working environment to which it be-came attached. According to Nguyen NgocQuyet, head of the research unit at local Cen-tre for Vi giam Safeguarding and Promotion,vi giam songs varied according to craft pro-fessions; there are textile workers vi giam,conical hat makers vi giam, rice planters vigiam, field workers vi giam, wood-chuckinggroups vi giam, bamboo weavers vi giam,boatmen vi giam, and several others.

Technically, vi giam folk songs are com-

bination of vi and giam. Vi songs are com-posed in 6-8 verse (the last words of the first6-word line and the sixth in the 8-word lineare homonyms; while the last of the 6-wordline that goes behind the 8-word line is ahomonym of its eighth word) and in somevariations of the verse. Vi has no rhythm.

Giam songs are in 5-word verses, witheach song composed of five or seven lines,the last normally repeating the second-to-last. Giam songs have rhythm. Their rhyth-mic changes are made on each word orcouple of words.

Vi giam folksong does not require musicfrom instruments, as originally they startedin the working environment, among craftworkers of traditional textile weaving, conicalhat making or farming. Experts said locals


MUSIC

Left: Re-enacted scenes created on a river in NgheAn for the performances of boatman vi giam. Photo: Sy MinhRight: Master Tran Tu teaches the kids in his village ofsinging vi giam folksong. Photo: Ha Nguyen

Ancient folk singing facesthe sounds of silence BY HA NGUYEN

Nghe Tinh

MUSIC

were very good at composing 6-8 verse, asquickly as they spoke. Since the 18th century,craft groups grew in the region with manyworkshops, where workers often producedthe verse to ease the burden of the hardworking days. They then hummed the versein tune to make the vi giam folk song.

Elder Tran Tu, a vi giammaster in HoangTru Village in Nghe An’s Nam Dan District,says during the good old days of vi giam, thesongs were sung by folks from all walks oflife, from manual workers to Confucianscholars, including the outstanding ones likepatriot Phan Boi Chau in Nghe An or the Taleof Kieu’s author poet Nguyen Du in Ha Tinh.

People in those days communicated bysinging vi giam. For instance, weavers in atextile workshop spoke to their next doorneighbours, rice planters talked to a wood-chucking man nearby, or a boatman wel-comed guests on board with basic vi giam.

Master Tu tells an anecdote about whenscholar Phan Boi Chau approached HoangTru Village and unfortunately fell, kneeingdown on the road because of slippery mud.

A lady in the nearby textile workshop imme-diately sang out her vi giam verse: ‘Man, weare the same age. Thus kneeing down in frontof me isn’t necessary.’ The scholar just asquickly replied in a very metaphoric fashion:‘The road is weird so far. Are we so close forsuch passionate embrace huh?’

But Master Tu also admits that vi giamsongs sung at the village club now have lostpart of their soul, as its natural environmentof textile workshops in the village were wipedout long ago.

Dung of the Nghe An Culture Depart-ment says authorities in the two provinceshave set up several programmes for safeguard-ing and promoting vi giam folk songs accord-ing to UNESCO commitments. Among themis to give the folksong a theatrical life, whichhas actually been a tradition since 1973. Artistshave composed many plays that comprise oldvi giam songs or new songs on old vi giamtunes to perform on stage, he says.

But native people of the region worrythat vi giam has lost in the theatre. In thegrand show to honour vi giam held in Nghe

An late last January, all vi giam songs per-formed were theatrical versions of the folksong. ‘They are definitely not vi giam,’ saysTran Xuan Tinh, a Nghe An native who livesin HCM City, watching the show live on na-tional television.

According to Nguyen Ngoc At, directorof the local vi giam safeguarding centre, thetwo provinces have around 120 vi giamclubs,but the singing of vi giam faces the same sit-uation as it does Tu’s village.

Experts said the core and soul of vi giamare from local Nghe Tinh dialects, the abilityto play with words in 6-8 verse, and the nat-ural environment of original vi giam. Thebiggest hope for vi giam conservation comesfrom the pride of locals.

The key task for cultural authorities ishow to bring back part of the original envi-ronment where the vi giam folk song wasborn. Obviously, it is a difficult task, but theauthorities receive full support from theyounger generation, who always holds vigiam as a legacy in their hearts and has somuch care about conserving folk songs.n

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Being an artist can bea precarious way toearn a living. Oneway to surmount this

difficulty, as with any business,is to find a niche market. Por-traiture may no longer be seenby the art critic as a major focusof contemporary art, but overthe last twelve years, PhuongQuoc Tri has established him-self as foremost in this field inVietnam. His commissionedworks typically render him inthe region of four thousanddollars a piece. He is the latestartist to have an exhibition inco-sponsorship with the CraigThomas Galley at the SofitelSaigon Plaza in Ho Chi MinhCity. I was lucky enough to beinvited along with a selectgroup of art lovers to a sneakpreview. Even luckier, the artistwas brave enough to allow usto see him at work producing aportrait of a middle-aged lady before ourvery eyes.

There are only nine frames on show andyet there is diversity. One is not a portrait andyet it captures the essence of a very Viet-namese icon. It has a place of pride behindthe concierge's desk and will be the first ofthe exhibition you will see. From below, it ap-pears to be an object hung on a wall-a book-case or a family shrine, I surmised. Close up,you realise it is of the famous one-pillarpagoda in Hanoi.

Also standing apart from the rest there isa reclining rear view nude. The remainingseven are oil on canvass paintings of youngwomen. One is a sample commission of afresh-faced young lady. I was surprised tolearn from the press release that Tri is entirelyself-taught. He paints in a largely realisticstyle. There no contortions or attempts at thesemi-abstract. The U.K's one and only femaleprime minister Margaret Thatcher, famous

for disparaging remarks about FrancisBacon's portraits, would probably have likedthis exhibition. One technique he has thatgives a wet look, almost as if he were paintingin the rain, are long steaks of white runningdown the hair. Only one picture departs fromthe realism slightly. Simply entitled ‘Portraitof a Woman,’ the hair is pulled out longitu-dinally and streaks of what seems to be blackpaint drip from it.

Three paintings are in black and whiteand could have been of the same demureyoung lady, front on and in profile, lookingclassically Vietnamese and in one case witha hair style like that of the banded headwear of the North. The last pair were myfavourite. They are almost historic in char-acter and brought to mind Holbein. Theyoung lady in traditional garb seems to befrom a long-ago golden age. Indeed, herclothes are golden and the background isbright yellow. It is very pleasing to the eye

and fittingly entitled ‘Lady ofthe Past’.

For fully an hour and a half,the artist was at work on theportrait of a middle- aged ladyseated and wearing a simpleblack dress. Whilst she wasperhaps no great painting inoils, the woman was certainlynot unattractive and there wasa great deal of character in herface. The concentration anddeep inspection of the artistcontrasted with the stillness ofthe sitter-she had the patienceof Job! Whilst a companion re-marked about the beauty ofthe eyes in the painting, I actu-ally felt the artist was not hav-ing one of his better days. Iwould have liked the paintingto be have been as we the spec-tators saw it; in profile and fea-turing the dress. Instead heproduced only a head, chub-bier than real life. But we could

not really judge, as the artist came to a haltdeclaring his work thirty per cent unfinishedjust as the Chilean wine and canapés werebeginning to run out.

One peculiarity I must mention is thatthe artist used no palette. Instead he drewform daubs of paint spread out on a treetrunk fashioned into a chair.

In short, this is an exhibition by an artistof true calibre and should attract dealers, col-lectors and the casual art lover in general. Asusual, with Sofitel, it is a free show and in fullpublic view. Go along, see, enjoy and judge foryourselves. You have nothing to lose and ifyou have a few thousand dollars to spare youmight even find yourself gaining a work of art!

‘Skin Deep’ an exhibition by the artistPhuong Quoc Tri at the Sofitel Saigon Plaza,17 Le Duan Boulevard, Dist.1, Ho Chi MinhCity in association with Craig ThomasGallery is on display from 3 March until 4April 2015.n


ART

Witnessing the portrait of a ladyBY RITCH PICKENS

It was getting cold whenI came to Pa Xa Xa Vil-lage, Pa Thom Com-mune, Dien Bien

District, near the border with Laos. Besidethe fire place, the villagers told me theirmyths. 58-year-old Quang Thi Say is the vil-lage’s living history record. I was most im-pressed by her story about her people’s familynames and how they related to specific ani-mals. Choosing the family name of the KhoMu is their unique custom. They imitate cer-tain movements of the totem animal, toprove that they belong to that animal’sspecies.

Mrs Say said that each Kho Mu familyname has its own origin, usually related tosome animal. For example, the Quang (fox),Luong (civet) and Lois (eagle). Others in-clude Rvai (tiger), Tiac (deer), Ho Hoa (mon-key), Oive (otter), Mar (snake) and Kumbur(pangolin).The Kho Mu have very strict rulesabout dealing with the family totem. Seeingone’s own totem, one should refrain fromkilling it. The Kho Mu still lives by hunting,but hunting one’s own totem is forbidden be-cause they believe they will become theirtotem animal in the next life. If one sees adead totem animal, one must bury it. Eatingone’s own totem is the worst blasphemy. This

rule is so strict that if someone has eaten hisown totem animal, and washed his handsfrom a container, others have to throw awayall the water in it.

Mrs Say told me that Luong Van Kenhand Luong Van Sa came to a visit a friend onNew Year’s Day in 2013. At dinner, they atewithout asking what meat was served. Thentheir hearts fell when they learned that theyjust ate a civet. Soon after that, both lost alltheir teeth, making all the Kho Mu fearful.To verify this, I went to Xa Cuong, but themen were not at home. However the villagerssaid the story was true.

Beside totemic beliefs, the Kho Mu peo-ple also have some other customs. For exam-ple, the ‘kinh coong’ dish. In Kho Mu, ‘coong’means vegetables in general, including chilli,onion, garlic and egg-plant, plus rotten meat.‘Kinh’ means a miscellaneous soup. ‘Kinhcoong’ is a vegetable soup with rotten meat.This special dish is a must for weddings, NewYear’s or other festivity. The meat must be

hung above a kitchen for weeks and sprayedwith water every day to remain damp. Thus,it gets infested with flies, and with themcomes bacteria, and the meat acquires thedesired flavour. To prepare it, they stew themeat until it falls off the bone completely.Then, they add the vegetables and some ricepowder to make it thick.

Another example is their planting dance.Every spring, the Kho Mu performs a dancewith their special sticks attached to musicalinstruments as a way to be one with the Yingand Yang, to pray for a better life.

Each stick is 1.8-2 m long with a sharpend, which is sometimes even iron-plated.The sharp end is normally made of strongwood. The other half is made of bamboo andattached to small bamboo pipes with a littlepebble inside. When moved, these rudimen-tary instruments make joyful sounds amidstthe misty, dreamy world, waking up themountains and forests.

Strong men walk at the front, in a line,shoulder to shoulder, dancing and thrustingtheir sticks into the soil, making tunes thatcall everybody to work. Young women followthem, throwing seeds into the new holesthen levelling them with their feet. Thewhole company moves gracefully in unisonto the songs.n

TEXT AND PHOTOS BY DONG XUYEN

CUSTOMS


Pa Xa Xa VillageMrs Quang Thi Say and her children

The hunters of Kho Muregard their totems as

culinary taboo

Dien BienDistrict

Avatar animals are forbidden foods


WARFARE

Since the times of legends, the Co Tu inthe mighty mountains of Truong Son havebeen using bark as body armour to fight badweather, beasts and enemies. Bark armour isa unique feature of this ethnicity.

Today, it can only be seen in the harvestand buffalo kill festivities of the highlanders,and that quite rarely. But once upon a time,it was almost the daily wear of Co Tu men-warriors in their quest for food and peace.

We went up to the Vietnam-Laos borderin Tay Giang District, Quang Nam Province,to look for Co Tu bark armour, if any couldbe found. Po Ning Village of Lang Communehung mysteriously between heaven andearth, among clouds.

Clau Nam was sharpening his arrows andspears to prepare for the village feast. ClauNam is one of the most respected elders alongthe Tay Giang border area. His words are wis-dom itself to everyone. He is also a legendarywarrior from the Tay Giang wilderness.

Talking about his people’s armour, Nam’seyes brightened. His 83-year-old legs are stillstrong and his eyes sharp. He is still roaminghis mountains and forests every day to hunt,barefoot and wearing his body armour.

‘This bark is very strong. Arrows can’tpierce it, claws can’t tear it. It’s the heaven’sblessing for the Co Tu for our hunting in theforests,’ the elder Nam says as he puts on hisarmour, which has accompanied him almostall his life.

The decades-old bark tissues are strong

as new. Old Nam said, ‘Each and every barkcoat is cherished by the villagers, becausethey are the recorders of history and legendsof the past. Sitting still in ambush, it makesa warrior look like a rotten log. It even hasgreat detoxifying power to protect our menfrom poisonous arrows of the enemies.’

In Po Ning Village, people still remembersagas from the French-Vietnamese War.Camouflaged in their bark armour, Co Tumen took down French soldiers with theirpoisonous arrows, forcing them to retreat inpanic. The bark, along with bows and arrowsand spears, has done its part to help protect

the mountains andforests against theenemy’s modernweapons.

Old Nam couldn’thelp being fascinated bythe wisdom of his Co Tuancestors, who devised this strong armour.Among the forest’s trees, Tr`rang, T’cong, T’Dui, and A muot are used the most, becausetheir bark is tough and durable. Especiallythe Tr`rang bark, which lasts for decadeswithout tearing or rotting.

But because these trees usually grow

Organicbodyarmour

BY NGUYEN THANH

Made from trees, thisunique protection is still

used today

Quang NamProvince

WARFARE

only at the source of the Lang River, ittakes much effort and time, sometimesweeks, to obtain.

Making the bark armour is a job forCo Tu men. First, they have to scour themountains to find the trees, and onlytrunks the size of an average man’s torsoare chosen. They cut two lines aroundthe tree and use sticks to evenly beat thebark between the lines until it detachesitself from the wood inside.

The collected bark is then boiled,kept in water, dried and woven by stronghands into coats. But the Tr’rang’s barkhas to be left the way it’s been taken fromits trunk and sewed into a wearableform. It takes a Co Tu man almost amonth to make his own armour.

Old A Lang Pech, a childhoodfriend of elder Clau Nam, said that thearmour is the symbol of maturity anddignity that every young Co Tu man dreamsto possess. Tr’rang bark coat feels warm inwinter and cool in summer, and its odourdrives away mosquitoes and leeches. More-

over, it is believed that Tr’rang bark coatmakes you invisible to the beasts. However,this tree is very rare. There are only two treesleft up the Lang River.

Old Nam said that Co Tu peopledon’t exhaust the mountains and forests.They only take the bark in summer, sothe tree’s wound heals quickly and in au-tumn, the tree would be covered withnew bark. It’s also the time when thebark is clean and quick to dry. That’s whythe two Tr`rang trees can still supplyenough bark for Po Ning villagers.

Elder Nam pulled out aged bark ar-mour for the family to wear to demon-strate to his guests. In the upcomingfestive events, the whole village will puton this armour to revive the scenes ofancient warriors fighting ferociousbeasts and enemies to defend the peo-ple’s livelihood and peace.n* The Vietnamese version was printed on2 November, 2014 on the Tien Phong website

STARTS AT

Opposite, top: Clau Nam and his family in barkclothes. Photo: Nguyen ThanhOpposite, below: Making bark clothes. Photo: Tran Tan VinhLeft: A piece of bark. Photo: Tran Tan Vinh

As somewhat of a foodie, I havelong been intrigued by the culi-nary arts and learning moreabout the local cuisine wherever

I am. I now live in Ho Chi Minh City, and,luckily, Vietnam certainly offers a lot tostudy. It is fairly common knowledge thatNorthern Vietnam’s often salty cuisine dif-fers greatly from that of the South, wherethey tend to go heavy on the sweetness intheir food preparation, but the country’svast array of adventure fodder does not endthere. Vietnam, which is about 70 per centas large as California and 50 per cent the sizeof France, is divided into 58 districts, eachwith its own distinct local specialties, taste,and methods of preparing certain dishes.

Recently, I visited Can Tho, the river-side town located in the heart of SouthVietnam’s Mekong Delta. Can Tho is best-known for its amazing floating markets, itsluscious fruit, and the vibrant feel that thecity gives off, thanks to its large studentpopulation. The aspect of Can Tho life thatI was most interested in exploring duringthis trip was, however, its local cuisine. Be-cause the city is surrounded by hundredsof kilometres of wetlands, dense forests,flora, and fauna, the city’s cuisine has be-come known both for its fresh fruit, im-bued with extra sweetness and flavour dueto ideal growing conditions, and its freshlyobtained meats, which range from the‘normal’ meats, such as pork, to exotic eatssuch as snake.

Upon my arrival, I decided to dive intothe local cuisine immediately and find outfirst-hand what the ‘grittier’ side of CanTho’s food offerings are really like. I de-

bated my options. Preferring to explore in-dependently, I do not regularly enlist inguided tours. But in this instance, I rea-soned, a tour with a couple of seasoned lo-cals might have been my only way toquickly gain access to the city’s most exoticdining options. As I always say, anyone whocannot speak Vietnamese is unable to ex-perience about 70 per cent of what thecountry has to offer, and, unfortunately, Iknew this would be one of those cases. Itdoes not help, either, that I do not ride amotorbike. It was for this reason that I wasmost happy when I met two tour guides,both of whom had lived in Can Tho alltheir lives, were incredibly friendly, andspoke nearly flawless English. I had chosento go with the ‘exotic’ food tour rather thansimply the ‘normal’ food tour, and I feltconfident after meeting the guides thatthey would be able to show me and my fivefellow tourists some authentic places toget traditional Can Tho food.

