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KM 0 Milestone

(Cột mốc Km0)

This stone is so familiar to people in Ha Giang but so attractive to visitours coming here. For this is the “head” of Vietnam, every visitour can not help but take a picture with it, touch it, or just have some proof of their presence here.

Address : Highway 2, Nguyen Trai precinct, Ha Giang.

The Statue of President Ho Chi Minh

(Tượng đài Hồ Chủ tịch và đồng bào Hà Giang)

Built on February 24, 2005 and finished on August 28, the statue was a great construction of Ha Giang people to honor Vietnamese greatest leaders. It includes many statues of Uncle Ho’s fellows standing around for memorizing the time he spent with Ha Giang people, and the affair among them. It was inaugurated on September 1, 2005 right one day before Vietnamese National Day and became one of the most attractive places for tourists since then.

Address : 26/3 Square, Ha Giang.

The Forbidden Mountain

(Cấm Sơn)

Considered to be the spirit of Ha Giang city, The Forbidden Mountain is truly a wonder in many marvelous gifts from the nature. The mountain is craggy on one side with many stone caves and high cliffs, and the other side is filled with soil and towns. Even the natives do not know everything about this mountain for the roughness of the way up, plus there used to be none but one path to follow to the top, but many visitours cannot resist the temptation of its mystery and as the tourism activities are continuously developed in Ha Giang, it gets much easier to walk here. Moreover, this place has the history of many battles in Vietnam, from even feudalism to Vietnam war, around 1950s. There are still many tunnels and bunker systems made by French there. The natives even built a small pagoga to honor the dead soldiers and pray for the salvation of their souls and this has created a very holy atmosphere to the mountain.

Mau Temple

(Đền Mẫu – Cấm Sơn Linh Từ)

This is a sacred temple, usually known as Cam Son Linh Tu ( Temple of the Forbidden Mountain) but not built on the mountain. Here people worship three Goddesses : Mau Lieu, Mau Thuong Ngan, Mau Thuy. They built it in late XVIII century and still kept two bronze bells for over 100 years. There used to be a small joss house near this place called Tran temple where they worship the great National hero Tran Hung Dao, but in 1947, it was joined together with Mau Temple. This temple is not simply the place where people come to pray for fortune and wealth, but the place where people often hold many traditional festivals.

Address : Nguyen Trai precinct.

The post Where to go in Ha Giang provincial city? appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

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The Architectural Relic of Vuong

(Di tích kiến trúc Nhà Vương)

Known as the large home of Meo King, this is a unique architecture, built in early 20 century with most designation and sculpture of Thanh dynasty’s style in China. This large beautiful mansion was declared as a National Art Architectural Relic, having renovated sometimes and drew much of tourists’ attraction for years.

Address: Sà Phìn, Đồng Văn, Ha Giang.

Lung Cu Flag Pole

(Cột cờ Lũng Cú)

This is a historic building and a beauty spot. From the top of the tower, all the marvelous surrounding areas of Dong Van can be seen with Then Van valley on the left side and the upstream of Nho Que river on the right.

Address: Cẳng Tẳng, Lũng Cú, Đồng Văn, Ha Giang. 

Dong Van Old Quarter

(Phố cổ Đồng Văn)

About 1 km long and existed for nearly a century, Dong Van old quarter contains many long-standing architectural constructions such as Trinh Tuong Houses, Yin and Yang tile roofs, stone paved floors,… especially the old market with all roofs made of lunisolar stony tiles. With over 40 houses at the age between 100 and 300 years, the old quarter reflects almost every detail of Dong Van’s culture. Tourists are suggested to come here on Mid-Autumn night, when the whole quarter is filled with light from many red lanterns and many traditional activities are held.

Address: Phố Cổ, tt. Đồng Văn, Đồng Văn, Hà Giang.

Fairs

(Chợ phiên)

Most mountainous areas of Vietnam have fairs that have no longer been just the occasions for trading and other economic purposes but become a traditional cultural activity. Fairs in Dong Van are a little different as they are held backwardly, which means if this week people have a fair on Saturday then the next week they will have it on Friday and so on. It shall be great if tourists come to a fair and taste the special food of Dong Van and bring home souvenirs for gifts.

