hue map

this is a hue map.!!!!hot
check
www.imolahue.org/aboutus/images/Hue_Map_mod1.jpg

ethic in sapa

The population of the Lào Cai province is a mosaic of ethnic groups. An incredible variety of peoples, some of them unique to Vietnam, are found on a relatively small area.

In fact, visitors can meet 24 ethnic groups, each with its own language, culture and traditions. This cultural wealth is explained by the diversity of landscapes and of land available for farming. History also offers clues as to why the highlands in the Lào Cai province served as a refuge for certain ethnic groups during political unrest like the Taiping rebellion in 19th-century China.

The seven most numerous ethnic groups in the Lào Cai province account for over 90% of the whole population. The following groups are found: the Kinh (the true Vietnamese) 35%, the Hmong 22%, the Tay 14%, the Dao (Mien) 13%, the Thai 9%, the Nung 4.5% and the Giay 4.3%. The other ethnic groups: the Phula, Hani, Latis, Tu Di, Pin Tao, Tu Lao, Pa Di, Sapho, Lolo and the Xa Mang are sometimes represented only by a few villages and a few hundred individuals.

History and social life

The Hmong

The Hmong, known for centuries in China by the name of Miao, used to be called the Méo in Southeast Asia. Numbering about three million, they are scattered over a vast territory stretching from south-west China (2 million) to north Vietnam (600,000), Laos (about 250,000), Thailand (150,000) and Myanmar (formerly Burma) (about 30,000).

The main subgroups present in Vietnam are the White Hmong, the Hmong Leng, Hmong Pua, Hmong Shi or Sheu and the black Hmong. In Sa Pa, the Hmong Leng are the most numerous, some Hmong Sheu and Hmong Pe women – with their colourful skirts and double-breasted tops – come from the Muong Khuong district.

Originally, the Chinese hmong populations used to live in the wide plains south of the Yangtse river. As of the 16th century, they started to migrate to the south-east under the demographic, territorial and political pressure of the Chinese. During the first half of the 19th century, the Hmong left the Chinese territory and settled in neighbouring countries. At the time, the great Taiping rebellion (1850-1872) was disturbing all southern China (Guizhou, Yunnan and Sichuan provinces) causing long periods of famine that pushed numerous ethnic groups to go south. The Hmong entered the Indo-Chinese peninsula through North Vietnam, their presence near Lai Chau was reported in 1848. These successive waves of migration were probably facilitated by the hmong tradition of shifting cultivation and their close contacts with the Chinese caravaneers who had been travelling for centuries through the mountains of southern Asia.

Today, the traditional agrarian economy is still based on family farms raising pigs, chickens, buffaloes and horses, on food crops (rice, corn, manioc) and cash crops (cardamom and vegetables).

The traditional social organisation of the Hmong is based on the clan. Each clan is made of lineages, all the members of which acknowledge a common founding male ancestor. In the Hmong household, up to four different generations may be gathered under the same roof. The household is the most important economic, political and ritual unit. The villages perched on the mountain slopes house several clans.

Easily recognisable by their costume, the Sa Pa Hmong Leng – who do not call themselves Black Hmongs – still wear hemp clothes dyed with natural (black-blue) indigo. The women wear stiff indigo-blue turbans over their hair gathered into a bun. Nowadays, they hardly ever wear their batik or embroidered pleated skirts, replaced with short indigo pants. Only the collar, sleeves and belt are embroidered with geometric patterns in silk. The White Hmong women from the Bat Xat district wear long black pants, fairly short-waisted double-breasted jackets, and cover their hair with colourful head scarves. The Hmong Pua, Hmong Pe and Hmong Sheu women from the Bac Ha district wear similar batik skirts with an embroidered band. They are distinguished by the decorative patterns and shape of their aprons.

The Dao

The Dao, known as the Man or Yao in south-west China for centuries, also number a few tens of thousands in Laos, Thailand and Myanmar (formerly Burma).