Our group set out from the hotel at 6.30p.m. We began our trek through the citystreets, all made up of charming alleywaysand quiet avenues, none of which are dis-rupted by the loud and hazardous trafficthat plagues much of Saigon, Danang, andHanoi. Although the streets were not busy,the city was still spirited and exciting,thanks to the lush parks, colourful lightsand crowds of smiling friends and families

we passed. As we strolled by a lady sellinglive rabbits out of a cage by the side of thestreet, one of our guides announced to thegroup that our first stop would be a shopwhere we could eat nem nướng – fer-mented pork with rice noodles, lettuce,thin banana slices, pineapple, basil, mint,and coriander, all wrapped in rice paper. Iwas a bit disappointed when I learned whatthe first dish would be, because I hadhoped for more out-of-the-ordinary delica-cies when I had booked the ‘exotic foodtour,’ but I changed my mind once the foodarrived and I tasted it. True to Can Thofood's reputation for being exceedinglyfresh, the vegetables, which comprised alarge portion of each wrap, were absolutelybursting with tanginess and sweetness. Thepork itself was cooked to perfection, andthe fermentation had given it a delectablytart yet succulent flavour. I have always ap-preciated the common tendency of Viet-namese dishes of allowing the eater toliterally add his own flavour to his diningexperience by assembling his own mealwith fresh ingredients provided at the table,and this nem nướng certainly undid theinitial disappointment I had felt about it.Every crunchy bite of my wrap was not onlya brilliant circus of fresh and zingy flavoursand textures, but it also brought with it thereminder that I had created that specificflavour myself. In my opinion, that knowl-


Snake follows mous

edge simply makes food taste better.Once we had finished a few wraps each

and paid the bill (which was surprisinglylow, even compared to the already-inexpen-sive Saigon), we headed down the street toour next stop. Again, the shop did not sellthe more ‘outlandish’ delicacies that wewould be introduced to later on the tour,but it did sell something unique to CanTho: a dish called bánh cống. Bánh cống aresmall cakes made mainly from rice flour,mung bean, onions, and spices. They eachhave a large shrimp cooked into their cen-tres that adds decorative flair (a large com-ponent of many Vietnamese dishes) and abit of flavour. I found the bánh cống to bedry and lacking in flavour, even after wrap-ping the cakes in lettuce and dipping themin fish sauce. Many Can Tho natives, how-ever, consider bánh cống a delicacy.

Our next stop was right across the streetfrom the shop selling bánh cống, and I wasdelighted to hear we would be trying chuộtnướng – grilled mouse. Finally, something Ihad heard about but never had the chanceto try. The tour group noshed on some ap-petizers, which consisted of stir fried tofuand beef or eggplant, respectively, beforethe main dish was served. As soon as themouse arrived, I dug in eagerly. I was disap-pointed to find the meat difficult to eatquickly because it was riddled with bones,another quality common to Vietnamese

meats that I still need to get used to. Unfor-tunately, the meat that was there was dis-pleasingly dry, and the taste was nothingspecial – reminiscent of chicken, butgamier. I ate a few bites to get a taste for thedish, but the fact that I could wow myfriends and family by telling them I hadeaten mouse kept me eating more than thetaste of the food itself. Besides, I wanted tosave my appetite for what one of our guidestold us would be our next course – barbe-cued snake.

The snake was served to us at a placeseveral blocks away from where we hadeaten the mouse. I would call the eatingspot a cafe, but it was only a line of plastictables and stools set out on the sidewalk.Luckily, the air was cool and clean, andthere were no groups of men engaging in‘nhậu’ (when Vietnamese men get togetherto get drunk, talk, and sometimes playcards), so it was a very pleasant evening tosit out on the sidewalk. I was happy when Ifound that our snake had been divided intotwo dishes: xúc xích rắn (snake sausage)and rắn nướng (grilled snake). Thesausage, which was most likely processedand which one would not have known con-tained snake unless told so beforehand, wasthe group favourite. It was satisfyingly saltyand well-spiced, and, because it did notcontain bones, the bite-size balls it hadbeen cooked into could easily be poppedinto the mouth and devoured. My personalpreference of the two snake dishes, how-ever, was the grilled snake. Complete withthe snake's scaly skin and the bones, bothof which had to be removed with either thehands or the teeth before digging in, the

dish provided a uniqueflavour and texture thatthe sausage did not.While the sausage hadhad the consistency ofburger and had re-minded me of alligatorsausage by its taste, thegrilled snake was rubbery, more like cala-mari, and had an interesting and savouryflavour redolent of something between fishand pork. Both courses were eaten withchopsticks, and they proved to be myfavourite eats of the night.

After we had eaten our fill of snake, webegan back towards the hotel where thetour had started. On the way, we stoppedfor dessert – xôi ngọt (sweet sticky rice), myfavourite Vietnamese sweet street treat. Thefriendly lady who served it to us scooped agenerous ladle-full of the sticky rice out ofthe steel vat she had set up over a flame onthe sidewalk, mixed the rice with sugar,heaped the mixture into a folded pouchmade of rice paper, and wrapped the wholething in a sweet pancake, similar to some-thing one might find at IHOP. Althoughthe rice in the vat came in several differentcolours and flavours, I chose to buy twowraps of the yellow coconut-flavoured rice.The final product was absolutely delicious,and it was a wonderfully savoury and satis-fying way to top off a night of enticing andoften intriguing local food.n

TEXT AND PHOTOS BY DUSTIN KEMP


e after pig

Opposite left: Fried field mouseOpposite right: Tofu cooked with porkLeft: Grilled snakeRight: Bánh cống

Can Tho


DESTINATION

Rustic lagoon offers a taste of its storied past

The simple lifeBY KIM NGAN

Photo: Do Huu Tien

During the era of Emperor MinhMang, Tam Giang Lagoon wentby the names Thien Hai, HacHai and Hat Hai, which means

‘Shallow Ocean’. The latter name reallyholds true for anyone who’s come here togreet the dawn or watch the sunset on thevast waters of undulating ripples, see thejunks going upstream and downstreamcasting nets or view scenes of the lives offishermen on the lagoon.

The Tam Giang-Cau Hai Lagoon systemis considered one of the largest salt marshesin Southeast Asia. This is precisely the re-gion that regulates the climate between twosandy areas, moderates the floods, and lim-its the danger of the delta getting water-logged. Tam Giang-Cau Hai Lagoonfunctions to maintain the groundwater ofthe delta along the banks and the sandy re-gions along the seacoast. It maintains thepeople’s daily source of water and is the

place that restores the water quality beforeit flows out to sea.

Tam Giang Lagoon is freshwater duringthe flood season and brackish during thedry season. Because of this, the aquatic en-vironment here is extremely plentiful;many aquatic and marine species live here.The lagoon is a source of precious resourcesfor the fishermen who exploit it for theirlivelihood.

Tam Giang Lagoon was mentioned inLe Quy Don’s ‘Phu Bien Tap Luc’ (‘Miscella-neous Records of Consoling [the People of]the Frontier’). The Nguyen Dynasty’s Na-tional History Agency also mentioned TamGiang Lagoon in the ‘Dai Nam Nhat ThongChi’ (Complete Gazetteer of Dai Nam),which primarily talked about the formationand hazardous wild features of the place.Among common folk, the people pass onthe famous folk song, ‘Loving you, I want tocome, too/fearful of Ho Moor and fearful of

Tam Giang Lagoon.’ At that time, TamGiang Lagoon was a broad land areaflooded in water, full of mud, and inun-dated with unpredictable hazardous windsand waves. Boats going back and forth eas-ily encountered calamities. Tam Giang La-goon was moreover a place where thievingbandits hid themselves.

Tam Giang-Cau Hai Lagoon is nolonger desolate as in the past. In recentyears, Thua Thien-Hue Province has in-vested in and developed the building up ofthe lagoon, as well as exploiting tourism.

A Hue friend told me that Tam Giang-Cau Hai Lagoon is becoming an attractivetourism site for visitors. The traffic routesfrom Hue City down to Tam Giang Lagoonare now quite favourable, so at the end ofthe day and week many people frequentlycome here to enjoy specialties.

Mr Dinh Tien Dung’s Dam Chuon(Dragonfly) Diner is one of the countless

Tam GiangLagoon

DESTINATION


eateries that lie on Tam Giang-Cau Hai La-goon belonging to the Phu An ResidentialZone of Phu Vang District in Thua Thien-Hue Province. The diner is made entirelyout of bamboo and lies tottering on thewater’s waves. The tables are low-set, whilecustomers sit on mats or small cushions.The dishes here primarily consist of theshrimp and fish caught in the lagoon.

Customers who come here enjoy thedishes while viewing the cloudy skies or theboundless waves. Before enjoying natureproducts, they get to have none other thanthe owner invitingly pour into their cups‘tra trang’ or ‘white tea,’ which is a specialtydistilled by the diner. A cup of Dam Chuon(Dragonfly Lagoon) liquor is refreshinglysweet and spreads throughout the body—warm and rich but not jolting. All oneneeds is to start off with a cup of ‘tra trang’and the atmosphere of the meal comesalive. To the side on the diner wall a guitar isalways placed.

The diner’s owner related that he pio-neered the diner on the lagoon a decadeago. The diner has remained simplistic andwithout alteration since its inception. Be-fore engaging their meal, customers canhave the owner show them how to cast

small nets or look at bamboo traps withwhich he catches the fish and shrimp.

In order to get to the diner, customershave to take a boat from the lagoon’s bankand meander past the bordering fencesaround shrimp and fish nurseries for about15-20 minutes. That’s sufficient time to takepictures of the scenery and activities on thelagoon. The eye’s purview of the surface ofthe lagoon seems endless and is inter-spersed by rows of jagged bamboo runningup and down the lagoon. Every once in awhile, narrow fish lookout towers appear,

adorned with several altars draped in redcloth that lie precariously perched atop thebamboo stalks.

At present, there are ten Dam ChuonDiners. Some diners invest a billion dongsto build and decorate floating restaurantsthat hold up to a hundred customers. MrDung’s grass diner only holds, at most, 20-30 customers at a time. Foreign tourists,too, frequently choose Mr Dung’s diner toeat, drink, and take in the landscape.n*The Vietnamese version was printed on 29November, 2014 on Nguoi Lao Dong website

The estuary where the Huong, Bo and O Lau rivers converge before goingout to sea at Thuan An Harbour, Tam Giang Lagoon, which runs about 27kmlong with an area of 5,200ha.

The Tam Giang-Cau Hai Lagoon system is a place rich in abundant plantand animal resources of first-rate value in the region of Southeast Asia. Recentinvestigative data reveals that 230 species of fish, 63 species of underwater ani-mals, 43 species of algae, 70 species of birds, 15 species of sea egrets, 171 speciesof phytoplanktonand 37 species of zooplankton exist here. Among them, 30species of fish are of economic value, consisting of 70 per cent of that exploitedyearly. Tam Giang-Cau Hai has 34 species of migratory birds and 36 species ofautochthon birds concentrated in the region of O Lau and Dai Giang harbours.

Photo: Pham Ba Thinh Photo: Dang Van Tran


WHAT THE PAPERS SAY

Vietnam to build nature museum systemTuoi Tre News, 23 January

Prime Minister Nguyen TanDung has given the go-ahead for aproject to develop the Vietnam Na-tional Museum of Nature into a sys-tem of facilities by 2025.

The Vietnamese Academy of Sci-ence and Technology had proposedsuch a project and the premier has al-ready approved it, according to thegovernment’s news portal.

The existing Vietnam NationalMuseum of Nature, located in Hanoi,will be turned into a leading researchinstitution that plays a leading role inhelping other museums regardingresearch, collection, preservation,and exhibition of specimens.

Rock ‘detained’ in centralVietnamtuoitrenews.vn, 28 February

Police in the Central Highlandsprovince of Dak Nong are holding ahuge precious piece of rock weighingup to 30 tons, recently excavated by afarmer in Dak Mil District while gar-dening, local authorities reported.

The value of the piece of rock isestimated at dozens of billions ofdong (VND1 billion is equivalent toroughly $47,000), Hoang Xuan Vinh,a senior official at the district People’sCommittee, said.

Regarding the value of the rock,Nguyen Huu Trung, head of the Min-eral Office under the provincial De-partment of Natural Resources and

Environment, said it belongs to theCanxedon variety, which has beenformed in the process of geologicalweathering.

Reward for those reporting littering, tourist botheringtuoitrenews.vn, 1 March

Doan Ngoc Son, deputy chair ofthe Hai Chau District People’s Com-mittee, said on Saturday that hiscommittee will pay natives andtourists VND200,000 ($9.32) for eachpiece of accurate information onsuch behavior as littering, beggary,pestering tourists to buy wares, andunauthorized advertising in publicplaces.

The informants will also belauded in other forms, Son said.

He added that the local People’sCommittee is poised to form a rapidaction team which will operate allday long and set up a hotline to re-ceive such information, starting thismonth.

Upon receipt of the information,the team will impose fines on theperpetrators.

Rips along beaches putbathers in periltuoitrenews.vn, 1 March

Two gorgeous beaches in centralVietnam are plagued by perilous ripcurrents, which have killed eight,including a foreign tourist, sinceJanuary.

Bai Dai and Bai Tay Beaches inNha Trang are home to the highestconcentration of rips in Vietnam andmost of them can be identified withthe naked eye, Dr Le Dinh Mau,deputy head of the OceanographyInstitute noted.

The beach sees the most vibrantrip activity during the transition timebetween summer and winter eachyear, he added.

Curdled oil found againtuoitrenews.vn, 3 March

In early March, beaches in VungTau were covered with tons of clots ofcurdled oil that has become an an-nual phenomenon whose cause hasyet to be identified.

According to the Department ofNatural Resources and Environ-ment of Ba Ria-Vung Tau, the oilclots, a hazardous waste, cannot bere-used and must be collected fordestruction.

The appearance of curdled oilalong the coast of the province hastaken place each of the past severalyears, usually during March andApril, when the wind changes its di-rection from northeast to southwest.

US to provide for UXO removal tuoitrenews.vn, 3 March

This year the U.S. governmentwill grant $8 million for clearing un-exploded ordnance (UXO) left overin the central Vietnamese province ofQuang Tri, Rose Gottemoeller,Under-Secretary of State for ArmsControl and International Securityfor the U.S. State Department said.

Over the past 20 years, withfunding from the U.S. government,non-governmental organizationshave helped clear 8,399 hectares ofland in Quang Tri and safely re-moved and destroyed 556,448 UXOs.

UXO-related accidents kill 1,500people and maim another 2,300every year.

Hanoi to build ‘smoke-free’areastuoitrenews.vn, 4 March

The Hanoi government has re-quested that competent agenciestake action to build models ofsmoke-free environments, includingtourist sites and workplaces, for thesake of society and health.

The Vietnamese capital city willmake available several non-smokingmodels, including ‘smoke-free touristsites’, ‘smoke-free restaurants and ho-tels’, and ‘smoke-free offices’.

WHAT THE PAPERS SAY


Similar models will be built in other pub-lic places such as trade centres, Hoan KiemLake, the Old Quarter, and others.

Such smokeless models will contribute topromoting a civilized lifestyle in public placesand bring beautiful images of the capital city– one of the country’s leading attractions – toboth domestic and international visitors, thelocal government said.

Quang Binh may delay high cave feesViet Nam News, 30 January

The Vietnam Administration of Tourismhas suggested Quang Binh Province postponeany increase in the price of entrance tickets tolocal caves.

The move was made to settle oppositionfrom travel agencies against the price hike.

Several weeks ago, authorities in the cen-tral province announced that cost of visitingthe caves would be doubled and the new priceof entrance ticket would be applied early inthe New Year.

The decision angered hundreds of travelagents across the country, as tour programmeshad been already sold according to the oldprices. They found it difficult to explain to for-eign tourists that the Vietnamese tourismmindset was that ‘more visitors meant highercosts’.

Salt water intrusion threatensdelta rice cropsViet Nam News, 3 March

Saline intrusion is threatening thousandsof hectares of rice crops in many coastal areasin the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta.

In Soc Trang Province, saline intrusionhas occurred most severely in Long Phu Dis-trict's Long Phu, Tan Hung and Tan Thanhcommunes and Long Phu town. Many riceplants that are blooming are facing a severeshortage of water.

The district Agriculture and Rural Devel-opment Bureau, said this year's saline intru-sion had occurred a month earlier comparedto normal years. It has prepared measures tomaintain fresh water, but canals are silted upand cannot store water, he said.

In Tien Giang Province, salinity intrusionappeared 20 days early compared to last year,

causing a shortage of fresh water for nearly30,000 ha of rice in Go Cong Dong, Go CongTay and Cho Gao districts.

Allies to fight wildlife crimeViet Nam News, 3 March

A new alliance formed to end wildlifecrime, especially rhino horn trafficking, waslaunched on 2 March.

Officials of the newly launched Opera-tion Game Change (OGC) project an-nounced it would be run by the US Agencyfor International Development (USAID) andthe Biodiversity Conservation Agency underthe Ministry of Natural Resources and Envi-ronment.

Apart from forging a new alliance againstwildlife crime, the project would raise publicawareness and spark a reduction in demandfor illegal wildlife, while simultaneously im-proving bilateral and global ties in environ-mental security, officials said.

The launch marked Vietnam's observanceof the World Wildlife Day (3 March).

Bitexco Tower is among ‘most innovative buildings’www.thanhniennews.com, 25 February

Bitexco Financial Tower, the tallest sky-scraper in Ho Chi Minh City, has been namedin a list of the 50 most innovative buildings ofthe last 15 years.

According to the Council of Tall Build-ings, the Chicago-based organization of archi-tects and designers, the buildings included inthe list had to challenge the ‘traditional typol-ogy of tall buildings in some way, through in-novation in form, design, façade,environmental approach, or technologies’.

In 2013, the tower was also selected byCNN as one of the world's 25 greatest sky-scrapers and icons of construction.

Phu Quoc named among top honeymoon placeswww.thanhniennews.com, 28 February

British popular travel site Rough Guideshas named Vietnam’s biggest island PhuQuoc among the world’s best honeymoondestinations.

The top-20 list describes the country’ssouthern island as one of the most appealing

honeymoon islands among abundant candi-dates in Asia.

The site suggested visitors to go beyondPhu Quoc to the ‘unspoilt’ An Thoi islands tothe south, which have ideal waters forsnorkelling.

Other honeymoon paradises listed in-clude Treasure Beach of Jamaica, Santorini ofGreece, Buenos Aires of Argentina, KwaZulu-Natal of South Africa, Venice of Italy, andBagan of Myanmar.

72-year-old Japanese photographertravels Vietnam to capture birdswww.thanhniennews.com, 3 March

Ohsaku Eiichirou, 72-year-old Japanesephotographer, spent two weeks visiting Viet-nam during the Lunar New Year holiday andadded to his portfolio nearly 400 new photosof 40 bird and 15 butterfly species in Vietnam.

He spent most of his time taking photosat Cat Tien National Park and in Ba Ria-VungTau Province.

Asked about differences between birds inJapan and Vietnam, Eiichirou pointed out asad thing that he has observed.

‘Birds in Vietnam are very afraid of hu-mans and can sneak away very fast. I think itis because many people here often keep themin cages and hunt them for food.’

Vietnam considers vehicle confiscation to curb drunk drivingThanh Nien News, 4 March

Drunk drivers in Vietnam with high bloodalcohol levels could have their vehicles takenaway permanently under a new rule beingconsidered by the government.