Khau Vai Love Festival

(Chợ tình Khâu Vai)

A famous annual festival of Dong Van that being held only in late March of the lunar year. It is also known as a special fair, about 24km away from Meo Vac town, but actually there is almost none of trading or business stuff here at this time. This fair is held for one reason only : Giving boys and girls a chance to confess their feelings and express their love. Yet, elders also come here to see their ex-lovers. For tourists, this is a perfect time to witness the magnificence of Dong Van’s costumes .

The post Where to go in Dong Van District, Ha Giang? appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

Formed with such complicated terrain, Ha Giang divides itself into 3 main areas : High land of the north, mostly karst mountains ; High land of the west, mostly soil mountains ; And the low hill-land where stands Ha Giang provincial city. Thus, the diverse nature here can make any visitors breathless; every hill, every stream, every forest in Ha Giang created the greatest masterpiece the world should ever know.

With such ideal favor of nature, Ha Giang has completely embraced the tourism potential and gained so much fame for many beauty spots like Dong Van Karst Plateau, The Architectural Relic of Vuong, many graceful natural caves and long standing temples. Especially though Ha Giang is quite sparsely populated,  people here are so rich in spirit with many festivals and fairs that can not be missed if someone wants to fully know what Ha Giang is all about.

The post Ha Giang – The glory of High land appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

7:30 Head to Hang Cap street, turn right to Tran Te Xuong street and turn left to Nguyen Du street where you can find 3-2 Square , visit the statue of General Tran Hung Dao and get some sightseeing at Vi Xuyen park.

9:00 From Nguyen Du street, head to Le Hong Phong street then Tran Phu street, turn left to Ben Thoc street, turn right to Cot Co street and you can learn more about Nam Dinh history at the Historical museum of Nam Dinh.

9:30 Get back to Ben Thoc street and head straight to Hang Thao street, turn right and stop at 23 or 31, there you can prepare yourself with some loaves of Balan bread for a little long trip to the outskirt of Nam Dinh city.

10:00 Get a grab (Mai Linh corporation suggested – 035036252525) and take a visit to the symbol of Nam Dinh ancientry: The historic relic of Tran Temple.

13:00 Get another grab to visit another long-standing architecture of Nam Dinh – Pho Minh Tower, Tuc Mac village, Loc Vuong precinct.

14:00 Take a taxi to go back to the inner city and get yourself a big meal at a BBQ restaurant on the “Roasting street” of Namdinh, Tran Hung Dao street (by Truyen Thong lake).

16:00 Go along Tran Hung Dao street to Dao river direction and you can get the best Banh gai at 104 or 108 as gifts to bring home.

16:30 From Tran Hung Dao street, turn right to Bac Ninh street, turn left to Nguyen Du street and you can see Nguyen Khuyen high school on the right. It is a perfect time to visit because it is after school time and you can get a student to introduce about the school.

18:00 From Nguyen Du street, turn left to Hang Dong street, turn right to Hai Ba Trung street, head straight to Ly Thuong Kiet street and you can taste the best Bun dau at a favorite restaurant of youngsters here.

19:00 You can finish day and take a look at some photos you took during the trip at Coffee Bean, 55 Thanh Chung street. Get you a grab because you must be exhausted after a long day.

The post One day in Nam Dinh appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

BANH GAI
(Bánh gai)

This is a special sort of pie created first in Nam Dinh and only in Nam Dinh where people can find the best of this food. It looks quite the same as banh chung, but it looks smaller and its ingredients are totally different. There are some branches suggested for well-made banh gai on Tran Hung Dao street.

Address: Banh gai Ba Thi – #108 Tran Hung Dao street, Nam Dinh.
Thanh Lich – #104 Tran Hung Dao street, Nam Dinh.

BANH NHAN
(Bánh nhãn)

This is another special food that represents Nam Dinh’s culinary. It is a pie but as small as a candy, sweet, crispy and goes really well with green tea. Banh nhan is sold in packs like snack in every grocery in Nam Dinh.

KEO SIU CHAU
(Kẹo sìu châu)

This kind of candy is mentioned in every talk about Nam Dinh because of its delightsome delicacy. It is a small, long cube shape candy made from peanut, sesame, malt and sugar. It tastes so fragrant, sweet and crunchy. Keo siu chau is sold in packs or boxes in every groceries in Nam Dinh.

