Nice By Vietnam

  Nam Ong communal house in Soc Trang Province is well-known for the hundreds of large incense cones suspended from its ceiling, bearing the nametags of devotees. Nam Ong communal house on Vo Dinh Sam Street, Ward 8 in the Mekong Delta province of Soc Trang is revered by the local Chinese community. It was built in 1760 as a small temple made of trees and leaves in honor of Guan Yu, an Eastern Han Dynasty general in China. In time, the communal house was expanded to incorporate three spacious chambers and two small rooms, characterized by a fusion of Vietnamese and Chinese architecture. The communal house honors legends spanning Chinese five dynasties. Through various ups and downs along with multiple restorations, all statues have withstood the test of time, heralding their great craftsmanship. Outside stands a statue of a horse, symbolizing intelligence, strength, agility, and prosperity along with a carnival ochna tree. On the 10th day of Lunar New Year, the faithful gather from...

A beach in downtown Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa Province. Photo by VnExpress/Vuong Manh Cuong.   Authorities in Khanh Hoa Province on Wednesday approved a night-time food street comprising 20 mobile trucks along a beach in Nha Trang, a top tourist attraction. The cost of the project is estimated at around VND30 billion ($1.29 million), mobilized from private sources. The food street located near Yen Sao Park adjacent to the beach on Pham Van Dong Street in Nha Trang Town will include pedestrian space, trees and 20 mobile food trucks selling signature seafood, dried food, hot pot dishes and drinks. Souvenir stalls and street art performances will also operate along the street. Bui Hoa Nam, secretary of Khanh Hoa Youth Union, said the food street is expected to enter operation this June and serve tourists from 5:30 p.m. to 2 a.m. Nha Trang in central Vietnam is well known for its beaches and scuba diving, attracting large numbers of backpackers, more affluent foreign travelers, as well as V...

  In March, bell-shaped peach blossoms bloom in the forest and on the way leading to the 1,700-meter-high Voi Mep peak in Quang Tri Province. Voi Mep is located in the central province's three communes of Huong Linh, Huong Son (Huong Hoa District) and Huong Hiep (Dakrong District). The area remains unexploited by tourism, mostly visited by forest rangers, scientists and a few backpackers. From the altitude of 1,400 meters up, the air grows in humidity, with tree trunks covered in thick layers of moss. . Bell-shaped peach blossoms enter bloom in March, dying the way to Voi Mep pink.  The contrast between pink flowers and green jungle creates a scenic backdrop. A bell-shaped peach blossom tree or  Enkianthus quiaqueflorus  can reach 4-5 meters in height. Aside from bell-shaped peach blossoms, spring visitors to Voi Mep will also find orchids, azaleas and red maples. The remains of  two wrecked military aircraft can be found atop Voi Mep, with no trees or grass gro...

  A golf course in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo courtesy of World Golf Awards. Vietnam has been nominated for Asia's best golf destination in the annual 2021 World Golf Awards, with voting expected to last until September 1. The country will compete against China, Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea and Thailand for the title. World Golf Awards, the most prestigious awards program in the golf tourism industry, has occurred annually since 2014. The winner will be determined by votes from industry professionals as well as golfers. Voting is open online at  worldgolfawards.com . Voters are required to register for an account on the website before casting their ballot. In 2019, Vietnam received the World's Best Golf Destination prize at World Golf Awards 2019 held in the United Arab Emirates. According to Vietnam Professional Golf Association, there were over 70,000 people playing golf as a leisure sport in the country in 2018, up from 10,000 in 2009. The nation has more than 30 golf course...

  Its white-sand beach, clear seawater and thousands of red starfish have placed Rach Vem Village firmly on the Phu Quoc tourism map. Located in the north of Phu Quoc, Rach Vem remains unspoiled by mass tourism in the island, providing a glimpse of tranquil local life. Phu Quoc is Vietnam's largest island in Kien Giang Province, off the southern coast. Rach Vem boasts a white-sand beach and clear blue seawater, especially from January to April, the peak tourist season when there is little rainfall and scorching midday sunshine. Currently, Rach Vem is almost deserted due to the Covid-19 pandemic. With its safe and shallow waters, kayaking is an ideal pastime. Only homestays operate in rudimentary but charming Rach Vem,  where you can shadow local fishermen hunting squid. Umbrellas and deck chairs for relaxing hours on the beach. Further away are a number of raft houses, about 200-400 meters from shore, reachable by boat and serving fresh seafood. Another charm of Rach Vem is it...

  People walk on the pedestrian zone near Hoan Kiem Lake in downtown Hanoi, December 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Thanh Hue. Authorities in Hanoi allowed historical sites to reopen from Monday while its popular walking streets near Hoan Kiem (Sword) Lake will resume operation from Friday. The move follows three weeks without Covid-19 community transmissions in the capital city. Huong (Perfume) Pagoda, a collection of temples and shrines built amid mountains and forest in the outlying district of My Duc, will welcome tourists back from Saturday but must comply with pandemic prevention measures. One of the country’s biggest spring celebrations, the Huong (Perfume) Pagoda Festival commences on the sixth day of the first lunar month, which fell on Feb. 17 this year. However, due to the country's latest Covid-19 outbreak which began on Jan. 28, local authorities had earlier canceled all related events. Yen Stream where boats typically dock to carry pilgrims to Huong Pagoda is completely des...