The rule, proposed by the National TrafficSafety Committee, states that police officerscan confiscate cars and motorbikes from driv-ers with high concentrations of blood alcohol,exceeding 80 mg per 100 ml of blood, or ofbreath alcohol, exceeding 0.4 mg per litre.

These drivers will also have their licensessuspended for two years and will have to re-take another driving test after that.

Currently, vehicles of drunk drivers canonly be impounded for a maximum of 30days. The new penalties are expected to be ap-proved this month.


EVENTS

HANOI

TRADITIONAL PERFORMANCESCheo singing performances

Cheo, a kind of popular opera/ traditional music, is shown at 8p.m. every Friday at the Kim MaTheater, 71 Kim Ma St, Ba DinhDist., Hanoi. English interpreta-tion offered.

Price: VND150,000 per per-son. Tel: (04) 3764-8079/0904549-579 (Ms Ngoan)

Ancient folk formQuan họ is a folk song form

that originated in the northernprovince of Bac Ninh in the 13thcentury. The form took on ele-ments of other genres as it spreadthroughout the country, incorpo-rating a dialogue style of singingin the 18th century, the periodwhen Vietnamese literature blos-somed. As a folk art with a highlycollective nature, Quan họ songsalternate from group to groupwith singers keeping up the con-versation by exchanging songs.There is no accompanying instru-mental music. Bac Ninh QuanHo folk music company offersQuan họ performances on re-quest; an hour costs aroundVND30 million. Performancevenues can also be requested.Contact Mr Quy Trang, head ofBac Ninh Quan Ho folk musiccompany, at mobile 0913-073-326.

Street songs of the poor and blindEvery Saturday night

Hát xẩm is a minimalist style ofVietnamese singing, traditionallyperformed by the poor and theblind and especially wanderers,usually accompanied with a sim-ple đàn nhị (two-string violin) orđàn bầu (single-string zither). Hátxẩm is a Vietnamese blues fromthe 13th century. It is making acomeback, after several decades.

Artists at the Centre for Re-search on and Development ofVietnamese Music now performxẩm at Dong Xuan Market, in theOld Quarter of Hanoi, every Sat-urday night. Free.

Ca truøCa trù, an ancient Vietnamese

musical form with a singer accom-

panied by three-string đàn đáyand other instruments, is per-formed at 87 Ma May Street, HoanKiem, Hanoi, at 8 p.m. every Tues-day, Thursday and Saturday, byartists from Ca Tru Thang LongClub, www.catruvietnam.net.Price: $10 (VND210,000). Reservation is necessary.Tel: 01 223 266 897

Ca tru Thang LongEvery Thursday night

Fans of Vietnamese ca tru, orceremonial singing, flock toQuan De Temple, 25 Hang BuomSt, Hoan Kiem Dist., Hanoi onevery Thursday night to enjoy theunique genre's sweet melodiesperformed by the Thang Long catru band. The band includes 83-year-old singer Nguyen Thi Chuc,the 88 year-old- dan day (long-necked lute-like instrument withthree silk strings and 10 frets)player Nguyen Phu De, and theirstudent, female singer Pham ThiHue. During the performance,the trio performs seven ca trusongs and extracts, include TiengDuong Tranh, which is consid-ered the oldest song of the genre.Ticket: VND210,000; available atdoor.

EXHIBITIONSArt for all seasonsTill 21 March

A painting exhibition themed‘By the window’ by artist DuongThuy Duong, is on till 21 March atL’Espace, 24 Trang Tien St, HoanKiem Dist., Hanoi. The artistdraws her emotions of four sea-sons passing by the window. Freeentrance.

Messis LunaeTill 22 March

The moon is a source of inspi-ration for husband-and-wifeartists Christiane Campioni andTobias Küster Campioni.

Their ‘Harvest-Moon’ is an ex-hibition focused on Vietnam anddisplays at Goethe-Institut Hanoitill 22 March. The moon is re-duced to a circle as the basic ele-ment and visually claimed in asquare made of lacquer on metal.These materials are used in tradi-tional Vietnamese lacquer paint-ing. The utilization of metal is as

a symbol for the Western. Circleand square are used as basic geo-metrical elements signifyingmovement and peace.

Goethe-Institut Hanoi, 56-58Nguyen Thai Hoc St, Ba DinhDist., Hanoi. Tel: (04)3734-2251

Boat journeyTill 25 March

An exhibition themed ‘Voy-age’ by Japanese artist Miya, is onat Tan My Design Café, 61 HangGai St, Hanoi, till 25 March. In allof Miya’s works, a boat is paintedas a symbol of a traveller whomakes a journey of life. A boatcan continue to travel forever andthe travel is enriched by meetingvarious people and places. Freeentrance.

Red River potteryTill 30 March

The exhibition titled ‘Con-temporary Vietnamese Pottery’ ison at Heritage Space till 30 Marchto honour the essence of Viet-namese pottery in the Red RiverDelta Region, with the participa-tion of artists Tran Quang Hai,Nguyen Hong Quang, LanHuong, Gom Hai, Vu Thang,Vuong Quan and Nguyen VanThang. The exhibition lasts till 30March.

Heritage Space, DolphinPlaza, 17 Tran Binh St, My DinhWard, Hanoi

War storiesFrom 14 April to 10 May

On the occasion of 40th an-niversary of Independence Day,L’Espace presents a photo exhibi-tion of photographers working inthe battle against America, in-cluding Doan Cong Tinh, ChuChi Thanh, Mai Nam and HuaKiem. The exhibition will lastfrom 14 April to 10 May at L’E-space, 24 Trang Tien St, HoanKiem Dist, Hanoi. Tel: (04) 3936-2164. Free entrance.

What art is up to latelyUntil 9 October, 2015

Vietnam Fine Arts Museumpresents an exhibition, ‘ModernArts’ by various artists till 9 Octo-ber, 2015. The exhibition includes28 artworks of oil painting, lac-quer painting, silk painting, paperpainting, synthetic material andsculpture. The museum hopes togive the audiences a comprehen-sive overview about the develop-ing modern art of Vietnamthrough the richness of its stylesand materials.

Vietnam Fine Arts Museum,66 Nguyen Thai Hoc St, Hanoi.Tel: (04) 3733-2131. Open: 8.30a.m. to 5 p.m. Entry fee:VND20,000

MUSICRites of Spring13 and 14 March

A Spring Gala 2015 Concertand Ballet will be performed at 8p.m. on 13 and 14 March at theHanoi Opera House with People’sArtist Pham Anh Phuong, artisticdirector; conductor Dong QuangVinh; Hanoi International Choirand artists from the Orchestra ofthe Vietnam National Opera andBallet.

Tickets: VND200,000,VND350,000, VND500,000. All


EVENTS

tickets available at Hanoi OperaHouse, 1 Trang Tien St, HoanKiem Dist., Hanoi, tel: (04) 3933-0113 or can book online at tick-etvn.com.

Quintessential German12 and 13 March

On the occasion of the visit ofGerman Foreign Minister Frank-Walther Steinmeier and the 40thanniversary of German-Viet-namese diplomatic relations, theGoethe-Institut Hanoi will hold aHip-Hop performance by Ger-man and Vietnamese dancers, in-cluding Raphael Hillebrand andS.I.N.E Crew at Labour Theatre at8 p.m. on 12 and 13 March. Artisti-cally innovative lighting designand sound technology will pro-vide an extraordinary audio-vi-sual experience.

Free tickets are available from5 March, 2 p.m. at Goethe-Insti-tut Hanoi, 56-58 Nguyen ThaiHoc St, Ba Dinh Dist., Hanoi, tel:(04)3734-2251 and Labour The-atre, 42 Trang Tien St, Hanoi.

Rising sun dancers14 and 15 March

The Japan Foundation Centrefor Cultural Exchange in Vietnampresents Japanese dance perform-ances at 8 p.m. on 14 and 15March at Youth Theatre. Theshow includes three groups;‘Moreno Funk Sixers’, ‘MemorableMoment’ and ‘90’s’, performingJazz, Hip-Hop, Break, House, andPop and Lock.

Free ticket distribution from 2p.m. on Thursday 5 March on-ward at The Japan FoundationCentre for Cultural Exchange inVietnam, 27 Quang Trung St,Hoan Kiem Dist., Hanoi, (9 a.m.to 6 p.m., closed Sunday) andYouth Theatre, 11 Ngo Thi NhamSt, Hanoi.

Accomplished pianist to performTill 28 March

At 8 p.m. on 28 March, CaoThanh Lan will play Frenchmusic with preludes by Debussyand Messiaen at L’Espace. She is abrilliant pianist who plays a rangefrom classical to contemporarymusic. She graduated from theRoyal Conservatory of Brussels

and Cologne and won numerousawards at national and interna-tional competitions in Europeand Asia.

Ticket: VND120,000 at L’E-space, 24 Trang Tien St, Hanoi.Tel: (04) 3936-2164

Concert series continues20 and 21 March

‘Subscription Concert vol.78’will be performed by conductorKah Chun Wong, piano soloistUehara Ayako and artists fromthe Vietnam National SymphonyOrchestra at 8 p.m. on 20 and 21March at Vietnam National Acad-emy of Music, 77 Hao Nam St,Hanoi.

Tickets: VND200,000,VND350,000, VND500,000

Call at 0983067996 or0913489858 for free delivery.

THEATREIt’s alive!18 March TNT Theatre presents the‘Frankenstein – The Monster andthe Myth’ at Hanoi Opera House 8p.m. 18 March. The play is a Gothiccomedy and a horror thriller thatexplores the darker themes withinthe myth. The play is directed byPaul Stebbings, who has exploredthis style of ‘serious’ Gothic com-edy in productions such as TheMurder of Sherlock Holmes, BraveNew World, A Christmas Carol,The Wave and Dr Jekyll & MrHyde, which have been hugelysuccessful, winning prizes at theEdinburgh Festival and perform-ing in over forty countries in Eu-rope and Asia. ‘Frankenstein’incorporates music and sound ef-fects by noted composer PaulFlush that weave through thedrama in the manner of a filmscore. Frankenstein is perhaps ourmost potent symbol for our fear of

a future beyond human control. Ticket prices: VND600,000.

Students and pupils enjoy a halfprice.

Hanoi Opera House, 1 TrangTien St, Hanoi. Tel: (04) 3933-0113

FESTIVALLongest-runningTill May

The Huong Pagoda festival(at Huong Son Commune, MyDuc Dist., Hanoi), is the Viet-nam’s longest-running festival. Itstarts 24 February until mid May.Every year, tens of thousands ofpilgrims and visitors come to pe-tition the gods for luck, wealthand happiness in the numerouspagodas scattered around themountainous area. A visit to thepagoda includes a boat ridethrough winding streams andhours of mountain-climbing. Themain pagoda, Thien Tru(Heaven’s Kitchen), was built in1686. The most popular destina-tion is Huong Tich cave, whichcontains a great many altars hon-ouring a variety of deities. Therewill be crowds of people andhawkers in the pagoda; beware ofscams such as over-priced drinksand demands for big tips fromthe boatwomen.

NAM DINH PROVINCE

Princess cult21 to 26 April

The annual Phu Day festivalis going to be held from 21 to 26April at Kim Thai Commune, VuBau District, Nam Dinh Province,about 100 km from Hanoi. PhuDay is the centre of the cult ofPrincess Lieu Hanh. In populartradition, the princess is hon-oured as the Holy Mother, one ofthe four immortal Vietnameseheroes. The others are Tan Vien,who guards against floods; Giong,a legendary three-year old boywho became a national hero inthe struggle against foreign in-vaders; and Chu Dong Tu, in histime a living example of hardwork, building a happy and pros-perous life despite early poverty.The main ceremonies of the PhuDay festival are the Holy Motherprocession and a display of Chi-nese characters. Other highlights

include a wrestling competition,cock-fighting, human chess andperformances of chau van. ThePhu Day area has 19 temples andpagodas over three km.

NHA TRANG

Water PuppetryAfternoon and evening everyday

Nha Trang Water PuppetryTheatre stages 16 performancesper week, which depict stories ofVietnam’s pastoral life and his-tory and re-create traditionaldances.

On the performing list are ex-cerpts from famed plays andtunes in ‘tuong’ (traditional Viet-namese opera) and ‘bai choi’ (thecentral Vietnamese region’s folkgame and art), folk songs anddances of ethnic communities liv-ing across the province, and tradi-tional music performances.

The theatre hosts three showsat 3 p.m., 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. onMonday, Wednesday, Friday andSunday and two shows at 3 p.m.and 7 p.m. on the remaining days.

Nha Trang Water PuppetryTheatre, 46 Tran Phu St, NhaTrang, Khanh Hoa Province.

HO CHI MINH CITY

EXHIBITIONS‘DONG’ extensionTill 28 March

‘The Leavers’ is an exhibitionof new works by Brooklyn-basedartist Trong Gia Nguyen. Nguyenwill exhibit a series of paintingsinformed by his ongoing filmproject, DONG, an exploration offamily history through the imper-fect lens of memory.Galerie Quynh

Level 2, 151/3 Dong Khoi St,Dist 1, Ho Chi Minh City. Tel:(08)3824-8284

Gallery hours: 10 a.m. to 7p.m., Tuesday – Saturday and byappointment

The movement of woodTill 29 June

Wood-flux – a wooden flow –seems to be a contradictoryphrase-for how can something assturdy as wood also stream so fer-vently? Such a concept indeed re-calls a Japanese genre ofwoodblock prints on silk andpaper – ‘Ukiyo-e’ – meaning ‘pic-tures of the floating world’. In-spired by the calibre of Ukiyo-ewoodblock and the textile patternof Phuong My’s Spring Summer2015 collection, artist NguyenHuu Tram Kha showcases variousfascinations of a ‘Wood-flux’ atPhuong My Flagship Store, 81 LeThanh Ton St, Dist.1, Ho ChiMinh City, till 29 June.

THEATREIt’s alive!20 and 21 March

TNT Theatre presents the

‘Frankenstein – The Monster andthe Myth’ at the Ho Chi Minh CityOpera House 11 a.m. 20 March and8 p.m. 20 and 21 March. See theHanoi section for more informa-tion. Ticket prices: VND600,000for adults (night performance) andVND500,000 for adults (day per-formance). Students and pupilsenjoy a half price.

HCMC Opera House, 7 CongTruong Lam Son, Dist.1. Tel:(08)38299976

AO!AO Show is on at Opera House at

6 p.m. on 17, 18, 26, 30, 31 Mach and8 p.m. on 14, 28 March.

A O Show is a new kind of artperformance, acknowledgedglobally as new type of circus. 60minutes of using bamboo andbasket boats, traditional music ofDon Ca Tai Tu, visual creationsand lighting, and audiences seethemselves walking on a smallwalkway of sweet and breezySouthern Vietnam, and wander-ing past the surging dunes of theSouthern Central only to findthemselves front of a lotusswamp.

Tickets range fromVND530,000 to VND1,250,000.

Opera House, 7 Lam SonSquare, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh City.Tel: (08) 3829-9976

OTHERHCMC TV11 March

CNNGo is a monthly 30-minute television show featuringglobal destinations, bringingviews from insiders on what dy-

namic cities in Asia really looklike.

The CNNGo episode featur-ing Ho Chi Minh City will air on11 March at 4.30 p.m. (Vietnamtime), with an encore telecast at12.30 p.m. on 14 March and an-other repeat at 7.30 p.m. on 15March.

CNNGo kicks off the journeyon the back of a bike with Viet-nam Vespa Adventures, which al-lows tourists to see snapshots oflocal life and tucked-away spots.

Then local rapper Suboi willintroduce viewers to her favoriteplaces that have hints of oldSaigon life, including a family-style meal at Cuc Gach Quan.

Historian Tim Doling will ex-plain the changing face of Ho ChiMinh City and show the audi-ences a hidden part of history inthe middle of the city.

Finally, CNNGo takes a quicktrip down to Con Dao Island, oneof the newest tourist destinationsin Vietnam.


EVENTS

VALUE FOR MONEY


HOTEL

Imperial Hotel8 Hung Vuong St, HueTel: (054) 3882-222www.imperial-hotel.com.vn

Imperial Hotel has a promotion till 31 De-cember. It costs VND4,725,000 ($225) per roomper night in a Deluxe River View Room, includ-ing one-way transfer from or to Phu Bai Airport,breakfast, a dinner with a bottle of wine, andtwo 60-minute aroma oil therapy or foot relax-ing therapies. An extra night is VND1,470,000per room. The prices include service charge andVAT.

Novotel Danang Premier Han River36 Bach Dang St, Hai Chau Dist., DanangTel: (0511) 3929-999www.novotel-danang-premier.com

Novotel Danang Premier Han River is of-fering ‘Relax, Restore and Revitalise Package’ atVND2,949,000++ per room per night, includ-ing a 60-minute body massage and breakfast.The promotion runs till 31 December.

RESORTS AND SPAS

Mai Chau EcolodgeNa Thia Village, Na Phon Commune, Mai ChauDist, Hoa Binh ProvinceTel: (0218) 3819-888

Mai Chau Ecolodge is offering a ‘HoneyMoon Package’ till 31 March. It cost $380(VND7,980,000) per night per room in a DeluxeRoom overlooking paddy fields. The packageincludes round-trip transfer from Hanoi to thehotel, breakfast, lunch, romantic dinner withcandle light, 2 glasses of ‘Honeymoon Cocktail’,a 45-minute relaxing massage for two. The priceincludes service charge and VAT.

Pilgrimage Village Boutique Resort & Spa130 Minh Mang Road, HueTel: (054) 3885-461www.pilgrimagevillage.com

Pilgrimage Village Boutique Resort & Spa isoffering a 10 per cent discount off for those whobook one night, a 15 per cent discount off forthose who book two nights and a 20 per centdiscount off for those who book three nights.The promotion runs till 30 April.

Grand Mercure DanangLot A1, Green Island, Hoa Cuong Bac, Hai ChauDist., DanangTel: (0511) 3797-777

Grand Mercure Danang has a 120-minutespa package in March at VND 1,190,000++, in-cluding a choice of a 60-minute body scrub ora 30-90 minute body massage and a soothing60 minute hand and foot massage.