Suggested address : #161 Minh Khai street, Nam Dinh.
#181 Minh Khai street

BUN DAU MAM TOM
(Bún đậu mắm tôm)

This food is quite popular in Vietnam especially Hanoi but Nam Dinh also has amazing bun dau restaurants. In a market on Ly Thuong Kiet street, there is a famous bun dau restaurant that has the best bun dau and many other street foods.

Address : Ly Thuong Kiet street, Nam Dinh.

PHO
(Phở)

Nam Dinh is always famous for pho, this is where pho was created a long time ago, the place that keeps many secret recipes to cook a beyond compare bowl of pho. Pho Nam Dinh is famous not only because it is the most delicious pho in Vietnam but it also reflects the friendliness, industriousness, and subtlety of the people here. There are many pho restaurants in Nam Dinh; they could be some small popular ones on the sidewalk or some elegant ones.

Suggested address: Pho Tang – #17 Hang Tien street, Nam Dinh.
Pho Dan – Bac Ninh street, Nam Dinh.
Pho 10 Ly Quoc Su – #6 Ben Ngu street, Nam Dinh.

BANH GOI
(Bánh gối)

This is a very popular street food of Nam Dinh people just like bun dau. It is a pie with a skin of fried rice paper, full of minced meat, mien (a kind of vermicelli made of cassava) and a parboiled quail egg inside. Banh goi is teenagers’ favorite food. Suggested places for the best banh goi in Nam Dinh are Miss Mai’s, Miss Bich’s and Cho Chua There are also other junk food there.

Address: Miss Mai – #94 Tran Bich San street, Nam Dinh.
Miss Bich – #285 Hoang Van Thu street, Nam Dinh.
Cho Chua – Thon 3 village, Nam Giang street, Nam Dinh.

BANH XEO
(Bánh xèo)

Another popular street food in Nam Dinh. It is like banh goi in some ways but it is not banh goi. This pie is smaller, has fried rice paper too but thinner and the meat inside is kept in large pieces. It goes with a special kind of sauce requiring many accurate steps of mixing and preparing, and some kinds of raw vegetables. The tourists should come and try this food is on Tran Hung Dao street.

Address: Tran Hung Dao street, Nam Dinh.

DUCK MEAT
(Thịt vịt)

Nam Dinh has such strong potential of agriculture that duck meat in Nam Dinh is so delicious. There is even a whole street called the duck meat street where lots of duck meat restaurants are located, and many duck courses are served. The suggested name of the restaurant is Van Dinh, but all the restaurants on the street are still good.

Address: Tran Thai Tong street, Nam Dinh.

ROASTING STREET
(Phố nướng)

There is another street called Roasting street with many roasting restaurants. They serve different kinds of raw spiced meat which will be roasted right at the clients’ tables. These are perfect places for big parties. Some extra-ordinary restaurant names should be Huy Map and Hoa Diem Son.

Address : Tran Hung Dao street (by Truyen Thong lake), Nam Dinh.

BALAN BREAD
(Bánh mì balan)

Bread is a famous food of Vietnam but Balan bread of Nam Dinh is the best indeed. Everyone coming to Nam Dinh buys some loaves for themselves and bring home because Balan bread is unique. A loaf of Balan bread is thick, fragrant and plump. It goes well with both condensed and normal milk. The best branch of Balan bread is on Hang Thao street.

Address: #23 Hang Thao street, Nam Dinh.
#31 Hang Thao street, Nam Dinh.

COFFEE BEANS

This is the most well-known coffee shop in Nam Dinh with tasty drinks and elegantly designed architecture. Pizza is also served here and it is super tasty. Especially there are some special rooms with large screens as mini cinemas. It is a perfect place to relax, read books and hang out with friends.

Address : Coffee Beans – #55 Thanh Chung street

KEM XOI
(Kem xôi)

Kem xoi is the food people can only find in Vietnam, a perfect combination of sticky rice and ice cream. Kem xoi is sold in many street food restaurants in Nam Dinh but the best, also the oldest one is on Nguyen Du street. Tourists can taste another Nam Dinh’s specialty here: Xiu pao pie (Bánh xíu páo).

Address: Kem Xoi – #132 Nguyen Du street

BEEF STEAK
(Bò bít tết)

This food is no longer strange to everyone but there are some places in Nam Dinh that make the most unforgettable beef steak ever. This is a perfect choice for an evening out with friends or family .