The Dao-Mien settled in Vietnam two to three centuries ago, depending on the area. One of the Dao's specific cultural features is their traditional writing system using Chinese characters. Preserved texts make it possible to trace their origins back to the provinces of south China. Their taoist religion is also based on texts. For major taoist ceremonies, the ritual space must be surrounded with painted pictures of the divinities and celestial generals. As a consequence, the art of painting on paper and canvas survives among the Dao. Like the Hmong, the Dao build terraced paddy-fields irrigated by a sophisticated system of canals around Sa Pa. They also have a reputation for pig and horse breeding.

The different Dao groups from the Lao Cai province usually wear red headdresses or red pieces of clothing. The Dao (Ké Mien) from the Taphin and Tavan villages (Sa Pa district) wear flat headdresses, totally red, hung with silver coins. The headdresses of the Dao (Ké Mien) from Muong Hum district (north of Sa Pa) are cone-shaped and made of red flowery material. The Bac Ha (Ké Moun) Dao enhance their turbans with red and pink wool or silk threads. The headdresses of the Dao (Iu Mien) from Van Ban district – south of Sa Pa – are decorated with red and yellow pompoms, and hang low down their backs.

The Tày

The Tày grow rice in paddy fields, preferably in the plains and in the valleys. The villages consist of wooden or bamboo stilt houses and are often built in the immediate vicinity of a stream or a river. The household is the basic economic unit and tends to be a nuclear family limited to close relatives.

The Tày, Giay, Numg and Thai women wear brightly-coloured jackets, – pink, green, or blue – double-breasted, often with contrasting braid at the collar. The tartan headscarf covers their hair gathered into a bun. Traditionally, each group used to have their own style of bun, held up with long silver needles, but the custom is vanishing.

introduce for sapa

Sa Pa or Sapa (Westernized spelling) is a frontier town and district in the Lào Cai province in northwest Vietnam. It is one of the main market towns in the area, where there lived many local trades such as H'mong, Dao and Tay.

introduce for halong

Hạ Long

(also known as Hong Gai) is a capital city of Quang Ninh Province, Vietnam. The city mainly lies on Bai Tu Long Bay, which is part of the Ha Long Bay. It is located at about 160km northeast of Hanoi. Area: 208.7 sq. km. Population (2001): 185,228 inhabitants.

Halong City consists of 20 wards and communes: Hà Khánh, Hà Lầm, Hà Trung, Hà Phong, Hà Tu, Hồng Hải, Cao Thắng, Cao Xanh, Yết Kiêu, Trần Hưng Ðạo, Bạch Ðằng, Hòn Gai, Bãi Cháy, Hồng Hà, Hà Khẩu, Giếng Ðáy; Communes: Hùng Thắng, Tuần Châu, Việt Hưng, Ðại Yên.

The city's economy has recently switched from coal mining to tourism, due to the large amount of visitors drew by the famous Ha Long Islets every year. At present, Halong is experiencing rapid growth not only in tourism sphere, but as a place upon the main road to southern China. In 2007 Vietnam-China Business Forum, a $400 million deal was signed to build a highway linking Halong, Mong Cai and Quang Ninh.^[1]

Halong city is divided into two parts: East Ha Long and West Ha Long. The eastern part ("Hon Gay"), where most of the official buildings and industry are concentrated, is connected by bridge with the western part ("Bai Chay"), considered to be the place of tourism animation.

There are several good quality hotels in Halong city and plenty of budget accommodation, two hospitals and several private medical centers.

In the south of the city there is Bai Tho (‘Poem’) Mountain with its almost vertical seaward face, which was widely used by some famous local poets. The limestone peak is rich in bio-diversity and offers attractive views of the bay. There are also such places of interest as Cua Van Fishing Village, Hoang Gia Park, Ha Long Market, Bai Chay Trading Center, Quang Ninh Museum, Vietnam-Japan Cultural House, Children's Cultural House.

Halong city has an active Roman Catholic Church in its eastern part ("Hon Gay") on the hill near the main post office, which holds the services on Sunday evenings and on Christian holidays.