Hoi An Beach Resort1 Cua Dai St, Hoi An, Quang Nam ProvinceTel: (0510) 3927-011

Hoi An Beach Resort runs a two night ‘Spapackage’ till 31 December, 2015.VND5,210,000++ per room for single occu-pancy, VND6,460,000++ per room for doubleoccupancy and VND9,110,000++ per room fortriple occupancy. The package includes break-fast, a spa treatment with a choice of a 30-minute body scrub or body wrap, a choice of60-minute body massage (Swedish, Asian,Western, Vietnamese, Balinese or Thai) and a30-minute mini-facial, 10 per cent discount onfood, beverage and laundry, free use of bicyclesand kayak, shuttle bus to Hoi An Ancient town,Tai chi lesson on the beach or garden.

Palm Garden Beach Resort & SpaLac Long Quan St, Cua Dai Beach, Hoi AnTel: (0510) 3927-927www.palmgardenresort.com.vn

Palm Garden Beach Resort & Spa is offeringa 38 per cent discount on Superior Garden ViewRooms and Deluxe Garden View Rooms forthose who book at least two nights. The rate be-fore discount is VND3,900,000++ per night ina Superior Garden View Room andVND4,500,000++ per night in a Deluxe GardenView Room. The rates include a choice of a

roundtrip airport transfers or a meal or a 60-minute body massage and a voucher ofVND300,000 for body massage. The promotionruns till 31 May and is not applicable on publicholidays.

Ana Mandara Villas Dalat Resort & SpaLe Lai St, Ward 5, Dalat, Lam Dong ProvinceTel: (063) 3555-888www.anamandara-resort.com

Ana Mandara Villas Dalat Resort & Spa isoffering a ‘Dalat Highland Retreat’ with theprice starting from VND2,790,000 per room pernight in a villa with breakfast, daily morningyoga class, a choice of lunch, dinner or a 60-minute spa treatment. The promotion is validtill 31 May and applies for those who book atleast two nights. The price includes tax andservice charge. Surcharge is VND630,000 perroom per night on public holiday and weekend(Friday to Sunday).

Binh An Village Resort DalatTuyen Lam Lake, Ward 4, DalatTel: (063) 3800-999 www.binhanvillage.com

Binh An Village Resort Dalat has a roompromotion for those who book at least twonights from 3 to 6 April at VND3,719,000++ perroom per night with breakfast, Easter Brunch,a set lunch or a dinner, a half-day excursion toDalat city, roundtrip airport transfers, andEaster egg hunt activity for children.

La Veranda ResortTran Hung Dao St, Ward 7, Duong Dong Beach, Phu Quoc IslandTel: (077) 3982-988

La Veranda Resort has a promotion forthose who book at least two nights till 31 Octo-ber. The price starts from VND8,170,000 perroom for two nights for two with a full-daysnorkel tour, a lunch on the boat or the beach,round-trip airport transfers and free sport ac-tivities and bicycle use. The price includes serv-ice charge and VAT.

Dalat Edensee ResortTuyen Lam Lake, Zone VII.2, Dalat, Lam Dong Province

VALUE FOR MONEY


Tel: (063) 3831-515www.dalatedensee.com

Dalat Edensee Resort is offering a ‘Dalat inLove’ package till 3 October. The cost isVND5,880,000 for two nights’ stay for two inMimosa Superior Room with daily breakfast, adinner, two vouchers for a 60-minute spa treat-ment and round-trip airport transfers. The priceincludes service charge and VAT. An extra nightis VND2,100,000 per room for two.

COOKING CLASSES

Hyatt Regency Danang Resort and SpaTruong Sa St, Hoa Hai Ward, Ngu Hanh Son Dist, DanangTel: (0511) 3981-234www.danang.regency.hyatt.com

Hyatt Regency Danang Resort & Spa organ-izes Vietnamese Cuisine Cooking Classes by theresort’s chefs. Each class requires a minimumof two attendees and the fee is VND1,700,000per person, or VND2,150,000 per person for apre-class market visit. Classes can be arrangedon any day between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m.

Hotel Equatorial Ho Chi Minh City242 Tran Binh Trong St, Dist.5, Ho Chi Minh City; Tel: (08) 3839-7777www.equatorial.com

Orientica Seafood Restaurant, at the HotelEquatorial Ho Chi Minh City, has a Vietnamesecooking class at VND940,000++ per personfrom 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Stu-dents can choose to prepare a menu with threechoices, including:

- Vietnamese crystal spring rolls or lotusstem salad with shrimp.

- Imperial deep-fried spring rolls or shrimpmousse on sugar cane.

-Stir-fried chicken with lemon grass andchili or stewed caramelized river pike in claypot.

A class requires at least two students.

FOOD PROMOTIONS

Fortuna Hotel Hanoi6B Lang Ha St, Ba Dinh Dist, HanoiTel: (04) 3831-3333www.fortuna.vn

May Man Restaurant, at the Fortuna HotelHanoi, has ‘All You Can Eat Dim Sum’, 11 a.m.to 2 p.m., Monday to Saturday, atVND298,000++ for adults and VND149,000++for children. ‘Sunday Dim Sum Brunch’, 11 a.m.to 2 p.m. at VND318,000++ for adults andVND159,000++ for children. ‘A la carte DimSum’ during lunch and dinner at VND51,000++.

Also, the restaurant serves Singapore-StyleChili Crab, including crab meat with sweet andsavoury red-tangy sauce served with deep-friedmantou bread.

Hilton Hanoi Opera Hotel1 Le Thanh Ton St, HanoiTel: (04) 3933-0500, www.hanoi.hilton.com

‘Discovering Spanish Cuisine’ at the HiltonHanoi Opera on 20 March, from 6 p.m. to 10p.m. at VND700,000++.

Hotel Nikko Hanoi84 Tran Nhan Tong St, Hai Ba Trung Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3822-3535 www.hotelnikkohanoi.com.vn

Taoli Chinese Restaurant, at the HotelNikko Hanoi, serves ‘All You Can Eat Dim SumMenu,’ with more than 45 different varieties ofdim sum at VND350,000++.

Also, the restaurant offers Australian seacucumber dishes, including braised sea cucum-ber with black mushroom and conpoy, braisedsea cucumber with minced pork and pork ten-don in clay pot, braised sea cucumber with fishmaw and sliced abalone. The price isVND1,300,000++.

Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi15 Ngo Quyen St, HanoiTel: (04) 3826-6919www.sofitel-legend.com

On 19 March, a thousand chefs on five con-tinents will prepare a French meal to celebratethe excellence, diversity and modernity ofFrench gastronomy, Gout de France.

In Vietnam, 17 chefs, from Hanoi, Ho ChiMinh, Hue, Danang and Hoi An, are selectedto participate.

At the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi, theexecutive chef Olivier Genique will prepare aFrench Cuisine Dinner at Le Beaulieu Restau-rant. The price is VND2,500,000++.

The Press ClubCorner of 59A Ly Thai To and 12 Ly Dao ThanhSt, Hoan Kiem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3934-0888www.hanoi-pressclub.com

On 19 March, the world will host feteFrench cuisine ‘Gout de France’ with the partic-ipation of about 1,000 chefs showcasing theirskills to diners across five continents. In Hanoi,the executive chef Guillaume Guertin at ThePress Club will create a French menu dinnerthat blends traditional and contemporaryflavours including pan fried goose liver samosaswith pear and fig, port wine balsamic vinegar;snail ravioli on fennel leek fondue; a spicy tunatartar served with avocado, mango, cilantrosesame seeds potato chips and mint chocolatemousse tartlet and a passion fruit sorbet. Theprice is VND1,450,000++.

Novotel Nha Trang Hotel50 Tran Phu St, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa ProvinceTel: (058) 6256-900www.novotel-nhatrang.com

In March, the Square Restaurant, at theNovotel Nha Trang Hotel, serves buffet dinnerin different theme concepts, including‘Seashore Night’ from Sunday to Wednesday,‘Beef & Burgundy’ on Thursday and ‘Nha Trang

Seafood Market’ on Friday and Saturday. Theprice is VND525,000++ per person. The restau-rant is also offering ‘Come 3, Pay 2’.

Caravelle Hotel19-23 Cong Truong Lam Son, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3823-4999www.caravellehotel.com

Café de l’Opera, at the Caravelle Hotel, isrunning ‘The Week of Wine and Cheese’, from5 p.m. to 10 p.m. from 9 to 15 March, with im-ported cheeses such as Tomme de Savoie, SaintNectaire and Rouy, accompanied by bottlesfrom France’s leading wine-growing regions.VND398,000++, including a selection of threecheeses, fresh bread and traditional condi-ments or VND850,000++, together with selec-tion of three tasting wines.

Hotel Equatorial Ho Chi Minh City242 Tran Binh Trong St, Dist.5, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3839-7777www.equatorial.com

Hotel Equatorial’s restaurants offer manyfood and beverage promotions in March.

Orientica Seafood Restaurant, 9 a.m. to2.30 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, serves ‘All youcan eat’ Dim Sum at VND338,000++. 11.30 a.m.to 2.30 p.m., Monday to Friday, the restauranthas an a la carte Dim Sum menu.

Chit Chat Restaurant, 6.30 p.m. to 10 p.m.Saturday, a variety of seafood awaits diners atVND840,000++, including a free flow of wine,beer and soft drinks.

Malt Scottish whisky tasting daily at FloLounge at VND650,000++.

Hotel Nikko Saigon235 Nguyen Van Cu St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3925-7777www.hotelnikkosaigon.com.vn

La Brasserie Restaurant, at the Hotel NikkoSaigon, serves Seafood Dinner Buffet, 6 p.m. to10.30 p.m. daily in March at VND1,100,000++,including free flow of house wine, beer, softdrinks, juices, coffee and tea.

New World Saigon Hotel76 Le Lai St, Ben Thanh Ward, Dist.1, Ho ChiMinh CityTel: (08) 3822-8888

Parkview at the New World Saigon Hotelserves Easter Buffet on 5 April, includingroasted lamb and honey glazed ham along withseafood and a selection of salads, pastas, siz-zling Asian dishes and a beautiful Easter dessertbuffet. Also the hotel has organized a spectac-ular Easter egg hunt and egg painting corner.Easter Champagne Brunch is VND1,200,000,including free flow of Taittinger champagne,house wine, draft beer, soft drinks and juices.Easter lunch or dinner is VND910,000.

Pullman Saigon Centre148 Tran Hung Dao Boulevard, Dist.1, Ho ChiMinh CityTel: (08) 3838-8686

In March, Cobalt Restaurant, at the Pull-man Saigon Centre, serves traditional Frenchcuisine 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., with two courses anda glass of wine. Guest can order either a starterwith main course or main course with dessert.VND700,000++

Sheraton Saigon Hotel & Towers88 Dong Khoi St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3827-2828

Saigon Café, at the Sheraton Saigon Hotel& Towers, has ‘Oyster and Seafood’ every Fridaynight in March, 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. The restaurantserves cooked crabs and tiger prawns on ice,prawn and broccoli in cocktail sauce, octopussalad and assorted handmade sushi with pick-led ginger. There is a dedicated oyster bar offresh French, Canadian and Halong Bay oysterswith red shallot vinaigrette, Japanese soyadressing, lime, wasabi foam or Tabasco. Thehighlight is a wide range of mouth-wateringchoices from crab bisque spiked with XO co-gnac, sautéed prawn with XO sauce, and bakedlobster topped with cheese sauce. Diners canalso order to cook live flower crabs, scampi, Lensnail in coconut sauce, prawn skewers, squidskewer, salmon and sea bass fillet and crocodile.VND1,050,000++ including free flowing housewine, coffee and tea.

Sofitel Saigon Plaza17 Le Duan St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3824-1555

Enjoy the cooking of Xavier Mathieu,Michelin star chef, at L’Olivier Restaurant, atthe Sofitel Saigon Plaza from 17 to 21 March.‘Emotion’ set menu for lunch atVND680,000++. ‘Magnifique’ set menu forlunch and dinner at VND1,650,000++. 11.30a.m. – 2 p.m. for lunch and 6 p.m. – 11 p.m. fordinner.

The Grand Ho Tram StripPhuoc Thuan, Xuyen Moc Dist., Ba Ria VungTau ProvinceTel: (064) 3788-888www.thegrandhotram.com

Coming Rio pool party at The Grand HoTram Strip from 2 p.m. till late on 21 March andenjoy Ho Chi Minh’s hottest Cuban band,swimwear contest, Caipirinha menu, BrazilianBBQ and Cuban Cigar station. VND 599,000including free flow beverage and VND1,499,000 including free flow beverage andBBQ dinner. Free transport to The Grand HoTram Strip from Ho Chi Minh City and VungTau City.

VALUE FOR MONEY


EMERGENCIESPolice: 113Fire: 114Ambulance: 115

SAPA(TELEPHONE CODE: 020)

Sapa is a former French hill stationin northwestern Vietnam, in Lao CaiProvince, near the Chinese border.A number of minority cultures including the H’mong, Dao and Taylive in villages in the countrysidearound Sapa.

HOTELS, RESORTSNote: Prices at many hotels dependon occupancy and change daily

Cat Cat View Hotel46 Fan Xi Pang St, Sapa, Lao CaiProvinceTel: (020) 3871-946www.catcathotel.comVND735,000 to VND3,780,000($35 to $180)

Cha Pa Garden Boutique Hotel & Spa23B Cau May St, Sapa, Lao Cai ProvinceTel: (020) 3872-907Email: [email protected] VND1,470,000 ($70)Chau Long Sapa Hotel

24 Dong Loi St, Sapa,Lao Cai ProvinceTel: (020) 3871-245Email: [email protected] VND2,100,000 ($100)

Holiday Sapa Hotel16 Muong Hoa, Sapa, Lao Cai ProvinceTel: (020) 3873-874Email: [email protected],000 to VND2,100,000 ($28 to $100)

Mường Thanh Sapa HotelNo 044, Ngu Chi Son, Sapa, Lao CaiProvinceTel: (020) 3887-766Email: [email protected] VND900,000 ($43)

Royal Hotel54B Cau May St, Sapa, Lao CaiProvinceTel: (020) 3771-131 Email: [email protected]

Topas EcolodgeThanh Kim Ward, Sapa,Lao Cai ProvinceTel: (04) [email protected] From VND2,300,000 ($110)

Victoria Sapa Resort and SpaXuan Vien St, Sapa, Lao Cai ProvinceTel: (020) 3871-522Email: [email protected] VND3,657,000 ($172)

RESTAURANTSBuffalo Bell Restaurant25 Cau May St, Sapa, Lao Cai ProvinceTel: (020) 3873-455Delta Restaurant33 Cau May St, Sapa,Lao Cai ProvinceTel: (020) 3871-799Fansipan Restaurant23 Cau May St, Sapa, Lao Cai ProvinceTel: (020) 3871-556

HALONG(TELEPHONE CODE: 033)

With around 1,600 islands and isletsin the Gulf of Tonkin, Halong Bay,about 170 km east of Hanoi, is wellknown for its limestone seascape.Overnight boat trips out of HalongCity are a popular way to see it.

HOSPITALSBai Chay Hospital Gieng Day Ward, HalongTel: (033) 3846-557www.benhvienbaichay.vn

Traditional Medicine Hospital Cot 8, Hong Ha Ward, Halong Tel: (033) 3838-113

Vietnam-Sweden Hospital Thanh Son Ward, Uong Bi Commune, HalongTel: (033) 3854-037www.bvubqn.tk

TRAVELHalong Tourism 1 Halong St, HalongTel: (033) 3846-272Quang Ninh Tourism Company Ha Long St, Bai Chay Ward, HalongTel: (033) 3846-350Syrena CruisesHung Thang new urban area,Bai Chay, HalongTel: (033) 3847-043Hanoi Sales Office: Syrena Tower,3th Floor, 51 Xuan Dieu St, HanoiTel: (04) 3719-7214Email: [email protected]


Asean Halong HotelHau Can St, Bai Chay Ward, HalongTel: (033) 3640-034 Email: [email protected] www.aseanhalonghotel.com From VND1,600,000 ($76)

Halong Hidden Charm HotelBlock 22D, Tuan Chau Villas, Halong Tel: (033) 3842-360infor.halonghiddencharmhotel@gmail.comwww.hiddencharmhotel.com.vn From VND350,000 ($17)

Halong Palace Hotel1, Block 20 Dong Hung Thang,Hoang Quoc Viet St, Bai Chay Ward,HalongTel: (033) 3619-819Email: [email protected] VND3,800,000 ($181)

Halong Plaza Hotel8 Ha Long St, Bai Chay Ward, Halong Tel: (033) 3845-810 Email: [email protected] www.halongplaza.com VND1,500,000 to VND3,800,000($71 to $179)

Heritage Halong Hotel 88 Ha Long St, Bai Chay Ward, HalongTel: (033) 3846-888 Email: [email protected],310,000 ($110)

Mường Thanh Halong HotelNo.7, Block 20, East of Hung Thang,Bai Chay Ward, HalongTel: (033) 3812-468/ (033) 3819-777Email: [email protected] VND1,400,000 ($67) Novotel Ha Long Bay160 Ha Long St, Bai Chay Ward, HalongTel: (033) 3848-108 Email: [email protected] www.novotelhalongbay.com From VND2,625,000 ($125)

Saigon Halong HotelHa Long St, Bai Chay Ward, Halong Tel: (033) 3845-845 [email protected] www.saigonhalonghotel.com From VND950,000 ($45)

StarCity Halong Bay Hotel

168 Halong St, Bai Chay Ward, Halong Tel: (033) 3846-058Email: [email protected] In the centre of Halong, StarCity Ha-long Bay Hotel offers 152 well-

equipped rooms, with many breath-taking views of Halong Bay

RESTAURANTSCo Ngu RestaurantHalong St, HalongTel: (033) 3511-363Jumbo Vietnam Floating Restaurant119 Le Thanh Tong St, HalongTel: (033) 3624-888Sea Food RestaurantHalong St, HalongTel: (033) 3845-822Halong Gold RestaurantHalong St, HalongTel: (033) 3845-142

BARS & CAFÉSEmeraude Café6A Le Thanh Tong St, Hon Gai, Halong Tel: (033) 3849-266 www.emeraude-cruises.comRoyal International Gaming Club and VillaBai Chay, Halong Tel: (033) 3848-777

HAI PHONG CITY(TELEPHONE CODE: 031)

HOTELS, RESORTSNote: Prices at many hotels dependon occupancy and change dailyCatba Princes Hotel

303 Nui Ngoc, Cat Ba Island, HaiPhong CityTel: (031) 3888-899 Email: [email protected] VND500,000 ($24)Catba Sunrise ResortCat Ba Island, Hai Phong CityTel: (031) 3887-360Email: [email protected] VND3,045,000 ($145)

Avani Hai Phong Harbour View 12 Tran Phu St, Ngo Quyen Dist., HaiPhongTel: (031) 3827-827 Email: [email protected] VND2,772,000 ($132)

ENTERTAINMENTDo Son Casino Zone 3, Do Son town, Hai PhongTel: (031) 3864-888

DIRECTIONS SAPA, HALONG, HAI PHONG


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C E N T R E O F H A N O I1. Ba Dinh SquareBa Dinh Square, where President Ho Chi Minh declared Vietnam’s independence in September 1945, is a complex of historic sites, including Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum, the One Pillar Pagoda, the Presidential Palace and the stilt house where the former President lived and worked. Open: 7.30 – 10.30 a.m. Tuesday to Thursday, 7.30 a.m. – 11 a.m. weekends.