  A former detention center for Vietnamese patriots in Buon Ma Thuot Town is now an important historical relic and tourism destination. The complex in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak was built by French colonialists in the period 1930-1931 to exile and detain convicted central Vietnam partisans. Among them were pioneers in the Soviet Nghe Tinh movement. The area occupies 2 hectares, including a prison, manager house, medical station, kitchen – dining room, classroom, torture chamber, workshop, chapel and office. These structures were all built and operated through two phases: 1931-1945 during the French colonial period and 1954-1975 during the war against the U.S. (Vietnam War). There are six main prison houses. All are lined up with high iron bar windows, solid walls, tiled roofs and meshes of barbed wire above the ceiling to prevent prison break. Being shackled depended on a prisoner's sentence and "level of danger." All inmates, especially political prisoners...

  A 20-meter-long whale skeleton, Vietnam's largest, is on display at the Van Thuy Tu relic temple in coastal town Phan Thiet. Van Thuy Tu is located on Ngu Ong Street, Duc Thang Ward, about 150 meters from Phan Thiet Port in the south-central province of Binh Thuan. On weekends, the relic attracts scores of curious visitors. "The old architecture here is so beautiful - I didn't expect to see such a large whale skeleton," said Le Thu, a tourist among a group of 30 people from Ho Chi Minh City. Vo Ngoc Nguyen Chau, an exhibition guide, said according to legend, in the 18th century after the temple was built, a huge whale had beached itself here. Because of its size, at over 20 meters in length and weighing 65 tons, it took two days to deliver it to the temple, which had its front gate destroyed in the process, pending a funeral ceremony. Three years later, when the body had finally decomposed, the remains were collected, cleaned with water and strong spirits, then move...

  Ha Tinh Province’s Phuc Trach pomelo, Cu do candy and smelt-whiting fish salad have made the list of 100 special dishes and souvenirs compiled by Vietnam Records Association. Smelt-whiting fish salad Smelt-whiting fish salad is a dish unique to the central province's coastal areas like Loc Ha, Nghi Xuan and Thach Ha districts. The fish, found close to the coast, is thumb-sized with an average length of 13-18 centimeters and looks similar to goby. Due to its firm, white sweet meat and availability almost through the year, smelt-whiting fish is a favorite with fishermen for making salads and grilled dishes. To make a salad, prepare the fish by scaling and decapitating them, then slice their body vertically. Marinate the meat in lemon juice for 15 to 30 minutes before squeezing the meat to remove the liquid, and let it dry. Remember to keep the water for dipping sauce. To make the dipping sauce, boil the squeezed water with lemon juice, chopped garlic, tomato, onion, peanut, and chi...

  Bao Loc Pass, Lam Dong Province in March 2021. Photo by VnExpress/Hoai Thanh. To help regulate careless driving on Bao Loc Pass en route to resort town Da Lat, Lam Dong Province authorities plan to install cameras at bends and turns. The decision was made after a series of accidents occurred on Bao Loc, a pass located on Highway 20. Accordingly, Lam Dong People’s Committee is set to spend VND26 billion ($1.12 million) to install 12 cameras at every bend and turn. The 10-kilometer Bao Loc Pass is an important route connecting the country's southeastern region to Lam Dong’s two towns, Da Lat and Bao Loc. While Da Lat is already a famous tourist destination, Bao Loc is both underrated and offbeat with a quiet and calm atmosphere, amazing waterfalls and many great tea and coffee farms. According to a representative of Lam Dong’s traffic police department, installing the cameras would help police monitor careless and reckless driving - a main cause of accidents on the pass. "We a...

Foreign tourists at a beach in Nha Trang Town, central Vietnam, February 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Xuan Ngoc.   Tourism experts proposed Vietnam’s tourism industry prepare to welcome vaccinated foreign visitors back to the country from the third quarter in a similar vein to regional peers. Nguyen Huu Tho, chairman of Vietnam Tourism Association (VTA), said Vietnam has been one of the most successful countries in containing Covid-19 outbreaks, creating favorable conditions for the tourism industry to open up to international markets since the beginning of the third quarter. He cited Thailand, which plans to open its doors to foreign tourists already vaccinated against the coronavirus from July 1, and Singapore, which is ready to do the same. "Vietnam should prepare to receive international visitors from July to help the heavily-hit tourism industry recover as 95 percent of inbound travel firms have suspended operation," Tho told a meeting Wednesday. "Promoting domestic tou...

  Marvin Cortinovis cooks in his restaurant's kitchen. Photo courtesy of Cortinovis. Marvin Lorenzo Cortinovis, an Italian chef living in Vietnam, found it surprising that Vietnamese eat pizza with ketchup. The 32-year-old, who runs an Italian restaurant in Hue, noticed Vietnamese diners always ask if the restaurant has ketchup or hot sauce when eating pizza. "We usually eat pizza without adding any sauce because it already has enough seasoning. I was surprised when customers asked for ketchup or hot sauce, which our restaurant didn’t have. Later, I bought them to meet customer demand," Cortinovis said. The Italian chef added pizza in Vietnam has a wider variety of toppings such as beef, chicken and pineapple. Before opening a restaurant in Hue, Cortinovis used to live in Ho Chi Minh City for a year. "I guess there are many restaurants in Vietnam that make American-style pizzas with many types of toppings on the crust. I prefer the traditional recipe, and if anyone d...