The biggest hotel in Vietnam is planned to be built on the bay, beginning from 2007.

nha trang maps

we can find streets,hotels in this maps.full!!!!!!full
http://www.baokhanhhoa.com.vn/BanDo/trungtamnhatrang/ttnt.htm

from www.baokhanhhoa.com.vn

come on nha trang part2

Administrative divisions

Nha Trang is subdivided into 27 wards and communes, of which 19 are urban wards, namely: Vĩnh Hải, Vĩnh Phước, Vĩnh Thọ, Xương Huân, Vạn Thắng, Vạn Thạnh, Phương Sài, Phương Sơn, Ngọc Hiệp, Phước Hòa, Phước Tân, Phước Tiến, Phước Hải, Lộc Thọ, Tân Lập, Vĩnh Nguyên, Vĩnh Trường, Phước Long (founded in November 1998), Vĩnh Hòa (founded in April 2002); and 8 suburban communes, namely: Vĩnh Phương, Vĩnh Trung, Vĩnh Thạnh, Vĩnh Thái, Vĩnh Hiệp, Vĩnh Ngọc, Vĩnh Lương and Phước Đồng. Since 1998, due to the high pace of urbanization, many urban planned zones have been built, namely: Hòn Rớ, Bắc Việt, Thánh Gia, Đường Đệ, Nam Hòn Khô…

history of nha trang

History

From 1653 to 19th century, Nha Trang was still a deserted area and was an area rich in wildlife animals like tigers, and was a part of Hà Bạc, Vĩnh Xương County, Diên Khánh Province. After just 2 decades of early 20nd century, Nha Trang underwent a rapid change. On 30 August 1924, the Governor-General of French Indochina (Gouverneur-General de l’Indochine) by a decree, establish Nha Trang as a townlet (centre urbain)^[1]. Nha Trang Townlet was established from ancient villages of: Xương Huân, Phương Câu, Vạn Thạnh, Phương Sài, Phước Hải.

During French Indochina, Nha Trang was seen as de facto capital (chief lieu) of Khanh Hoa Province. The colonical administration offices like Envoy Office, Commanding Office, Trade Office, Post Office….were situated in Nha Trang. However, local royal offices like: Province Chief, Provincial Judge, Military Commander…are situated in Dien Khanh city (a walled military city located 10 km south-west of Nha Trang). On 7 May 1937 , the Governor-General of French Indochina by another decree upgraded Nha Trang Townlet to town (French: commune)^[2]. At this time, Nha Trang Town had 5 wards: Xương Huân was the fist ward, Phương Câu was the second ward, Vạn Thạnh was the third ward, Phương Sài was the fourth ward, and Phước Hải was the fifth ward.

On January 27, 1958, the president of the Republic of Vietnam, Ngô Đình Diệm by Decree 18-BNV abrogated the town status of Nha Trang and divided Nha Trang into two rural communes: Nha Trang Đông (Eastern Nha Trang) and Nha Trang Tây (Western Nha Trang), under the administration of Vĩnh Xương County.

On October 22, 1970, the government of the Republic of Vietnam by Decree 132-SL/NV reestablished Nha Trang Town on the ground of Nha Trang Đông and Nha Trang Tây and other rural communes, namely Vĩnh Hải, Vĩnh Phước, Vĩnh Trường, Vĩnh Nguyên, and villages: Phước Hải (Vĩnh Thái Commune), Vĩnh Điềm Hạ (Vĩnh Hiệp Commune), Ngọc Thảo, Ngọc Hội, Lư Cấm Villages (Vĩnh Ngọc Commune) under the administration of Vinh Xuong County, together with islands: Hòn Lớn, Hòn Một, Hòn Mun, Hòn Miễu, Hòn Tằm. Nha Trang Town was made the capital of Khanh Hoa Province. The town included 2 districts: district 1 and district 2. District 1 covered communes: Nha Trang Đông, Vĩnh Hải, Vĩnh Phước, and villages: Ngọc Thảo, Ngọc Hội and Lư Cấm of Vĩnh Ngọc Commune, Vĩnh Điềm Hạ village of Vĩnh Hiệp Commune; district 2 covered communes: Nha Trang Tây, Vĩnh Trường, Vĩnh Nguyên (inclusive of islands of Hòn Tre, Hòn Một, Hòn Mun, Hòn Tằm), Phước Hải village of Vĩnh Thái Commune.