2. Hoa Lo Prison‘La Maison Centrale’, the prison on Hoa Lo Street in Hanoi, was built by the French in 1896 and became the place where genera-tions of Vietnamese freedom �ghters were held. Later, captured American airmen waited out the war in this compound, which they nicknamed the ‘Hanoi Hilton’. Open: 8 – 11.30 a.m., 1.30 – 4.30 p.m. daily. Closed Monday.

3. St Joseph’s CathedralFresh missionaries built this cathedral in the late 19th century. The small but beautiful panes of stained glass were created in Paris in 1906. Also of note is the ornate altar, with its high gilded sidewalls. Open: 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Saturday, 4 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday

4. Hanoi Opera HouseDesigned by a French architect along the lines of the Paris Opera House, it is embel-lished with wonderful Gothic statuary. For many decades, Hanoi Opera House has been a centre for theatre, traditional music and dance, symphonies, traditional and classical music. This, the largest theatre in Vietnam, was completed in 1911 on the site of a large pond beside Tay Long City gate into the ancient capital of Thang Long.

5. Cot Co TowerCot Co Tower, the so-called Flag Tower, is now part of the Vietnam Military History Museum complex. The Tower was built in 1950, under the Nguyen Dynasty, with the help of French engineers. The tower has 36 �ower-shaped windows. At the top of the tower �ies the �ag of Vietnam. Open: 8 – 11.30 a.m., 1.30 – 4 p.m. daily. Closed Monday and Friday.

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Ba Trieu...................E3, E4Bac Son.........................D1Bach Dang.....................F2Bach Mai........................E4Bat Dan..........................E2Bich Cau........................C2Buoi................................A1Cat Linh..........................C2Cha Ca....................E1, E2Cua Bac.........................D1Cua Dong.......................D2

Da Tuong.......................E3Dang Tat.........................D1Dao Duy Anh.................D4Dao Duy Tu.............E1, E2Dien Bien Phu................D2Doc Ngu.........................A1Doi Can.............A1, B2, C2Duong Thanh.................E2Gam Cau........................E1Giai Phong.....................D4Giang Vo.....A3 ,B3 ,B2,C2

Hai Ba Trung.....E2, E3, F3Ham Long......................E3Han Thuyen....................F3Hang Bac.......................E2Hang Bo.........................E2Hang Bong.....................E2Hang Buom....................E2Hang Can.......................E2Hang Chuoi....................F3Hang Cot........................E1Hang Da.........................E2Hang Dao.......................E2

Hang Dau.......................E1Hang Ga.........................E2Hang Gai........................E2Hang Khay.....................E2Hang Khoai....................E1Hang Ma.........................E1Hang Quat......................E2Hang Trong....................E2Hang Chieu....................E1Hang Luoc......................E1Hao Nam........................C2Hoa Ma...........................F3

Hoang Dieu.............D1, D2Hoang Hoa Tham...................................A1, B1, C1, D1Hoang Van Thu..............D1Hoe Nhai........................E1Hung Vuong............D1, D2Huynh Thuc Khang........A3Kham Thien.............C3, D3Kim Ma..............A2, B2, C2La Thanh.................B3, C3Lang Ha..........................B3Nguyen Chi Thanh.........A3

Le Dai Hanh...................E4Le Duan............D2, D3, D4Le Hong Phong.............D2Le Lai..............................F2Le Thai To.......................E2 Le Thanh Tong...............F3Le Van Huu....................E3Lieu Giai........................A2Lo Duc......................F3, F4Lo Su..............................F2Luong Ngoc Quyen.......E2 Luong Van Can..............E2

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1. Ba Dinh SquareBa Dinh Square, where President Ho Chi Minh declared Vietnam’s independence in September 1945, is a complex of historic sites, including Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum, the One Pillar Pagoda, the Presidential Palace and the stilt house where the former President lived and worked. Open: 7.30 – 10.30 a.m. Tuesday to Thursday, 7.30 a.m. – 11 a.m. weekends.

2. Hoa Lo Prison‘La Maison Centrale’, the prison on Hoa Lo Street in Hanoi, was built by the French in 1896 and became the place where genera-tions of Vietnamese freedom �ghters were held. Later, captured American airmen waited out the war in this compound, which they nicknamed the ‘Hanoi Hilton’. Open: 8 – 11.30 a.m., 1.30 – 4.30 p.m. daily. Closed Monday.

3. St Joseph’s CathedralFresh missionaries built this cathedral in the late 19th century. The small but beautiful panes of stained glass were created in Paris in 1906. Also of note is the ornate altar, with its high gilded sidewalls. Open: 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Saturday, 4 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday

4. Hanoi Opera HouseDesigned by a French architect along the lines of the Paris Opera House, it is embel-lished with wonderful Gothic statuary. For many decades, Hanoi Opera House has been a centre for theatre, traditional music and dance, symphonies, traditional and classical music. This, the largest theatre in Vietnam, was completed in 1911 on the site of a large pond beside Tay Long City gate into the ancient capital of Thang Long.

5. Cot Co TowerCot Co Tower, the so-called Flag Tower, is now part of the Vietnam Military History Museum complex. The Tower was built in 1950, under the Nguyen Dynasty, with the help of French engineers. The tower has 36 �ower-shaped windows. At the top of the tower �ies the �ag of Vietnam. Open: 8 – 11.30 a.m., 1.30 – 4 p.m. daily. Closed Monday and Friday.

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Ly Nam De..............E1, E2Ly Quoc Su....................E2Ly Thai To.......................F2Ly Thuong Kiet........E3, F3Mai Hac De..............E3, E4Ngo Quyen.....................F3Ngo Si Lien....................D2Ngo Thi Nham................E3Ngoc Ha.........................C1Ngoc Khanh...................B2Nguyen Canh Chan......D1Nguyen Cong Hoa.........B2

Nguyen Dinh Chieu.............................................E3, E4Nguyen Du..............D3, E3Nguyen Huu Huan........ F2Nguyen Khuyen.............D2Nguyen Luong Bang.....C3Nguyen Thai Hoc....C2, D2Nguyen Thuong Hien.................................................D3Nguyen Van To..............E2Nha Chung.....................E2Nha Tho.........................E2

Nui Truc..........................B2Pham Dinh Ho................F3Pham Ngu Lao...............F3Phan Boi Chau.......D2, D3Phan Chu Trinh..............F3Phan Dinh Phung..........D1Phan Huy Chu................F3Pho Duc Chinh...............F3Pho Hue...................E3, E4Phu Doan.......................E2Phung Hung............E1, E2Quan Su..................E2, E3

Quan Thanh...................D1Quang Trung...........E2, E3Quoc Tu Giam...............D2Son Tay..........................C2Thai Phien......................E4Thanh Cong...................B3Thanh Nien....................D1Tho Nhuom.............E2, E3Thuy Khue..............................................A1, B1, C1, D1To Hien Thanh...............E4Tong Dan........................F2

Ton Duc Thang..............C3Tran Hung Dao..............................................D3, E3, F3Tran Huy Lieu................B2 Tran Khanh Du...............F3Tran Khat Chan..............F4Tran Nguyen Han..........F2Tran Nhan Tong......D3, E3Tran Nhat Duat..............E1Tran Phu........................D2Tran Quang Khai............F2Tran Qui Cap.................D2

Tran Quoc Toan......D3, E3Tran Thanh Tong............F3Tran Xuan Soan..................................................E3, E4Trang Thi........................E2Trang Tien................E2, F3Trieu Viet Vuong......E3, E4Trinh Hoai Duc...............C2Tue Tinh.........................E3Yen Phu..........................E1Yersin..............................F4Yet Kieu..........................D3

HANOI(TELEPHONE CODE: 04)

EMBASSIESAlgeria13 Phan Chu Trinh St, Hoan KiemDist., HanoiTel: (04) 3825-3865

Argentina41A Ly Thai To St, Hoan Kiem Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3831-5263

Australia8 Dao Tan St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3831-7755

Austria53 Quang Trung St, Hoan Kiem Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3943-3050BangladeshVilla D6B 5 – Khu Vuon Dao Ngo 675,Lac Long Quan St, Tay Ho Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3771-6625Belarus52 Ho Tay St, Tay Ho Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3829-0494BelgiumHanoi Tower, 49 Hai Ba Trung St,Hoan Kiem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3934-6179

BrazilT72-14 Thuy Khue St, Tay Ho Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3843-2544

BruneiVilla 8-9 No 44/8-44, 9 Van Bao St, BaDinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3726-0001

Bulgaria5 Nui Truc St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3845-2908

Cambodia71A Tran Hung Dao St, Hoan KiemDist., HanoiTel: (04) 3942-7636Canada31 Hung Vuong St, Ba Dinh Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3823-5500China46 Hoang Dieu St, Ba Dinh Dist.,Hanoi. Tel: (04) 3845-3736Cuba65 Ly Thuong Kiet St, Hoan KiemDist., HanoiTel: (04) 3942-4775

Czech Republic13 Chu Van An St, Ba Dinh Dist.,Hanoi; Tel: (04) 3845-4131Denmark19 Dien Bien Phu St, Ba Dinh Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3823-1888

Egypt63 To Ngoc Van St, Tay Ho Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3829-4999

Finland31 Hai Ba Trung St, Hoan Kiem Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3826-6788

France57 Tran Hung Dao St, Hoan KiemDist., HanoiTel: (04) 3944-5782

Germany29 Tran Phu St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3845-3836

Hungary12th floor of Deaha Building, 360Kim Ma St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3771-5714India58-60 Tran Hung Dao St, Hoan KiemDist., HanoiTel: (04) 3824-4990

Indonesia50 Ngo Quyen St, Hoan Kiem Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3825-3353Iran54 Tran Phu St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3823-2068Iraq66 Tran Hung Dao St, Hoan KiemDist., HanoiTel: (04) 3942-4141Ireland8th floor of Vincom Tower B, 191 Ba Trieu St, Ha Dong Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3974-3291Israel68 Nguyen Thai Hoc St, Ba DinhDist., HanoiTel: (04) 3843-3141Italy9 Le Phung Hieu St, Hoan Kiem Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3825-6256

Japan27 Lieu Giai St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3846-3000Laos22 Tran Binh Trong St, Hoan KiemDist., HanoiTel: (04) 3942-4576Libya298B Kim Ma St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3845-3379Malaysia43-45 Dien Bien Phu St, Ba DinhDist., HanoiTel: (04) 3734-3836MexicoCoco Villa T-11, 14 Thuy Khue St, TayHo Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3847-0948Mongolia5 Van Phuc, Kim Ma St, Ba Dinh Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3845-3009Myanmar298A Kim Ma St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3845-3369

Netherlands6th floor of Deaha Building, 360 KimMa St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3831-5650New Zealand63 Ly Thai To St, Hoan Kiem Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3824-1481

North Korea25 Cao Ba Quat St, Ba Dinh Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3845-3008Norway8th Floor, Hanoi Tower, 49 Hai BaTrung St, Hoan Kiem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3974-8900

Nigeria44/1 Van Bao St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3726-3610Palestine6 Dang Van Ngu St, Dong Da Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3852-4013Philippines27B Tran Hung Dao St, Hoan KiemDist., HanoiTel: (04) 3943-7948

Poland3 Chua Mot Cot St, Ba Dinh Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3845-2027Romania5 Le Hong Phong St, Ba Dinh Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3845-2014

Russia191 La Thanh St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: 3833-6991South Africa31 Hai Ba Trung St, Hoan Kiem Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3936-2000

South Korea4th floor of Deaha Building, 360 Kim Ma St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3831-5111

Spain15th floor of Deaha Building, 360 Kim Ma St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3771-5207

Sweden2 Nui Truc St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3726-0400Thailand63-65 Hoang Dieu St, Ba Dinh Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3823-5092Turkey14th Floor, HCO Building, 44B LyThuong Kiet St, Hoan Kiem Dist., Tel: (04) 3822-2460

United Kingdom31 Hai Ba Trung St, Hoan Kiem Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3936-0500

United States7 Lang Ha St, Dong Da Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3772-1500

MEDICAL CENTRESAcupuncture Institute49 Thai Thinh St, Dong Da Dist.,HanoiTel: (04) 3563-1069Hanoi French Hospital1 Phuong Mai St, Ba Dinh Dist.,Hanoi Tel: (04) 3577-1100International SOS Clinic1 Dang Thai May St, Tay Ho Dist.,Hanoi Tel: (04) 3934-0666

Thuy Tran Otolaryngology Clinic6 Do Quang St, Cau Giay Dist., Hanoi(6/61 Tran Duy Hung Avenue)Tel: (04) 3556-6124Mobile 098 368 0276Email: [email protected] international hospital458 Minh Khai St, Hai Ba Trung Dist,Hanoi, Tel: (04) 3974-3556

AIRLINESAir France1 Ba Trieu St, Hoan Kiem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3825-3484Qatar AirwaysHilton Hanoi Opera Building, M floor, 1 Le Thanh Tong St, HoanKiem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3933-6767www.qatarairways.comSingapore Airlines17 Ngo Quyen St, Hoan Kiem Dist.,Hanoi. Tel: (04) 3826-8888Vietnam Airlines25 Trang Thi St, Hoan Kiem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3823-0320

TRAVELAmega TravelHancorp Plaza, 72 Tran Dang NinhSt, Cau Giay Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3783-3570www.amegatours.net

Buffalo Tours10th Floor, 70-72 Ba Trieu St, HoanKiem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3828-0702www.buffalotours.comEmeraude Classic Cruises46 Le Thai To St, Hanoi Tel: (04) 3935-1888 www.emeraude-cruises.comEmail: [email protected] 3rd Floor, 66A Tran Hung Dao St,Hoan Kiem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3828-2150www.exotissimo.comEmail: [email protected]

Topas Travel52 To Ngoc Van St, HanoiTel: (04) 3715-1005


DIRECTIONS HANOI

Email: [email protected] www.topastravel.vn

HOTELSNote: Prices at many hotels dependon occupancy and change dailyBaoson International Hotel50 Nguyen Chi Thanh St, HanoiTel: (04) 3835-3536Email: [email protected] VND1,570,000 ($75)

De Syloia Hotel 17A Tran Hung Dao St, HanoiTel: (04) 3824-5346Email: [email protected] VND1,806,000 ($86)

Fortuna Hotel Hanoi6B Lang Ha St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3831-3333Email: [email protected] VND1,920,000 ($91)

Hanoi Daewoo Hotel360 Kim Ma St, Hanoi Tel: (04) 3831-5000Email: [email protected]

Hanoi Emotion Hotel26 – 28 Hang Bot St, HanoiTel: (04) 3848-9848Email: [email protected] hotel also provides Vietnamese,Japanese and International cuisine

Hilton Hanoi Opera Hotel1 Le Thanh Tong St, HanoiTel: (04) 3933-0500Email: [email protected] www.hanoi.hilton.com

Hilton Garden Inn Hanoi20 Phan Chu Trinh St, HanoiTel: (04) [email protected]

Hotel de l’Opera 29 Trang Tien St, Hoan Kiem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 6282-5555Email: [email protected]

Melia Hanoi Hotel44B Ly Thuong Kiet St, HanoiTel: (04) 3934-3343Email: [email protected]

Mövenpick Hotel Hanoi 83A Ly Thuong Kiet St, HanoiTel: (04) [email protected]/hanoiFrom VND3,622,500 ($172.50)

Hotel Nikko Hanoi84 Tran Nhan Tong St, Hanoi

Tel: (04) 3822-3535 [email protected] VND4,620,000 ($220)

Pullman Hanoi40 Cat Linh St, HanoiTel: (04) 3733-0808www.pullman-hanoi.comFrom VND2,448,600 ($115.50)

Prestige Hotel Hanoi17 Pham Dinh Ho St, HanoiTel: (04) 6299-9888Email: [email protected]

Silk Path Hotel Hanoi195-199 Hang Bong St, Hoan Kiem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3266-5555Email: [email protected] VND2,173,500 ($103.50)

Sheraton Hanoi Hotel 11 Xuan Dieu St, Hanoi Tel: (04) 3719-9000 [email protected]/hanoiFrom VND4,956,000 ($236)

Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi 15 Ngo Quyen St, HanoiTel: (04) 3826-6919 Email: [email protected] From VND6,090,000 ($290)

Sunway Hotel Hanoi 19 Pham Dinh Ho St, Hanoi Tel: (04) 3971-3888 Email:[email protected]

APARTMENTSFraser Suites Hanoi51 Xuan Dieu St, Quang An Ward,Tay Ho Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3719-8877sales.hanoi@frasershospitality.comhanoi.frasershospitality.com

Somerset Serviced ResidenceVietnam49 Hai Ba Trung St, Hoan Kiem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3934-2342www.somerset.comLuxurious apartments and propertiesfor hiring

RESTAURANTSCom Chay Nang Tam Restaurant79A Tran Hung Dao St, HanoiTel: (04) 3942-4140Green Tangerine48 Hang Be St, Hoan Kiem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3825-1286www.greentangerinehanoi.com Serving French food with a Vietnamese cuisine Hoa Vien Brauhaus1A Tang Bat Ho St,

Hai Ba Trung Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3972-5088www.hoavien.vnThe restaurant has been famous forits production of Czech beer

Le Tonkin Restaurant14 Ngo Van So St, Hoan Kiem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3943-3457www.letonkinrestaurant.vnServes Vietnamese food

BOOK STOREInfostones Bookshop41 Trang Tien St, Hoan Kiem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3826-2993Email: [email protected] of magazines and booksby hundreds of publishing housesworldwide

SHOPSCraft Link43 and 51 Van Mieu St, HanoiTel: (04) 3843-7710 Email: [email protected]

Ha Dong Silk102 Hang Gai St, HanoiTel: (04) 3928-5056Tan My Embroidery 66 Hang Gai St, HanoiEmail: [email protected] Tel: (04) 3825-1579

Viet Culture1 Trang Thi St, HanoiTel: (04) 3934-7417

Mekong Quilts13 Hang Bac St, Hoan Kiem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3926-4831www.mekong-quilts.orgTraditional embroidery and otherhandicraft cloth products

FURNITURE/ INTERIORDome Au Co9 Au Co St, HanoiTel: (04) 3718-5866Email: [email protected]

Dome Yen The10 Yen The St, HanoiTel: (04) 3843-6036

STOREAnnam Gourmet 51 Xuan Dieu St, Quang An Ward,Tay Ho Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3718-4487www.annam-gourmet.comAnnam Gourmet’s motivation is to‘Enjoy Life. Eat and Drink well.’