Address:  #99 Hai Ba Trung street

DING TEA

This tasty mixture of milk and tea is now so familiar to everyone and so is the Ding Tea brand. Ding Tea in Nam Dinh is just inaugurated in 2015 but the drinks are amazingly good.

Address: #1 Hang Tien street

BUN CHA
(Bún chả)

Bun cha is so popular that president Obama spent his time trying this on his recent visit to Vietnam, and bun cha in Nam Dinh has its own attraction. Nam Dinh has many bun cha restaurants, both on the sidewalk and in houses.

Address: Thanh Binh – #139 Hung Yen street

O MAI
(Ô mai)

A popular tasty jam of Vietnam, made of dried black apricots and some other fruits. These once were very effective medical herb ingredients of the old Eastern traditional treatments, with some modification in processing, Vietnamese created O mai as a nosh for every age. Above all the brands, Hong Lam and That Su are two names you should try.

Address: #3 Minh Khai street

The post What and where to eat in Nam Dinh provincial city appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

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BEACH RESORTS

With 72km coastline, Nam Dinh is gifted a great advantage from the sea with two beaches.

First one is Thinh Long beach at Hai Hau district, also the first tourism spot founded in Nam Dinh. It has attracted thousands of visitours for over 70 years and has been developed every year. The view is breathtaking, many fresh kinds of seafood are served and the people are hospitable. Besides, they produce the most delicious rice of Vietnam and make the best Banh nhan in Hai Hau district.

The other beach is Quat Lam, Giao Thuy district. The quality of the service here is indisputable. It has good fresh seafood and especially the tastiest watermelon in Vietnam though the area to grow this fruit is narrowed for developing tourism resorts.

CO CHAT VILLAGE

A long standing traditional handicraft village of Truc Ninh district where spinning silk and weaving are true pure arts. The high quality of all silk products of this village has been proven through many centuries and gained so much fame for Nam Dinh. It is a perfect place to get souvenirs or to learn about highly professional weaving technique.

Address: Phuong Dinh commune, Truc Ninh district, Nam Dinh province.

TONG XA VILLAGE

In Y Yen district stands an ancient handicraft village named Tong Xa where people make the best bronze items. This village has started this bronze casting tradition about 900 years ago and improved significantly. Not only in Vietnam, Tong Xa’s bronze handiwork products are also chosen to be shown in many international exhibitions and sold to other countries. This is also the place where many famous statues in Vietnam were made, such as General Tran Hung Dao in Nam Dinh city, King Ly Thai To in Hanoi, National hero Thanh Giong in Soc Son or many Budha statues.

Address: Lam town, Y Yen district, Nam Dinh province.

VAN CHANG VILLAGE

Van Chang is also known as the Forging Handicraft village in Nam Truc district. It is one of the oldest village in North Vietnam with the history of over 700 years. People here have devoted their skills and their talent to make the best weapons for every national defense war in the past; many antiquities existed for hundreds of years can still be found here.

Address: Nam Giang town, Nam Truc district, Nam Dinh province.

MY TAN VILLAGE

There is a handicraft village in My Loc district which is always compared to the largest flower field ever. With the great favor of nature, it has become the major source of many flower types sold out to all North Vietnam. The whole village is filled with flowers in every season of a year. Especially, it is even more lively here in the time of New Year.

Address : My Tan commune, My Loc district, Nam Dinh province.

PHU DAY

Phu Day is an architecture ensemble of traditional belief in Vu Ban district, including the Temple of Princess Lieu Hanh, palace Tien Huong, palace Van Cat, Cong Dong convent, temple of Ly Nam De, Linh Son pagoda and the mausoleum of Princess Lieu Hanh. This place is famous not only for the beauty of the ancient architecture but also for an annual festival named Phu Day festival, or usually known as the Mother’s death anniversary in March (in lunar year) with princess Lieu Hanh being the great symbol of Mother.
The festival is held annually on 15^th March in lunar year.

Address: Kim Thai commune, Vu Ban district, Nam Dinh province.

The post Where to visit in 9 districts of Nam Dinh? appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

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THE HISTORIC RELIC OF TRAN TEMPLE
(Quần thể di tích lịch sử Đền Trần)

Built in 1965, Tran Temple is the greatest architectural legacy of Tran dynasty. The beauty of the temple not only reveals the solemn culture of Vietnam from the 1100s to 1400 but also tells many stories at the same time. But one thing about Tran Temple that comes in every Vietnamese’s mind when they think about Nam Dinh is an annual Festival.