Following that establishment, the government by Decree 357-ĐUHC/NC/NĐ dated June 5, 1971 divided Nha Trang into 11 urban zones, of which, district 1 covered urban zones of Vĩnh Hải, Vĩnh Phước, Ngọc Hiệp, Vạn Thạnh, Duy Tân; district 2 covered urban wards of Vĩnh Nguyên, Vĩnh Trường, Phương Sài, Tân Phước, Tân Lập, Phước Hải. Decree 553-BNV/HCĐP/NV dated 22 August 1972 renamed urban zones into urban wards. Decree 444-BNV/HCĐP/26.X dated September 3, 1974 merged islands of Hòn Một, Hòn Cậu, Hòn Đụn, Hòn Chóp Vung, Hòn Đỏ into Vĩnh Hải ward (district 1) and Hòn Ngọc into Vĩnh Nguyên ward (district 2) of Nha Trang Town.

On April 2, 1975, the communist forces captured the city. On April 4, 1975, Khanh Hoa Military Commission (Ủy ban Quân quản Khánh Hòa) divided Nha Trang into 3 administrative: District 1, District 2 and Vĩnh Xương District.

In September 1975, District 1 and District 2 were merged to found Nha Trang.

On March 30, 1977, the Council of the Government (now the cabinet) of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam by Decision 391-CP/QĐ upgraded Nha Trang to city status, a county-level city under the administration of Phu Khanh Province (a province created by merger of now Phú Yên Province and Khánh Hòa Province). 7 Communes of former Vĩnh Xương County, namely Vĩnh Thái, Vĩnh Ngọc, Vĩnh Hiệp, Vĩnh Lương, Vĩnh Trung, Vĩnh Thạnh, Vĩnh Phương was split from Khánh Xương County to become Nha Trang City territory.

On March 27, 1978, the provincial government by Decision 54-BT founded Phước Đồng Commune under Nha Trang City.

On July 1, 1989, Khanh Hoa was split from Phu Khanh Province to become Khanh Hoa Province as it was before, Nha Trang was made the capital of Khanh Hoa Province.

On 22 April 1999, the prime minister by Decision 106/1999 recognized Nha Trang City the second class municipal city.

come on nha trang

Geography

Nha Trang city has a metropolitan area of 251 km² and population of about 500,000 (as of 2007). It borders Ninh Hòa town by the north, Cam Ranh city by the south, Diên Khánh town by the west and the South China Sea to the west. The city is located on a beautiful bay, the Nha Trang Bay, which was chosen by Travel and Leisure in two succeeding years as one of 29 most beautiful bays in the world. Nha Trang is surrounded on all three sides by mountains and a large island on the fourth side (in the ocean directly in front of the city's main area) that blocks major storms from potentially damaging the city.

introduction for nhatrang

Nha Trang

Nha trang is a coastal city and capital of Khánh Hòa province, Vietnam. It is well known for its pristine beaches and excellent scuba diving and is fast becoming a popular destination for international tourists, attracting large numbers of backpackers on the Southeast Asia circuit. It is already very popular with Vietnamese tourists. Nha Trang Bay is amongst the world's most beautiful bays. Tourists can participate in Sea Festival and August- Nha Trang Rendez- vous Festival every 2 years.

The city has about 300,000 inhabitants and is projected to increase to 500,000 to 600,000 inhabitants in the year 2020^{[citation needed]} according to estimation of Nha Trang Administrative Board Statistics.

Historically, the city was known as Kauthara under the Champa. There's still Po Nagar Tower of Champa in Nha Trang now.

As a coastal city, Nha Trang's developed in marine science with Nha Trang Oceanography Institution. There's also Hon Mun marine protected area - one of four first marine protected area in the world admitted by IUCN. The famous French-Swiss bacteriologist Alexandre Émile John Yersin (who discovered the Yersinia pestis bacterium) identified himself with Nha Trang's life for 50 years (people called him Ông Năm- Mr Fifth in familiar way), established the Indochina Pasteur Institution (Nha Trang Pasteur Institution now) to research bubonic plague and then died on March 1, 1943 in Nha Trang. A street in the city is named after him, there is a shrine located next to his tomb, and his house has been converted into the Yersin Museum.

Lying off Nha Trang is Bamboo Island, operated by the Sofitel Vinpearl Group. There is now a motorized chair lift system, reportedly the longest in the world, linking the mainland to the five-star resort and theme park on Bamboo Island.