MUSEUMSHanoi Museum2 Pham Hung (next to Vietnam Na-tional Convention Centre), Me TriCommune, Tu Liem Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 6287-06 04Opening hour: 8 a.m. to 11.30 a.m.

and 1.30 p.m. to 5 p.m. Free entrance

Ho Chi Minh Museum19 Ngoc Ha St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3846-3752www.baotanghochiminh.vnOpen: 8 a.m. to noon (Monday andFriday), 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (other days)Entry fee: VND25,000

Imperial Citadel of Thang Long12 Nguyen Tri Phuong St/ 9 HoangDieu St, Ba Dinh Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 37345427hoangthanhthanglong@gmail.comwww.hoangthanhthanhlong.vnOpen: 8.30 a.m. to 11.30 a.m. and 2p.m. to 5 p.m. (Closed on Mondays)Entry fee: VND30,000

Vietnam National Museumof History1 Trang Tien St, Hanoi216 Tran Quang Khai St, HanoiTel: (04) 3824-1384www.baotanglichsu.vnOpen 8 a.m. to 4.30 p.m.Closedevery first Monday of monthsEntry fee VND 20,000 ($0.95) foradults and VND10,000 ($0.48) forchildren

Vietnam Fine Arts Museum 66 Nguyen Thai Hoc St, Ba Dinh Dist., Hanoi Tel: (04) 3733-2131 www.vnfineartsmuseum.org.vnOpen 8.30 a.m. to 5 p.m.Entry fee VND20,000 ($0.95)

Vietnam Military History Museum28A Dien Bien Phu St, Hanoiwww.btlsqsvn.org.vnOpen 8 a.m. to 11.30 a.m. and 1 p.m. to 4.30 p.m. Closed on Mondays Entry fee VND30,000 ($1.43)

Vietnam Museum of EthnologyNguyen Van Huyen St, Cau Giay Dist., HanoiTel: (04) 3756-2193, www.vme.org.vnOpen 8.30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed on MondaysEntry fee VND40,000 ($2)

Women’s Museum36 Ly Thuong Kiet, Hanoi Tel: (04) 3825-9936www.womenmuseum.org.vn Open 8 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. Closed on MondaysEntry fee VND30,000 ($1.43)

SPAElite Fitness & Spa51 Xuan Dieu St, Tay Ho Dist., HanoiTel: (04) [email protected]

Spa de PalaceFortuna Hotel Hanoi, 6B Lang Ha St, HanoiTel: (04) 3831-3333


DIRECTIONS HANOI

NINH BINH(TELEPHONE CODE: 030)

Emeralda Resort Ninh Binh

Van Long Reserve, Gia Van Commune,Gia Vien Dist., Ninh Binh Province Tel: (030) 3658-333 Email: [email protected] www.emeraldaresort.com

Ninh Binh Legend Hotel Tien Dong Zone, Ninh Khanh Ward,Ninh Binh City Tel: (030) 3899-880 Email: [email protected] www.ninhbinhlegendhotel.com From VND1,575,000 ($75)

NGHE AN(TELEPHONE CODE: 038)

Mường Thanh Song Lam Hotel13 Quang Trung St, Quang TrungWard, Vinh, Nghe An ProvinceTel: (038) 3737-666Email: [email protected]

QUANG BINH(TELEPHONE CODE: 052)


Bao Ninh Beach ResortHa Duong, Bao Ninh, Dong Hoi City,Quang Binh ProvinceTel: (052) 3854-866Email: [email protected] VND1,120,000 ($53)

Sun Spa ResortMy Canh, Bao Ninh Commune, DongHoi City, Quang Binh ProvinceTel: (052) 3842-999Email: [email protected] VND1,870,000 ($89)

TRAVELOxalis Adventure Tours Phong Nha Commune, Son Trach Vil-lage, Bo Trach Dist., Quang Binh ProvinceTel: (052)3677-678 www.oxalis.com.vn

HUE(TELEPHONE CODE: 054)

Hue is a city on the Perfume River inlowland central Vietnam and was thecapital of the Nguyen dynasty from1802 to 1945. Many imperial structuresremain. They were named part of

UNESCO World Heritage in 1993. Hueis also known for its particular cuisine.


Banyan Tree Lang Co HotelCu Du village, Loc Vinh Commune,Phu Loc Dist., Thua Thien HueProvince. Tel: (054) [email protected]

BW Premier Indochine Palace

105A Hung Vuong St, HueTel: (054) 3936-666Email: [email protected] VND2,940,000 ($140)The hotel is surrounded by lush greengardens that make it an outstandinglandmark in Hue and give the city thefeel of a resort. This luxurious, interna-tional standard hotel is created to ap-peal to Vietnamese and internationalvisitors to Hue.

Century Riverside Hotel Hue

49 Le Loi St, Hue Tel: (054) 3823-390Email: [email protected] www.centuryriversidehue.com

Hue Riverside Boutique Resort & Spa

588 Bui Thi Xuan St, Thuy Bieu Dist., Hue Tel: (054) 3978-484 Email: [email protected]

Imperial Hotel8 Hung Vuong St, HueTel: (054) 3882-222Email: [email protected] VND2,940,000 ($140)

Huong Giang Hotel Resort & Spa

51 Le Loi St, Hue Tel: (054) [email protected]

La Résidence Hue Hotel & Spa5 Le Loi St, Hue Tel: (054) 3837-475 Email: [email protected]

Pilgrimage Village Boutique Resort & Spa

130 Minh Mang Road, HueTel: (054) 3885-461 Email: [email protected]

Vedanā Lagoon Resort & SpaZone 1, Phu Loc Town, Phu Loc Dist., HueTel: (054) 3681-688Email: [email protected]

RESTAURANTThien Tam Vegetarian Restaurant110A Le Ngo Cat St, Thuy Xuan Ward, HueTel: (054) 3898-220 www.thientamrestaurant.com Thien Tam Vegetarian Restaurant fea-tures a Hue garden house with a simpledesign and a serene atmosphere. Therestaurant serves a variety of Hue vege-tarian food, from royal to local dishes, ata reasonable price. The menu has manychoices, with prices starting from

VND45,000 per dish. The restaurant alsoserves as an art playground for Hueartists. Guests have chance to get theirportraits drawn by the owners at a rea-sonable price. Vegetarian cookingclasses are also available. The restau-rant is about 1-2 km from Tu Duc tomb

DANANG(TELEPHONE CODE: 0511)


Grand Mercure DanangLot A1, Green Island, Hoa Cuong Bac,Hai Chau Dist., Danang Tel: (0511) 3797-777Email: [email protected] www.accorhotels.com/7821

Hyatt Regency Danang Resort & SpaHoa Hai Ward, Ngu Hanh Son Dist.,DanangTel: (0511) 3981-234Email: [email protected] VND5,225,000 ($243)

Pullman Danang Beach ResortVo Nguyen Giap St, Khue My Ward,Ngu Hanh Son Dist., DanangTel: (0511) 3958-888Email: [email protected]

Novotel Danang Premier Han River36 Bach Dang St, Hai Chau Dist.,Danang. Tel: (0511) 3929-999Email: [email protected] Beach Non Nuoc ResortDanang Vietnam, Managed by Centara

255 Huyen Tran Cong Chua St, NguHanh Son Dist., DanangTel: (0511) 3961-777

DIRECTIONS NINH BINH, NGHE AN, QUANG BINH, HUE, DANANG


Email: [email protected]/cdvVND1,785,000 to VND5,670,000($85 to $270)Ho Chi Minh sales office: 4th Floor, BenThanh TSC Building; 186-188 Le ThanhTon St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3914-7940

Vinpearl Luxury DanangTruong Sa St, Hoa Hai Ward, Ngu HanhSon Dist., DanangTel: (0 511) 3968-888Email: [email protected]

MUSEUMDanang Museum of Cham Sculpture2, 2 Thang 9 St, Danang Tel: (0511) 3572-935www.chammuseum.danang.vnOpen 7.15 a.m. to 5 p.m.Entry fee VND30,000 ($1.43)

HOI AN(TELEPHONE CODE: 0510)

A major port town from the 15th to19th centuries, Hoi An has well preserved vestiges of Vietnamese, Chi-nese and Japanese cultures. The build-ings are now often used for tailor’sshops. The old town is a UNESCOWorld Heritage Site. Hoi An is a littleover 30 km south of Danang, on thecentral coast.

HOTELS, RESORTSNote: Prices at many hotels dependon occupancy and change dailyAnantara Hoi An Resort1 Pham Hong Thai St, Hoi An, Quang Nam ProvinceTel: (0510) 3914-555Email: [email protected]

Golden Sand Resort & Spa Hoi AnThanh Nien Road, Cua Dai BeachHoi An, Quang Nam ProvinceTel: (0510) 3927-555 info@goldensandresort-spa.com.vnwww.goldensandresort-spa.com.vnVND3,759,000 to VND7,644,000

Ancient House River ResortHamlet 2, Cam Thanh Village, Hoi An,Quang Nam ProvinceTel: (0510) 3930-777Email: [email protected] VND2,310,000 ($110)

Hoi An Beach Resort1 Cua Dai St, Hoi An, Quang Nam ProvinceTel: (0510) 3927-011info@hoianbeachresort.com.vnwww.hoianbeachresort.com.vnFrom VND3,415,500 ($163)

Hoi An Riverside Resort & Spa175 Cua Dai St, Hoi An, Quang Nam ProvinceTel: (0510) 3864-800reservation@hoianriverresort.com.vnwww.hoianriverresort.comFrom VND1,650,000 ($79)

Hoi An Historic Hotel

10 Tran Hung Dao St, Hoi An, QuangNam ProvinceTel: (0510) 3861-445Email: [email protected] VND2,127,500 ($101)

Kiman Hotel & Spa

461-463 Hai Ba Trung St, Hoi An,Quang Nam ProvinceTel: (0510) 3920 430Email: [email protected]: kimanhoianhotel.comLe Belhamy Hoi An Resort & SpaHa My Beach, Hoi AnTel: (0510) 3941-888 Email: [email protected]

Sunrise Hoi An Beach ResortAu Co Road, Cua Dai Beach, Hoi An,Quang Nam ProvinceTel: (0510) 3937-777Email: [email protected]

Palm Garden Beach Resort and Spa

Lac Long Quan St, Cua Dai Beach, HoiAn, Quang Nam ProvinceTel: (0510) 3927-927Email: [email protected] VND4,485,000 ($214)

River-Beach Resort & ResidencesHoi An

5 Cua Dai St, Hoi AnTel: (0510) [email protected]

www.river-beachresort.comFrom VND1,350,000 ($65)

($179 to $364)TRAVELRose Travel Service co..ltd37 - 39 Ly Thai To St, Cam Chau Ward,Hoi An, Quang Nam ProvinceTel: (0510) 3917-567Email: [email protected]

MUSEUMHoi An Centre for Cultural HeritageManagement and Preservation10B Tran Hung Dao St, Hoi AnTel: (0510) 3862-367www.hoianheritage.netOpen daily 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.

QUY NHON(TELEPHONE CODE: 056)


AVANI Quy Nhon Resort & SpaGhenh Rang, Bai Dai Beach, Quy Nhon,Binh Dinh ProvinceTel: (056) 3840-132Email: [email protected]/quynhonFrom VND3,024,000 ($144)

Royal Hotel and Healthcare Resort Quy Nhon1 Han Mac Tu St, Quy Nhon, Binh Dinh Province Tel: (056) 374-7100Email: [email protected],155,000 to VND1,365,000($55 to $65)

MUSEUMQuang Trung MuseumBlock 1, Phu Phong town, Tay SonDist., Binh Dinh ProvinceTel: (056) 3580-320Open 7 a.m. to 11.30 a.m. and 1.30 p.m. to 5 p.m.Entry fee VND10,500 ($0.50). Free for children under six

NHA TRANG(TELEPHONE CODE: 058)

On the central coast, Nha Trang is acity originally known for beautifulbeaches but these have lately beenfound to suffer from pollution dueto modern life, development andtourism, like other popular resortareas in Vietnam. It has large num-bers of foreign tourists, island-hop-ping, scuba diving, sightseeing andlounging on the beach.


Champa Island Nha Trang Resort & Spa304 2/4 St, Vinh Phuoc, Nha Trang

Email: [email protected]: 0123 6009 777With architecture reflecting nearby PoNagar temple, Champa Island NhaTrang offers exquisite cuisine and manyentertainment services that promise amemorable stay in Nha Trang

Best Western Premier Havana Nha Trang Hotel

38 Tran Phu St, Nha Trang,Khanh Hoa ProvinceTel: (058) 3889-999Email: [email protected]

Diamond Bay Resort & SpaNguyen Tat Thanh Blvd, Phuoc Ha,Phuoc Dong Dist., Khanh Hoa ProvinceTel: (058) 3711-711Email: [email protected]

Evason Ana Mandara Nha TrangBeachside Tran Phu St, Nha Trang,Khanh Hoa Province Tel: (058) 3524-705reservations-nhatrang@evasonresorts.comwww.evason-resorts.com

Galina Hotel and Spa5 Hung Vuong St, Loc Tho Ward, Nha Trang Tel: (058) 3839-999Email: [email protected] World Hotel Nha Trang44 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai St, NhaTrang, Khanh Hoa ProvinceTel: (058) 3528-666Email: sales@greenworld-hotelnhatrang.comwww.greenworldhotelnhatrang.com

InterContinental Nha Trang Hotel32-34 Tran Phu St, Nha TrangTel: (058) 3887-777www.intercontinental.com

Michelia Hotel4 Pasteur St, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa ProvinceTel: (058) 3820-820Email: [email protected] VND2,200,000 ($105)

Mường Thanh Nha Trang Hotel6 Duong Hien Quyen St, Vinh HoaWard, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa ProvinceTel: (058) 3552-468 Email: [email protected] VND1,400,000 ($66)

Novotel Nha Trang Hotel50 Tran Phu St, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa ProvinceTel: (058) 6256-900

DIRECTIONS HOI AN, QUY NHON, NHA TRANG


Email: [email protected] VND2,100,000 ($100)

Six Senses Ninh Van BayNinh Van bay, Ninh Hoa,Khanh Hoa ProvinceTel: (058) 3524-268Email: [email protected] www.sixsenses.com/resorts/ninh-van-bay/destinationFrom VND18,837,000 ($897)

Sheraton Nha Trang Hotel & Spa26-28 Tran Phu St, Nha Trang, KhanhHoa Province. Tel: (058) 3880-000reservations.nhatrang@sheraton.comwww.sheratonnhatrang.com

Sunrise Nha Trang Beach Hotel & Spa12-14 Tran Phu St, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa Province Tel: (058) 3820-999Email: [email protected] VND2,520,000 to VND4,305,000($120 to $205)

Vinpearl Luxury Nha TrangHon Tre Island, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa ProvinceTel: (058) 3598-598Email: [email protected]

Vinpearl Resort Nha TrangHon Tre Island, Nha Trang City, Khanh Hoa Province Tel: (058) 3598-188Email: [email protected]

White Sand Doclet Resort & Spa Population group 9 Dong Cat, NinhHai Ward, Ninh Hoa Town, Khanh Hoa Province Tel: (058) 3670-670Email: [email protected]

TOURNha Trang Limousine93 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai St, Nha TrangTel: (058) 3516-612 or 09868 33555Email: [email protected]

SHOPPINGKhanh Hoa SalanganesNest Company248 Thong Nhat St, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa ProvinceTel: (058) [email protected]

MUSEUMAlexandre Yersin MuseumPasteur Institute, 10 Tran Phu St, NhaTrang, Khanh Hoa Province Tel: (058) 3822-406

PHAN THIET(TELEPHONE CODE: 062)

Sitting on the coast about 200 kmnorth of Ho Chi Minh City, Phan Thietis a beach city with many resorts and hotels.