They call it Khai An festival. It was used to be held in a small village, then spread out to the whole country size. As a tradition, thousands of people from every city in Vietnam go to Nam Dinh during the time of mid-Autumn of the lunar year for this festival. They are here to tribute to the great dedication of the kings and especially the hero of the nation – general Tran Hung Dao first, then to bring home the signs printed directly from the king’s seal which is believed to protect the family from bad luck and fill the house with prosperity. This festival is also known as the Father’s death anniversary in August (in lunar year), General Tran Hung Dao is the great symbol of Father.

The temple is opened every time in the year, located in Tran Thua street, and the festival is held only from 15 to 20 August of the lunar year.

VI XUYEN PARK
(Công Viên Vị Xuyên)

Vi Xuyen park is a perfect place for resting and sightseeing. It has a large lake which was once a river named Vi Hoang and filled up by French in the 1900s. Trees are planted surrounding the lake which not only make this park a huge source of fresh air but also create the most charming landscape in Nam Dinh. Yet, the attraction of Vi Xuyen park comes mostly from 3-2 Square. It has a theater with the same name and especially a very tall statue of a great Vietnamese hero – general Tran Hung Dao. It is also a perfect choice to spend the weekend with kids in Vi Xuyen park since there are many games like slides or ferris wheels.
Vi Xuyen park is opened any time and you can not bring any mean of transport into the park.

Address: By Hung Vuong street and Le Hong Phong street.

NAM DINH HISTORICAL MUSEUM
(Bảo tàng lịch sử Nam Định)

Nam Dinh Historical museum is a new construction that was first opened to the public in 2012 right at the celebration of “ Thien Truong – Nam Dinh in 750 years “. It conserves thousands of historic documents and artifacts that reflect the culture of people here in many periods of time. Especially, the museum is also the place of Cot Co relic – a tower built in Nguyen dynasty.

The museum is opened every Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday.
Address: Cot Co street.
Phone : 03503849293 / 0915303620

PHO MINH TOWER
(Chùa Phổ Minh)

Pho Minh tower is one of the rare architecture that endures over 750 years since Tran dynasty. The sophisticated sculpture is almost unchanged and reflects the high quality and virtuosity of Vietnam's at that time.

The tower is a part of a pagoda with the same name, opened any time of the year.

Address: Tuc Mac village, Loc Vuong precinct, outskirt Nam Dinh.

NGUYEN KHUYEN HIGH SCHOOL
(Trường Trung học phổ thông Nguyễn Khuyến)

Nguyen Khuyen is said to be the most special school in Nam Dinh. It is the only school which was gothic style designed. In the past, this was a French school named Saint Thomas d’Aquin, closed in 1941 and in 1976, it became Nguyen Khuyen high school. With simple but much-refined architecture, the high aesthetics of this school is unquestionable. Besides, Nguyen Khuyen is also one of the best school in Nam Dinh for the quality of facilities and teaching.

The school is opened every day of the week.
Address: #40 Nguyen Du street.

The post Where to go in Nam Dinh provincial city? appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

Nam Dinh city embraces both of the modern beauty and the charm of nostalgia while the districts have many handicraft villages. Known as the downtown of Nam Dinh province with malls and entertaining centres, there are more to discover in this place which was once the most animated city of Vietnam.

Nam Dinh districts are filled with peace and happiness. The beauty of the countryside lies on the paddy fields, soil roads, cottage roofs and country people. It is the beauty of a long-standing agriculture tradition and some handicraft villages.

Nam Dinh is the place for people who want to learn about history, and for those who want to enjoy special Vietnamese food.

Tourists are advised to take a tour in Nam Dinh city on foot, bicycle or motorbike, and in 9 districts by motorbike or car.

From Hanoi, you can take a taxi to travel directly to Nam Dinh, or choose Futa Busline service ( in Giap Bat bus station) with one trip from Hanoi to Nam Dinh every 30 minutes.

Where to visit in 9 districts of Nam Dinh?

What and where to eat in Nam Dinh provincial city

Where to go in Nam Dinh provincial city?

The post Nam Dinh – Kingdom of 750 years memory appeared first on Maze Vietnam.