Commercial flights to Nha Trang no longer use the city's municipal airport, but fly into the larger Cam Ranh airport, a former U.S. Air Force Base (built during the Vietnam War) located about 35 kilometers or 22 miles south of Nha Trang (see the Transport section below for additional details.)

Halong Bay’s outstanding global values part3

Geological value

Halong Bay’s geological value has been evaluated in two ways: by the history of its formation and by its karst geomorphology.

Formation history: The Halong Bay area has a long geological history, commencing nearly 500 million years ago, stretching through various ancient geological periods involving the processes of orogeny earth movements, marine regression, tectonic down-warping and marine transgression. Between the Ordovician and Silurian periods (500 to 410 million years ago) the area was a deep sea. Later, between the Carboniferous and Permian periods (340 to 250 million years ago) the sea had become shallow. By the end of the Paleogenic and the beginning of the Neogenic periods (26 and 20 million years ago) the area had become part of a great coastal plain. This was inundated again by the sea about 2 million years ago. During the Triassic period, (240 and 195 million years ago) when most of the rest of the world was experiencing hot, dry climatic conditions, the Ha Long region had a hot and wet climate. The decayed remains of enormous forests of tree ferns were the basis of the coal deposits in the area.

- Karst geomorphologic value: Ha Long Bay is a mature karst landscape developed during a warm, wet, tropical climate. The sequence of stages in the evolution of a karst landscape over a period of 20 million years requires a combination of several distinct elements including massive thickness of limestone, a hot wet climate and slow overall tectonic uplift. There are various stages of karst formation and remnants of old phreatic, old karstic foot and marine notch caves can be observed. The characteristics of mature karst terrain are Fengling and Fengcong. The conical shapes of fengcong karst form clusters of limestone, having pyramid shapes lying close together with an average height of around 100m, though the highest may reach up to 200m. The conical shapes of fenglin karst are like individual towers having abrupt slopes and reaching heights of between 50 - 100m. The ratio between height and width is 6:1. Conical shapes of fengcong karst can be seen in the groups of hills on Bo Hon and Dau Be islands. The karst fields were formed in different ways, such as: landslide, ceiling collapse of underground river valleys and underground caves ,and by the existence of undissolved stone layers. These karst fields were regularly flooded by the sea.

The underground karst topography is divided into 3 main types of caves:

+ Remnants of old phreatic caves such as Sung Sot, Tam Cung, Lau Dai, Thien Cung, Dau Go and Thien Long.
+ Old karstic foot caves such as Trinh Nu, Bo Nau, Tien Ong and Trong;
+ Marine notch caves such as Luon Cave, Ba Hang and Ba Ham Lakes.
The karst landscape of Ha Long Bay is of international significance and of fundamental importance to the science of geomorphology. The geology of Ha Long Bay is associated with the value of its bio-diversity, archaeological culture, history and other significant values.

Halong Bay’s outstanding global values part2

Evaluation and Praises
Throughout the ages many famous men, from both home and abroad, when faced with the beauty of Halong’s sky and water have sung its praises in different ways, especially in poems.

In the 15th Century, Nguyen Trai (1380 – 1442), a great national poet visited Halong and spoke of:

“The way to Van Do has so many mountains
Nature has produced a wonder in the immense space
The vast blue sea looks like a grandiose mirror
Reflecting innumerable black mountains”.

(In 'Van Don' poem by Nguyen Trai, Complete Works, History Institution, Socio and Science Publishing House, HN 1976, pages 312 - 322).

King Le Thanh Tong (1442 – 1497) on a walking tour to An Bang (old name of Quang Ninh Province) was surprised by Ha Long’s beauty. He composed a poem and carved it on the wall of the mountain, praising the grace of Ha Long as follows:

Hundreds of water currents flow around mountains
Scattered islands look like a chessboard of sea joining the sky, both azure blue
Invaders are always expelled by Viet people
Stopping aggressive war and developing the country.

(Quoted from the poem “Bai tho de vach nui cua Thien nam dong chu” written by King Le Thanh Tong. The national center for Science, Society and Humanity. Vietnamese language Institute. Socio and Science Publishing House, Ha Noi, 1994.