Allezboo Beach Resort & Spa8 Nguyen Dinh Chieu St, Ham Tien,Phan Thiet, Binh Thuan ProvinceTel: (062) 3743-777Email: [email protected] VND2,100,000 ($100)

Anantara Mui Ne Resort & Spa12A Nguyen Dinh Chieu St, Ham TienWard, Phan Thiet City, Binh Thuan Province Tel: (062) 3741-888Email: [email protected]

Bamboo Village Beach Resort & Spa

38 Nguyen Dinh Chieu St, Ham TienWard, Phan Thiet City, Binh ThuanProvinceTel: (062) 3847-007

[email protected] www.bamboovillageresortvn.com From VND2,835,000 ($135)

Hoang Ngoc (Oriental Pearl) Beach Resort & Spa

152 Nguyen Dinh Chieu St, Ham TienWard, Phan Thiet City, Binh ThuanProvince . Tel: (062) 3847-858 Email: [email protected] www.hoangngoc-resort.com VND1,600,000 to VND6,090,000($75 to $287)

Full Moon VillageSuoi Nuoc Beach, Mui Ne, Phan ThietCity, Binh Thuan ProvinceTel: (062) 3836-099Email: [email protected],100,000 to VND6,300,000 ($100 to $300)

Phu Hai ResortKm8, Nguyen Dinh Chieu St, Phu HaiWard, Phan Thiet City, Binh ThuanProvinceTel: (062) 3812-799Email: [email protected]

Muine de Century BeachResort & Spa16 Huynh Thuc Khang St, Ham TienWard, Phan Thiet, Binh Thuan ProvinceTel: (062) 3743-668 [email protected] VND1,701,000 ($81)

Muine Ocean Resort & Spa10 Nguyen Dinh Chieu St, Ham Tien Ward, Phan Thiet City, Binh Thuan ProvinceTel: (062) 3741-616Email: [email protected] VND1,050,000 ($50)

Muine Bay Resort

Quarter 14, Mui Ne Ward , Phan ThietCity, Binh Thuan ProvinceTel: (062) 2220-222Email: [email protected],205,000 to VND6,195,000($105 to $295)

Park Diamond HotelNguyen Tat Thanh St, Hung LongWard, Phan Thiet City,

Binh Thuan ProvinceTel: (062) 3835-666Email: [email protected] VND990,000 ($47)

Pandanus Resort

Quarter 5, Mui Ne, Phan Thiet, BinhThuan Province. Tel: (062) 3849-849Email: [email protected] www.pandanusresort.comFrom VND1,575,000 ($75)

Saigon - Suoi Nhum ResortThuan Quy, Ham Thuan Nam Ward,Binh Thuan ProvinceTel: (062) 3683-240 [email protected] VND1,700,000 ($81)

Sandhills Beach Resort & SpaKm6, Tien Binh hamlet, Tien ThanhCommune, Phan Thiet, Binh Thuan ProvinceTel: (062) 3846-789Email: [email protected] VND1,070,000 ($51)

Saigon Mui Ne Resort56 - 97 Nguyen Dinh Chieu St, HamTien Ward, Phan Thiet City, Binh Thuan Province Tel: (062) 3741-044 Email: [email protected] VND1,908,000 ($90)

Seahorse Resort & Spa

Km 11 Nguyen Dinh Chieu St, HamTien Ward, Phan Thiet City, Binh ThuanProvinceTel: (062) 3847-507reservation@seahorseresortvn.comwww.seahorseresortvn.comFrom VND1,680,000 ($80)

Sea Links Beach HotelKm 9, Nguyen Thong St, Phu Hai Ward,Phan Thiet City, Binh Thuan ProvinceTel: (062) 2220-088 Email: [email protected] VND1,995,000 ($94)

Sea Lion Beach Resort & Spa12 Nguyen Dinh Chieu St, Ham TienWard, Phan Thiet, Binh Thuan ProvinceTel: (062) 3743-390www.sealionresort-muine.com

DIRECTIONS PHAN THIET


Sunny Beach Resort & Spa

64-66 Nguyen Dinh Chieu St, HamTien, Phan Thiet City, Binh Thuan ProvinceTel: (062) 3741-355 Email: [email protected] VND2,940,000 ($140)

The Cliff Resort & ResidencesZone 5, Phu Hai Ward, Phan Thiet City,Binh Thuan ProvinceTel: (062) 3719-111reservation@thecliffresort.com.vnwww.thecliffresort.com.vnFrom VND2,667,000 ($127)

Mui Ne Unique Resort

20B, Nguyen Dinh Chieu St, Ham TienWard, Phan Thiet, Binh Thuan ProvinceTel: (062) 3741-617Email: [email protected] VND2,898,000 ($138)

Victoria Phan Thiet Beach Resort & SpaPhu Hai Ward, Phan Thiet City, Binh Thuan Province Tel: (062) 3813-000 Email: [email protected] VND3,633,000 ($171)

Villa Aria Mui Ne

60A Nguyen Dinh Chieu St, Ham TienWard, Phan Thiet City, Binh ThuanProvince; Tel: (062) 3741-660Email: [email protected] VND2,520,000 ($120)

White Sands ResortKM8, Nguyen Thong St, Phu Hai Ward,Phan Thiet City, Binh Thuan ProvinceTel: (062) 3741-175 Email: [email protected] VND1,344,000 VND ($64)

MUSEUMCham Culture Exhibition CentreSong Mao intersection, Phan HiepCommune, Bac Binh Dist., Binh ThuanProvince; Tel: (062) 3641-456Open: 7.30 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.to 5 p.m. Monday to FridayFree entrance

DALAT(TELEPHONE CODE: 063)

Dalat, founded in 1893, has Frencharchitecture, pine forests and aperpetually cool climate. It is in thesouthern Central Highlands, about 300kilometres from Ho Chi Minh City.

HOTELSNote: Prices at many hotels dependon occupancy and change daily

Ana Mandara Villas Dalat Resort & Spa

Le Lai St, Dalat, Lam Dong ProvinceTel: (063) 3555-888Email: [email protected] www.anamandara-resort.com From VND3,150,000 ($150)

Dalat Edensee Resort Tuyen Lam Lake, Zone VII.2, Dalat, LamDong ProvinceTel: (063) 3831-515Email: [email protected] VND2,450,000 ($117)

Saigon-Dalat Hotel

180 Ba Thang Hai St, Dalat, Lam Dong ProvinceTel: (063) 3556-789Email: [email protected] ;[email protected] in the heart of Dalat, Saigon-Dalat Hotel is a four-star-standard hotel,comprised of 160 luxurious and com-fortable rooms with air-conditioningthroughout and other modern ameni-ties. Four restaurants, two bars, one ten-nis court, one indoor swimming pool,one fitness centre and one beauty salonand spa help make your getaway experi-ence complete.

HO CHI MINH CITY(TELEPHONE CODE: 08)

CONSULATESAustralia5B Ton Duc Thang St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3829-6035Belgium91 Nguyen Huu Canh St, Ward 22, BinhThanh Dist., Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3512-7968Cambodia41 Phung Khac Khoan St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3829-2751CanadaMetropolitan, 235 Dong Khoi St, Dist.1,Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3827-9899China175 Hai Ba Trung St, Dist.3, Ho Chi Minh City. Tel: (08) 3829-2457Cuba45 Phung Khac Khoan St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3829-7350France27 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai St, Dist.3, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3829-7231Germany126 Nguyen Dinh Chieu St, Dist.3, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3829-2455India55 Nguyen Dinh Chieu St, Dist.3, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3822-7853Indonesia18 Phung Khac Khoan St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3825-1888

Japan13-17 Nguyen Hue St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh City; Tel: (08) 3822-5314Kuwait24 Phung Khac Khoan St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh City, tel: (08) 3827-0555Laos93 Pasteur St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3829-7667Mexico11 Tra Khuc St, Tan Binh Dist., Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3848-6290Netherlands29 Le Duan St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3823-5932New ZealandMetropolitan, 235 Dong Khoi St, Dist.1,Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3822-6907Panama7A Le Thanh Ton St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh City. Tel: (08) 3825-0334

Russia40 Ba Huyen Thanh Quan St, Dist.3, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3930-3936

SingaporeSaigon Centre, 65 Le Loi St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3822-5173South Korea107 Nguyen Du St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3822-5757Switzerland42 Giang Van Minh St, Dist.2, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3744-6996Thailand77 Tran Quoc Thao St, Dist.3, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3932-7637United Kingdom25 Le Duan St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3825-1380, (08) 3829-8433United States4 Le Duan St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3822-9433

HOSPITALSColumbia Asia Gia Dinh International Hospital1 No Trang Long St, Binh Thanh Dist.,Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3803-0678FV Hospital6 Nguyen Luong Bang St, Dist.7, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 5411-3500Stamford Skin Centre254 Dien Bien Phu St, Dist.3, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3932-1090Email: [email protected]

AIRLINESAir France130 Dong Khoi St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3829-0981

All Nippon Airways115 Nguyen Hue St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3821-9612American Airlines69 Ba Huyen Thanh Quan St, Dist.3, Ho Chi Minh City. Tel: (08) 3933-0330

Asiana Airlines39 Le Duan St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3822-8710, (08) 3829-3038British Airways170-172 Nam Ky Khoi Nghia St, Dist.3,Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3930-2933

Cathay Pacific Airways72-74 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai St, Dist.1,Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3822-3203Emirates Airlines170-172 Nam Ky Khoi Nghia St, Dist.3,Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3930-2939

DIRECTIONS DALAT, HO CHI MINH CITY


Japan Airlines88 Dong Khoi St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh City. Tel: (08) 3821-9098Jetstar Pacific Airlines112 Hong Ha St, Tan Binh Dist., Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3955-0550

Philippine Airlines2nd Floor Saigon Royal Building 91 Pasteur St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3827-2105

Qatar Airways1-5 Le Duan St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3827-3888

Royal Brunei Airlines787 Tran Hung Dao St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3924-5100

Singapore Airlines29 Le Duan St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3823-1588

Thai Airways International29 Le Duan St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3829-2809

United AirlinesSuite 708 Sun Wah Tower, 115 Nguyen Hue St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3823-4755

Vietnam Airlines115 Nguyen Hue St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3832-0320

Vietjet Air8Bis Cong Truong Quoc Te, Dist.3, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3827-0123www.vietjetair.com

TRAVELAsiana Travel Mate113C Bui Vien St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh City. Tel: (08) 3838-6678www.atravelmate.com

Buffalo Tours81 Mac Thi Buoi, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3827-9168Email: [email protected]

www.buffalotours.com.vn Buffalo Tours operates in Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia and Laos. The Buffalo Tours portfolio caters to alltypes of tours.Exotissimo 261/26 Phan Xich Long St, Phu Nhuan Dist., Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3995-9898www.exotravel.com

Saigon Tourist45 Le Thanh Ton St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh City Tel: (08) 3827-9279www.saigon-tourist.netTrails of Indochina10/8 Phan Dinh Giot St, Tan Binh Dist.,Ho Chi Minh City; Tel: (08) 3844-1005Email: [email protected]

Transviet TravelTravel House, 170-172 Nam Ky KhoiNghia St, Dist.3, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3933-0777www.transviet.com.vn

HOTELSNote: Prices at many hotels dependon occupancy and change daily Catina Saigon Hotel109 Dong Khoi St, Ben Nghe Ward,Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3829-6296www.hotelcatina.com.vnFrom VND1,690,500 ($80.50)

Caravelle Hotel19-23 Cong Truong Lam Son St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3823-4999www.caravellehotel.com

Duxton Hotel Saigon63 Nguyen Hue Blvd, Ben Nghe Ward,Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) [email protected]

Grand Hotel Saigon8 Dong Khoi St, Ben Nghe Ward, Dist.1,Ho Chi Minh City. Tel: (08) 3823-0163Email: [email protected] Built in 1930, the Ancient Wing of GrandHotel Saigon offers a cozy and elegant at-mosphere. The Luxury Wing, opened in

November 2011, adds a modern style. 230rooms and suites, a ballroom, recreationarea, VIP Lounge, Western & Asian restau-rants, Bars & Grand Café at Roof Garden

First Hotel

18 Hoang Viet St, Ward 4, Tan BinhDist, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3844-1199 Email: [email protected]

Hotel Equatorial Ho Chi Minh City

242 Tran Binh Trong St, Dist.5, Ho ChiMinh CityTel: (08) 3839-7777Email: [email protected]: www.facebook.com/equa-torialhcmcHotel Equatorial Ho Chi Minh City is aninternational 5-star hotel, located wherethe borders of the city's four main dis-tricts intersect; hence in the heart andtrue centre of Ho Chi Minh City. Tan SonNhat International Airport can bereached conveniently within 30 minutes,while the city's major commercial andentertainment area is only a mere 8-minute drive.

Hotel Nikko Saigon235 Nguyen Van Cu St, Dist.1, Ho ChiMinh City, tel: (08) 3925-7777reservation@hotelnikkosaigon.com.vnwww.hotelnikkosaigon.com.vnFrom VND4,830,000 ($230)

InterContinental Asiana Saigon Corner Hai Ba TrungSt. & Le Duan Blvd, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3520-9999Email: [email protected]/Saigon

Kelly Hotel42-44 Thu Khoa Huan St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh City. Tel: (08) 3823-3364Email: [email protected] www.kellyhotel.com.vnFrom VND750,000 ($36)An elegant and cosy hotel with goodservice. Within walking distance toBen Thanh market, IndependencePalace and several museums. Vietnamese food is served at reason-able prices.

Liberty Central Hotels in Ho Chi Minh City17 Ton Duc Thang St, Dist.1

Tel: (08) 3827-1717177-179 Le Thanh Ton St, Dist.1Tel: (08) 3823-9269Email: [email protected]

Mövenpick Hotel Saigon

253 Nguyen Van Troi St, Phu NhuanDist., Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3844-9222Email: [email protected] VND2,100,000 ($100)Lotte Legend Hotel Saigon2A-4A Ton Duc Thang St, Ben NgheWard, Dist 1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3823-3333www.lottehotel.com

New World Saigon Hotel76 Le Lai St, Ben Thanh Ward, Dist.1,Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3822-8888Email: [email protected]

New Epoch Hotel120 Cach Mang Thang 8 St, Dist.3, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3932-6169Email: [email protected] VND1,155,000 ($55)

Northern Hotel Saigon

11A Thi Sach St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3825-1751Email: [email protected] VND1,505,000 ($71)Three-star boutique hotel, 99 rooms inSuperior, Deluxe and Suite categories, ashort walk from major entertainmentand shopping venues.

Novotel Saigon Centre167 Hai Ba Trung St, Dist.3, Ho Chi Minh City. Tel: (08) 3822-4866Email: [email protected]

Palace Hotel Saigon56-66 Nguyen Hue Blvd, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3829-2860Email: [email protected]

Park Hyatt Saigon2 Lam Son Square, District 1,

DIRECTIONS HO CHI MINH CITY


Ho Chi Minh City Tel: (08) 3824-1234Email: [email protected] www.saigon.park.hyatt.comFrom VND 7,887,850 ($376)

PARKROYAL Saigon309B – 311 Nguyen Van Troi St,TanBinh Dist., Ho Chi Minh City Tel: (08) 3842-1111enquiry.prsgn@parkroyalhotels.comwww.parkroyalhotels.com

Ramana Hotel Saigon323 Le Van Sy St, Dist.3,Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3843-9999 Email: [email protected] www.ramanasaigon.comFrom VND1,690,500 ($80.5)

Renaissance Riverside Hotel Saigon8-15 Ton Duc Thang St, Ben NgheWard, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3822-0033www.renaissance-saigon.com

Royal Hotel Saigon133 Nguyen Hue St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3822-5915www.royalhotelsaigon.com From VND1,092,000 ($52)

Rex Hotel141 Nguyen Hue St, Ben Nghe Ward,Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3829-2185Email: [email protected] VND4,620,000 ($220)

Sheraton Saigon Hotel & Towers88 Dong Khoi St, Ben Nghe Ward,Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3827-2828Email: [email protected]

Sofitel Saigon Plaza

17 Le Duan St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3824-1555Email: [email protected] VND3,864,000 ($262)

Silver Creek City Resort112 An Phu Dong 11, Dist.12, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3719-9533Email: [email protected] VND1,050,000 ($50)

Sonnet Saigon Hotel

14 Truong Dinh St., Ward 6, Dist.3, HoChi Minh CityTel: (08) 3930-1999 [email protected] VND925,000

Windsor Plaza Hotel

18 An Duong Vuong, Dist.5, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) [email protected]

RESTAURANTSBeef No.1 Restaurant1 Hoang Viet St, Ward 4, Tan Binh Dist.,Ho Chi Minh CityTel: 0935891818/ 0919898253 Chit Chat RestaurantHotel Equatorial Ho Chi Minh City, 242 Tran Binh Trong St, Dist.5, Ho Chi Minh City

Tel: (08) 3839-7777Email: [email protected] daily menus for lunch and dinnerbuffets, all served in a relaxing atmos-phere. Eight live cooking stations withover 60 varieties of mouth-watering do-mestic and international dishes. A meet-ing place to enjoy delicious house-madepastries and cakes and a cup of coffeefrom selected premium blends.

Kim Lam Restaurant

23 Dong Khoi St, Ben Nghe Ward,Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 6299-0879Email: [email protected] restaurant serves Vietnamese foodfrom the North, Centre and South withemphasis on artistic garnish. It has threefloors and can hold one hundred andtwenty people. The restaurant is a treas-ure trove of Vietnamese culture with artobjects serving as the decor

Kobe Teppanyaki Restaurant13A Tu Xuong St, Ward 7, Dist 3, Ho Chi MInh CityTel: (08) 3932-0187

Lemongrass Restaurant4 Nguyen Thiep St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3822-0496www.bongsencorporation.com

Mam Son Restaurant35 Ton That Thiep St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3915-3653Vietnamese food

Orientica RestaurantHotel Equatorial Ho Chi Minh City, 242 Tran Binh Trong St, Dist.5, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3839-7777Email: [email protected] Teppanyaki restaurant with an open-preparation counter, guests will be ableto view spectacular food preparation be-fore their very eyes.

Vatel Saigon Bistronomique-Lounge120 Bis Suong Nguyet Anh St, BenThanh Ward, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 5404-2220www.vatelsaigon.com

BARS & CAFÉSElle Cafe45 Ngo Duc Ke St, Bitexco FinancialTower, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 6291-8769

Caffe Molinari5 Le Duan St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3910-6903Email: [email protected]

Sax N’ Art Jazz Club28 Le Loi St, Dist 1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3822-8472www.saxnart.com

Thao Nguyen CaféFloor 7 and Rooftopof Restaurant Ngon 138138 Nam Ky Khoi Nghia St, Ben Nghe Ward, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3827-9666Open from 7 a.m. until 10.30 p.m.

SHOPSDong Duong123A Bui Vien St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: 0943925348

Handed by crafts from Vietnam47 Dong Khoi St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: 0908 447 282

IPA Nima85 Pasteur St, Ben Nghe Ward, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh City Tel: (08) 3824-2701IPA Nima is well-known for its bags.

Lu's Handmade240 Ly Tu Trong St, Ben Thanh Ward, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityFacebook: Lu's Handmade

Thegioidecor.vn123 Bis 2 Tran Quoc Thao St, Ward 7,Dist.3, Ho Chi Minh City Tel: 0123.236.1111 Email: [email protected]

Tropic Shop89 Dong Khoi St, Ben Nghe Ward,Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3822-3714www.ofcvn.com/tropic

SPAVspa & Skincare

15B/25 Le Thanh Ton St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3827-9484 Email: [email protected]

DIRECTIONS HO CHI MINH CITY


A

1

2

3

4

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C E N T R E O F H O C H I M I N H C I T Y1. Independence PalaceThe original was built in 1865 called Norodom Palace and the Palace of the Indochina Governor General. After bombs destroyed it in 1963, a new palace was built called Doc lap (Independence ) Palace and after 1975, it was renamed Thong Nhat Conference Hall. It is now open to visitors to see some fascinating insights, such as a war room and communication centre in the basement, Centre Hall, and rooms where the President’s family stayed. Ticket: VND30,000

2. Notre Dame CathedralBuilt in 1877, and the Cathedral opened to the public in 1880. The bricks used to build this marvellous structure were shipped from Marseilles. The cost of construction was a whopping 2.5 million Francs. In front of the cathedral is a statue of the Virgin Mary. The cathedral has six great bells, each weighing 26 kg, located in the two bell-towers and examples of stained glass designed in the Gothic style

3. Ben Thanh MarketThe original market was located on the bank of the Ben Nghe River by the old Gia Dinh Fort. In 1859, when the French invaded Saigon and overtook Gia Dinh Fort, Ben Thanh Market was destroyed. It was rebuilt shortly after and remained standing until it was moved to its present location in 1899. Now, Ben Thanh market is a trade centre and a favourite tourist destination, o�ering a wide range of Vietnamese handicraft, fresh fruits and local specialities.