Over 100 years ago, the French Journalist John Rey praised Ha Long: “ In the brilliant light of the tropical sun, the sea surface, dark and light, here and there in the shadow of limestone mountains, is really an indescribable, fanciful scene. Sunset looks like a flaring fire, throwing all the islands into a fairyland.”

In 1927, Emile Cordonnier wrote an article, “Halong Bay – a peaceful and beautiful place of Indochina” described it thus: “...Thousands of mountains rising from the water surface flaunt wonderful blocks of marble, images are merged together to create a marvelous picture. This scenery appears like a dream with tall pillars of rock and rugged islands rising from the clean waters of Halong Bay. The landscape here always keep calm and peaceful...". (According to Quangninh Newspaper, 15th January, 2000)
Famous contemporary poets went on a sightseeing tour to Halong, which kindled their poetic inspiration:

• Xuan Dieu, "the prince of Vietnamese poetry " expressed his great emotion:

" ... Here are laid half-made things
Mountains, islets, clouds and stones are disorderly scattered
In their game, the ancient giants threw the stones
From the trees is still smelt the after taste of ancient times..."

(The poem "Salute to Ha Long")

• The poet Che Lan Vien also described the marvelous scenery of Ha Long:

" No dragon shadow appears on Ha Long Bay
Wave embellished by the dark blue color passes hundreds of miles
The June sky makes the water twinkle likes silver lusters
Like seas smashing into the hull
Our boat passed by sunny thrones,
Vong Phu stone woman waits for her far-away husband,
As mountains have no human breath, birds come to build their nests,
To help stone mountains calm
Their sadness..."

(Passing through Ha Long)

Nowadays, many domestic and international politicians, poets, cultural celebrities and tourists make the same comment when they visit Halong Bay: “If you haven’t visited Ha Long Bay, you haven’t been to Viet Nam.”

Chairman Ho Chi Minh (1890 - 1969) - a world cultural celebrity, and great hero of Vietnam, on his visit to Dau Go Cave in October, 1957, said: "A marvelous scene that no one person could communicate to another. Both you and I must enjoy it together."

The former Prime Minister Pham Van Dong wrote about Ha Long Bay with a poet's eye "Here (Ha Long Bay) is it one scene or many scenes? Is it an earthly scene or what kind of scene?"

General Vo Nguyen Giap, a great general expressed his feelings "Ha Long Bay is a wonder of the world. We must take the responsibility to preserve, embellish and introduce it to world." (July, 30th, 1999).

The General Secretary of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Nong Duc Manh on his visit to Ha Long Bay on 29th October, 2001, wrote: "Ha Long Bay, a wonder bestowed by nature, a world heritage, an everlasting symbol of our lovely Vietnamese nation, is the pride of our people. All Vietnamese generations today and in the future must make the best effort to maintain, conserve and promote the great values of Ha Long Bay so that Ha Long Bay will be not only be a domestic tourist destination but also the rendezvous place for friends worldwide.”

In recent years, Halong Bay has been honored to welcome many international delegations, including the leaders of many countries of the world.

The Prime Minister of the Peoples’ Republic of China, Ly Bang on his visit to Vietnam 9th September, 2001, spoke off the cuff, "The beauty of Ha Long Bay makes us lose the way back."

The Chairman of the Mongolian National Assembly, Tumar Oder, praised Halong Bay: "This is an area with approximately 2,000 islands, including the World Natural Heritage Site recognized by UNESCO. The Vietnamese call this the land of descending dragons. Ha Long Bay is a uniquely beautiful place in the world and is internationally admired and enjoyed. (8th January, 2002).