4. Vietnam History MuseumBuilt in 1927, this museum displays remains and relics in order to depict periods of the country’s development since the country’s foundation. 25,000 precious antiques are on display, including Buddhist statues of South East Asia, pottery of Vietnam and Asian countries, mummi�ed bodies. Ticket: VND15,000

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3 Thang 2..........A2, A3, B2Alexandre De Rhodes................................................E2An Duong Vuong....A4, B4Ba Le Chan....................D1Ba Huyen Thanh Quan..............................................C2Ban Co...........................B3Ben Chuong Duong............................................D4, E4Ben Van Don...........D4, E4

Bui Thi Xuan..................C3Bui Vien...................C4, D4Cach Mang Thang Tam...........A1, B1, B2, C2, C3, D3Calmette.........................E4Cao Thang.....................B3Chu Manh Trinh.............F2Co Bac.....................C4, D4Co Giang............. ...C4, D4Cong Quynh............C3, C4De Tham........................D4

Dien Bien Phu.....................A3, B2, C2, D1, D2, E1, F1Dinh Tien Hoang............E1Do Quang Dau...............C4Do Thanh.......................B3Doan Cong Buu.............C1Doan Nhu Hai..........E4, F4Dong Du.........................F3Dong Khoi................E3, F3Hai Ba Trung..................................................D1, E2, F3Hai Trieu.........................F4

Ham Nghi.................E4, F4Han Thuyen....................E2Ho Hao Hon...................C4Ho Tung Mau...........E3, E4Ho Xuan Huong.............C2Hoa Hung.......................A2Hung Vuong...................A4Huyen Tran Cong Chua.............................................D3Huynh Thuc Khang........E3Huynh Tinh Cua.............D1Ky Con.....................D4, E4

Ky Dong...................B2, C1Le Duan...................E2, F2Le Hong Phong.............................................A2, A3, A4Le Lai.......................C3, D3Le Loi..............................E3Le Quy Don....................D2Le Thanh Ton.................................................D3, E3, F2Le Thi Hong Gam................................................D4, E4Le Thi Rieng............C3, D3

Le Van Sy.......................B1Luong Huu Khanh.........C3Ly Chinh Thang.......C1, C2Ly Thai To......................A3Ly Tu Trong....................................................D3, E3, F2Ly Van Phuc...................E1Mac Dinh Chi...........E1, E2Mac Thi Buoi..................F3Mai Thi Luu..............E1, F1Nam Ky Khoi Nghia...............................C1, D1, D2, D3

S T R E E T G U I D E

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1

2

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C E N T R E O F H O C H I M I N H C I T Y

4

12

3

1. Independence PalaceThe original was built in 1865 called Norodom Palace and the Palace of the Indochina Governor General. After bombs destroyed it in 1963, a new palace was built called Doc lap (Independence ) Palace and after 1975, it was renamed Thong Nhat Conference Hall. It is now open to visitors to see some fascinating insights, such as a war room and communication centre in the basement, Centre Hall, and rooms where the President’s family stayed. Ticket: VND30,000

2. Notre Dame CathedralBuilt in 1877, and the Cathedral opened to the public in 1880. The bricks used to build this marvellous structure were shipped from Marseilles. The cost of construction was a whopping 2.5 million Francs. In front of the cathedral is a statue of the Virgin Mary. The cathedral has six great bells, each weighing 26 kg, located in the two bell-towers and examples of stained glass designed in the Gothic style

3. Ben Thanh MarketThe original market was located on the bank of the Ben Nghe River by the old Gia Dinh Fort. In 1859, when the French invaded Saigon and overtook Gia Dinh Fort, Ben Thanh Market was destroyed. It was rebuilt shortly after and remained standing until it was moved to its present location in 1899. Now, Ben Thanh market is a trade centre and a favourite tourist destination, o�ering a wide range of Vietnamese handicraft, fresh fruits and local specialities.

4. Vietnam History MuseumBuilt in 1927, this museum displays remains and relics in order to depict periods of the country’s development since the country’s foundation. 25,000 precious antiques are on display, including Buddhist statues of South East Asia, pottery of Vietnam and Asian countries, mummi�ed bodies. Ticket: VND15,000

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Ngo Duc Ke....................F3Ngo Thoi Nhiem ....C2, D2Ngo Van Nam.................F2Nguyen Binh Khiem...................................................F1, F2Nguyen Cau...................D1Nguyen Cong Tru................................................D4, E4Nguyen Dinh Chieu..................B3, C2, C3, D2, E1, F1Nguyen Du..............D3, E3Nguyen Hue.............E3, F3

Nguyen Khac Nhu...............................................C4, D4Nam Quoc Cang.....C3, C4Nguyen Phi Khanh.........E1Nguyen Sieu...................F3Nguyen Son Tra..................................................B3, C3Nguyen Tat Thanh..........F4Nguyen Thai Binh................................................D4, E4Nguyen Thai Hoc....D3, D4Nguyen Thanh Y............E1

Nguyen Thi Dieu............C2Nguyen Thi Minh Khai.........................................B3, C3Nguyen Thien Thuat............................................A3, B3Nguyen Thong........B2, C2Nguyen Thuong Hien.........................................B2, C3Nguyen Trai.............B4, C4Nguyen Trung Ngan......F2Nguyen Trung Truc........E3Nguyen Truong To.........E4

Nguyen Van Cu..............B4Nguyen Van Thu......E1, F1Pasteur...............................................D1, D2, E2, E3,E4Pham Ngoc Thach.........D1Pham Ngu Lao........C4, D4Pham Viet Chanh...........B3Phan Ke Binh..........E1, E2Pho Duc Chinh...............E4Phung Khac Khoan.......E2Suong Nguyet Anh........C3Thach Thi Thanh.....D1, E1

Thai Van Lung................F3Thi Sach.........................F3Thu Khoa Huan.......D3, E3To Hien Thanh................A1Ton That Dam..........E3, E4Ton Duc Thang..............C3Tran Binh Trong......A3, A4Tran Cao Van.................E2Tran Dinh Xu...........B4, C4Tran Hung Dao.......C4, D4Tran Minh Quyen...........A3Tran Nhan Tong.......A3, A4

Tran Phu.........................A4Tran Quang Dieu...........B1Tran Quang Khai.....D1, E1Tran Quoc Thao......C1, D2Tran Quoc Toan......C1, D1Truong Dinh............C1, C2Tu Xuong.......................C2Vinh Vien........................A3Vo Thi Sau........C2, D1, E1Vo Van Tan..............C3, B3Vuon Chuoi..............B2, B3Yersin..............................D4

DIRECTIONS VUNG TAU, LONG HAI, CON DAO, CAN THO, CHAU DOC


COOKING CLASSESMint Culinary School778/45 Nguyen Kiem St, Phu NhuanDist., Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3844-5500Email: [email protected] Cooking Class74/7 Hai Ba Trung St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3825-8485www.saigoncookingclass.com

GALLERIESArtists Long & Ngoc GalleryGrand Hotel (at the lobby), 8 DongKhoi, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTeL: (08) 2246-6839Mobile: 0908 229 708Email: [email protected]

Apricot Gallery50 Mac Thi Buoi St, Ben Nghe Ward,Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3822-7962

Cactus Contemporary Art17/12 Nguen Huy Tuong St, Ward 6,Binh Thanh Dist., Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) [email protected] www.cactusartgallery.com

Craig Thomas Gallery27i Tran Nhat Duat St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh City Mobile: 0903 888 431Email: [email protected]: 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. Closed Mondays and Sundays

Galerie QuynhLv 151/2 Dong Khoi St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh City Tel: (08) 3824-8284www.galeriequynh.com

Sàn Art48/7 Me Linh St, Ward 19, Binh Thanh Dist., Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 6294-7059www.san-art.orgOpening: 10.30 a.m. to 6.30 p.m. every.Closed on Sunday and Monday

Tu Do Gallery53 Ho Tung Mau St, Ben Nghe Ward,Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh City Tel: (08) 3821-0966 www.tudogallery.comOpening: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. everyday

MUSEUMSFine Arts Museum ofHo Chi Minh City97A Pho Duc Chinh St, Nguyen ThaiBinh Ward, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3829-4441www.baotangmythuattphcm.comOpen 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed Mondays.

Ho Chi Minh City Museum65 Ly Tu Trong St, Ben Nghe Ward,Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3829-9741

www.hcmc-museum.edu.vnOpen daily 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Independence Palace135 Nam Ky Khoi Nghia St, Ben ThanhWard, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3822-3652www.dinhdoclap.gov.vnOpen daily, 7.30 a.m. to 11.30 a.m., 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

War Remnants Museum28 Vo Van Tan St, Ward 6, Dist.3, Ho Chi Minh City, Tel: (08) 3930-5587Email: [email protected] daily 7.30 a.m. to midday and1.30 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Southern Women Museum202 Vo Thi Sau St, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh CityTel: (08) 3932-7130

A popular beach resort town for residents of Ho Chi Minh City, VungTau is about 128 km southeast ofHCMC. It can be reached either byroad or by a 90-minute hydrofoil boatfrom HCMC. Sitting on a peninsulathat sticks out into the East Sea, VungTau does not have the most beautiful,or cleanest, beaches in Vietnam butcan act as a quick getaway from thebuzz of the city.


Mường Thanh Vung Tau Hotel

No 09, Thong Nhat St, Ward 1, Vung Tau Tel: (064) 3835-567Email: [email protected] www.vungtau.muongthanh.vnFrom VND1,890,000 ($90)

Grand Hotel Vung Tau2 Nguyen Du St, Ward.1, Vung TauTel: (064) 3856-888 Email: [email protected] VND2,058,000 ($98)

Petrosetco Hotel12 Truong Cong Dinh St, Ward 2,Vung TauTel: (064) 3624-748Email: [email protected] VND1,085,700 ($52)

Petro House Hotel63 Tran Hung Dao St, Ward 1, Vung Tau Tel: (064) 3852-014

Email: [email protected] VND1,260,000 ($60)

Palace Hotel

1 Nguyen Trai St, Ward 1, Vung Tau Tel: (064) 3856-411 Email: [email protected] VND2,062,000 ($97)

Romeliess Hotel31 - 33 Thuy Van St, Vung TauTel: (064) 3613-366Email: [email protected]

The Imperial Hotel & ResidencesVung Tau 159 - 163 Thuy Van St, Vung TauTel: (064) 3628-888Email: [email protected]

MUSEUMWhite Palace6 Tran Phu St, Ward.1, Vung TauTel: (064) 3852-605Open daily 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

LONG HAILong Hai is a beach town, 30km northeast of Vung Tau and 124 kmsoutheast of HCMC.The Grand Ho Tram StripPhuoc Thuan, Xuyen Moc, Ba Ria-VungTau Province. Tel: (064) 3788-888Email: [email protected]

CON DAO Six Senses Con DaoDat Doc Beach, Con Dao Dist., Ba Ria - Vung Tau Province Tel : (064) [email protected]/resorts/con-dao/destinationFrom VND14,490,000 ($690)

CAN THO(TELEPHONE CODE: 0710)

Can Tho is the largest city in theMekong Delta, about 170 km south-west of Ho Chi Minh City, and acts asthe area’s economic, transportationand cultural centre. Sitting on theMekong River, Can Tho is popular forits nearby floating markets, canals andrivers that can be explored by boat.

HOTELS, RESORTSNote: Prices at many hotels dependon occupancy and change daily Golf Can Tho Hotel2 Hai Ba Trung St, Tan An Ward,

Ninh Kieu Dist., Can Tho Tel: (0710) [email protected]

Victoria Can Tho ResortCai Khe Ward, Ninh Kieu Dist., Can Tho Tel: (0710) 3810-111Email: [email protected] VND3,700,000 ($175)

MUSEUMCan Tho Museum1 Hoa Binh St, Tan An Ward, Can ThoTel: (0710) 3820-955Open: Tuesday, Wednesday and Thurs-day (8 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. to 5p.m.); Saturday and Sunday (8 a.m. to11 a.m. and 6.30 p.m. to 9 p.m.). Closedon Friday. Free admission

CHAU DOC(TELEPHONE CODE: 076)

HOTELSNote: Prices at many hotels dependon occupancy and change daily

Victoria Chau Doc Hotel

1 Le Loi St, Chau Doc Town, An Giang ProvinceTel: (076) 3865-010resa.chaudoc@victoriahotels.asiawww.victoriahotels.asiaFrom VND3,169,000 ($149)

Victoria Nui Sam LodgeVinh Dong 1, Nui Sam, Chau Doc, AnGiang ProvinceTel: (076) 3575-888 [email protected]

MUSEUMAn Giang Museum11 Ton Duc Thang St, My Binh Ward,Long Xuyen City, An Giang ProvinceTel: (076) 3956-248Open hour 7a.m. to 11a.m. and 1.30p.m. to 5 p.m. Closed on MondayEntrance fee: VND42,000 ($2)

PHU QUOC(TELEPHONE CODE: 077)

Phu Quoc Island, off the southerntip of Vietnam in the Gulf of Thai-land, has some of the most beauti-ful beaches in the country.White-sand beaches, scuba divingaround coral reefs or exploring theprotected jungle. Accessible by ei-ther the Rach Gia hydrofoil boat ora 50-minute flight from Ho ChiMinh City. Modest family-owned

DIRECTIONS PHU QUOC, OVERSEAS


bungalows on the beach to five-star resorts.

HOTELS, RESORTS

Note: Prices at many hotels dependon occupancy and change daily

Eden Resort Phu Quoc

Cua Lap Hamlet, Duong To Ward, PhuQuoc District, Kien Giang ProvinceTel: (077) [email protected]

Chen Sea Resort & Spa Phu Quoc,Centara Boutique CollectionBai Xep, Ong Lang, Cua Duong, Phu Quoc Island Tel: (077) 3995-895 Email: [email protected] www.centarahotelsresorts.comFrom VND3,381,000 ($161)

La Veranda Resort

Tran Hung Dao St, Ward 7, DuongDong Town Phu Quoc Island Tel: (077) [email protected],082,000 to VND8,694,000($242 to $414)

Sai Gon Phu Quoc Resort1 Tran Hung Dao St, Phu Quoc Island Tel: (077) 3846-999 Email: [email protected] VND2,499,000 to VND4,011,000($119 to $191)

CANADA(Telephone code: 1)

Xe Lua 254 Spadina Ave, Tonronto,Ontario Canada M5T2C2Tel: (1-416) 703-8330Xe Lua has been open since 1996 andserves phở for $6 a bowlOpen: 11.30 a.m. to 12 p.m

Chau Kitchen and Bar1500 Robson St. Vancouver, British ColumbiaTel: (1-604) 682-8020www.chaukitchenandbar.comServes Vietnamese dishes with pricesstarting at $7 per dish.

FRANCE(Telephone code: 33)

CLEMONT-FERRANDKim Anh6 Bis r Elie GintracTel: (33-4) 7391-9364Serves traditional Vietnamese food,from €12.80 per dishOpen 11.30 a.m. to 3 p.m. (closed on Sundays).

GRENOBLEKim Ngan22 r Nicolas ChrierTel: (33-4) 7649-0847Serves Vietnamese food with pricesstarting at €8 per dish

UNITED STATES OFAMERICA

(Telephone code: 1)CALIFORNIA-CAEmerald RestaurantPacific Gateway Plaza3709 Convoy Street, Ste 101, San Diego, CA 92111Tel: (1) 858-565-6888Serves Vietnamese food

Hung Ky Mi Gia5237 El Cajon Blvd, San Diego,CA 92115; Tel: (1) 619-229-2188Serves noodle varieties with prices start-ing at $5 per dishOpen 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.International Restaurant 14444 – A University Ave, San Diego, CA 92115Tel: (1) 619-281-9999

Little Saigon7 Linden Ave (Railroad)South San Francisco, CA 94080Tel: (1) 650-589-1398

New York-NYSaigon Grill620 Amsterdam Ave, New York,NY 10024Tel: (1) 212-875-9072Serves over 100 Vietnamese dishes in-cluding vegetarian optionsOpen 11 a.m. to 12 a.m.

Mai Lan Vietnamese505 N State St Syracuse, NY 13203Tel: (1) 315-471-6740www.mailanrestaurant.comL’Annam121 University Pl New York,NY 10022Tel: (1) 212-420-1414

VIRGINIA-VAMinh’s Vietnamese2500 Wilson Blvd Arlington,VA 22201Tel: (1) 703-525-2828Prices start at $15 per dishOpen 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. (closed on Mondays)

WASHINGTON-WCHo Bac1314 S Jackson St Seattle, WA 98144Tel: (1) 206-860-8164

Kieu Nga LemongrassRestaurant514 12th Ave Seattle, WA 98122Tel: (1) 206-860-8164Moonlight Café1919 S Jackson St Seattle, WA 98144Tel: (1) 206-322-3378Massachusetts-MA Saigon Hut305-307 Meridian St. Boston, ]MA 02128; Tel: (1) 617-567-1944

Xinh Xinh7 Beach St (Washington St.) Boston,MA 02111Tel: (1) 617-422-0501

UNITED KINGDOM(Telephone code: 44)

Little Saigon Restaurant6 Bigg Market, Newcastle upon Tyne, EnglandTel: 01912330766Vietnamese dishes

AUSTRALIA(Telephone code: 61)

La Mint 62–64 Riley St, East Sydney NSW 2010Tel: (61) 293-311-818Email: [email protected] Open: Wednesday to Friday, noon to2:30 p.m., Monday to Saturday, 6 p.m. to10.30 p.m. French and Vietnamese dishes

INDONESIA(Telephone code: 62)

Pho 24Pondok Indah, Plaza I, Jln. Taman Duta1Blok UA 35 Jakarta SelatanTel: (62) 0217-505-909JIn. Wolter Mongonsidi No. 71, Ke-bayyoran Baru, Jakarta SelatanTel: (62) 0217-278-8411Pacific Place Mall, 5th Floor, SCBD, JIn.Jendral Sudirman Kav. 52-53, Jakarta 12190Tel: (62) 0215-140-0531


Clockwise from top left:In Moc Chau, Son La Province; At the Temple of Literature in Hanoi;Making rice paper; Releasing fish for blessing; A scarecrow for pro-tection fields, in Hoi An

Photo: Dzung Nguyen

Photo: Vu Duc Hai

Photo: Nguyen Van Dong

Photo: Nguyen Dang Yen Trinh

Photo: Ngo Duc Can

Vietnam heritage n 46 march april 2015

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Transcript of Vietnam heritage n 46 march april 2015