The Chairman of National Assembly of Bulgaria Republic praised Ha Long Bay and the Vietnamese people, "Thank you very much for your warm welcome to us. Nature here is so beautiful but the people's heart is even greater. That is our heart felt feelings about the Vietnamese people." [ 6th March, 2004]

The Swedish King , Carl Gustaf XVI, praised Ha Long Bay on his trip, 2nd February, 2004, "We have heard and read a lot about this beautiful and attractive country before our visit. We don't feel disappointed - but highly appreciate the natural beauty of the Bay." (According to Quang Ninh Newspaper)

Ha Long Bay will remain an attraction for many artists, an endless source of inspiration for the soul

Documents relating to Ha Long Bay's landscape:

from halongbay.org.vn

Halong Bay’s outstanding global values

Aesthetic value
The permanent beauty of Ha Long is created by three factors: stone, water and sky. Ha Long’s island system is multicolored with a variety of shapes and can be regarded as a water-color, a work of art. The islands, scattered all round, have different shapes which provoke the imagination: Dinh Huong (Incense Burner) implies spiritual significance, Ga Choi (Fighting Cocks) the symbol of Viet Nam tourism, Con Coc (Toad) recalls the passage of time, waiting thousands of years to seek justice in Heaven. There are islands that resemble a resplendent throne, a Vietnamese mother’s curved back carrying her child, a roof, an old man, a human head and so on.
Within the bigger islands are great attractions. Dau Go Cave (Wooden Stakes) dazzles the senses with many huge stalactites hanging poised in mid air and stalagmites growing majestically upwards. Then there is Thien Cung Grotto (Heavenly Palace) with its small, narrow entrance, but inside looking like a marvelous palace. Bo Nau Cave (Pelican) has an arc-shape entrance containing many stalactites. Sung Sot Cave (Surprise Cave) lives up to its name. Within this cave are stalactites with many marvelous shapes, such as: jungle fowl, toad, dragon, waterfall and many others.
Other caves and grottoes such as Tam Cung (Three Palaces), Trinh Nu (Virgin), Ba Hang (Three Tunnels), Tien Long (Fairy Dragon), each has its own attractions and beauty.
Ha Long’s sea is always the same, blue, smooth and still. Ha Long has its own beauty by seasons. In Spring, buds of trees burst on limestone islands. In Summer, it is cool and clean with many sparkling sun rays reflecting from the sea’s surface. In Autumn, especially at night, moonlight illuminates the mountains so they appear like gold, inlaid into the earth. In Winter, with pervasive frost, Ha Long is glamorous as “a floating flower basket on smooth wave” (by writer Nguyen Tuan).

The system of islands and caves

Most of the islands on Ha Long Bay are limestone and were formed over 500 million years ago, and are massed in the southeast and southwest. The schist islands scattered in the southeast have an average height of between 50-200m, and have a rich covering of flora.

Within the islands of the Bay there are hundreds of beautiful caves of different shapes and sizes, including many famous names such as Thien Cung, Dau Go, Sung Sot, Tam Cung and Bo Nau. Some of them are archaeological sites retaining tangible archaeological evidence, such as Dau Go, Bo Nau, Sung Sot, Soi Nhu, Tien Long, Me Cung, and Trinh Nu caves.

Geographical Location and Climate

Halong Bay is located in the Northeast of Vietnam, belonging to QuangNinh Province. It is in the coastal area stretching from 1060 56’ to 1070 37’ east longitude and 200 43’ to 210 09’ north latitude. To the west and northwest, Halong Bay stretches from Yen Hung District, and includes the large urban areas of Halong City and Cam Pha Town, as well as Van Don Island District. To the south and southeast, it is adjacent to the western Tonkin Gulf and to the west and southwest lies Cat Ba Island in the province of Hai Phong. On the world map, Ha Long Bay borders to China in the north and in the east it is adjacent to the East Sea.
In 1962, the Ministry of Culture and Information classified Halong Bay as a National Landscape Site, covering an area of 1,553 km2 with 1,969 islands. Halong Bay has been recognized twice by UNESCO as a World Heritage Area for its universal values of landscape, geology and geomorphology, respectively in 1994 and 2000, an area of 434 sq. km. including 775 islands.
The area inscribed by UNESCO (the Protected Area I - the Core Zone) is bound by Dau Go Island in the east, Ba Ham Lake in the south and Cong Tay Island in the east. The Protected Area II - the Buffer Zone is identified by the shore of the Bay running along the National Highway No. 18A, from the Gasoline Warehouse B12 in Cai Dam Precinct to the km.11 marker in Quang Hanh Precinct, Cam Pha Town. The Protected Area III - the Hinterland Zone is the sea or mainland area surrounding the buffer zone, including the area adjacent to the Cat Ba National Park of Hai Phong City.
- Climate is featured humid tropical charactor, including two distinct seasons: hot, humid with much rainning in summer and cold, dry in winter. The average temperature ranges from 150 – 250C with annual average rainfall of 2,000 – 2,200mm/year. Halong Bay has a typical tidal time (tidal amplitude ranges from 3.5 – 4.0m. The degree of salt in the sea water ranges from 31 – 34.5% in the dry season and decreases in the rainy season.

Ronaldo and Rooney rip Newcastle apart

NEWCASTLE, England -- Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney both scored twice as Manchester United hammered Newcastle United 5-1 at St James's Park to move to within three points of English Premier League leaders Arsenal, who drew 2-2 at Birmingham.
Ronaldo strides past substitute goalkeeper Harper to score United's third goal.

Rooney, Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez were an impressive attacking force, backed up by the talented Nani.
Australian international forward Mark Viduka was again omitted by Newcastle, who paired Michael Owen with former Manchester player Alan Smith, yet to score a senior goal for Newcastle in 27 appearances this season.
Much of the euphoria surrounding Kevin Keegan's return as manager at Newcastle has faded, after a return of two points from a possible 15 and growing concerns about a relegation battle.
In the 25th minute, Ronaldo tricked his way past fullback Habib Beye and crossed to the far post where Rooney volleyed past Shay Given.
When midfielder Joey Barton lost possession to Rooney a neat pass set up Michael Carrick, who played in Ronaldo and the Portuguese fired past Given. The keeper was replaced by Steve Harper for the second session but the sub fared no better.
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Eleven minutes after the restart Harper was left floundering as Ronaldo darted round him to score the third goal.
Sir Alex Ferguson then withdrew Ronaldo and the injured Nemanja Vidic with the win assured and Newcastle scored 11 minutes from time.
Andy Carroll headed James Milner's corner into the path of Abdoulaye Faye and the Senegal international netted from close in
Less than two minutes later Smith cleared a corner straight into the path of Rooney who fired in from 22 yards. Louis Saha completed the rout in the final minute.
Fernando Torres scored a hat-trick as Liverpool beat Middlesbrough 3-2 at Anfield and lifted Rafael Benitez' side back into the top four.
It was Boro's first defeat since New Year's day and was made worse when striker Jeremie Aliadiere was sent off late in the game after a clash with Javier Mascherano.
Fulham were pushed closer to the drop after a 1-0 home defeat by West Ham while Wigan gave their surival chances a huge boost by beating bottom side Derby 2-0.
Nolberto Solano claimed the points for West Ham with an 87th-minute strike at Fulham, who had Denmark defender Leon Andreasen sent off when he picked up a second yellow card for his protests to the referee about the goal.
Late goals from Paul Scharner and Antonio Valencia lifted Wigan four points clear of the relegation zone.
Sunderland are in an identical position after succumbing to a 1-0 defeat at Portsmouth, for whom Jermain Defoe slotted in a penalty with just over 20 minutes left.

Nigerian striker apologizes to Da Nang club

VietNamNet Bridge – In a meeting with officials of the Da Nang football club on February 20, Amaobi apologized to Coach Le Huy Duc and expressed his desire to continue playing for Da Nang.

However, the club’s Chairman Do Quang Hien says the Nigerian player needs some form of punishment.

At the meeting, Da Nang club officials asked Amaobi to express all of his problems, but he seemed repentant and apologized to coach Le Huynh Duc, the team’s leaders and other players for his mistakes. He also expressed his hope to continue playing for Da Nang in V-League and National Cup tournaments.

Da Nang club’s official accepted Amaobi’s apology, but will still punish the striker. At first, Amaobi will have to practice alone in Da Nang while the team plays at guest stadiums. This striker will also have to set punishments for himself at a meeting next week.

At the meeting yesterday, Amaobi still confirmed that he bribed former coach Tran Vu $3,000, which the coach denies, and threatens to bring the case to court.

In an interview with Sports & Culture Newspaper on February 19, Amaobi said he gave $3,000 to Vu as a bribe when he signed a contract with Da Nang club. As the money was not fairly allocated, Amaobi was benched.

(Source: VNE, Tien Phong)