Travelog - A travel guide to Vietnam

Khmer girls performing a folk dance.

Soc Trang Province is a land bearing many imprints of reclaiming land and fighting against foreign aggressors by people of Kinh, Khmer and Hoa (Chinese) ethnic groups, who have always united together in good and bad times and are now joining their efforts to improve their socio-economic life and preserve their unique cultures.

Soc Trang Province People’s Committee President Huynh Thanh Hiep gave us a warm welcome when we met him. He told us about the bumper harvests, good prices for rice and the happiness of the people, especially the Khmer ethnic people. Talking about the last shrimp harvest, he said merrily: “There is a shrimp farm in Vinh Chau that harvested 22 tonnes of shrimp per ha, making it a record in Vietnam. Before the year 2000, one could hardly imagine of golden harvests on Soc Trang land.” President Hiep spoke so positively about the improvements that it inspired us to visit the whole province.

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The traditional ox race festival in Bay Nui, An Giang Province has recently become an interesting event, attracting both home and foreign visitors.

The ox race is usually held once a year in the Dolta festival of the Kh’mer ethnic minority (in the late eighth or early ninth lunar month) that is by no means minor or less attractive to any other sport events when peasants flock to the course with a sport spirit and a desire for victory. The thunderous shouts in both Khmer and Vietnamese languages are an evidence of this fact.

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Ca Mau – a region reclaimed in the late 17th and early 18th centuries – is the habitat of the three ethnic groups: the Viet, the Hoa and the Khmer. This resulted in the mixed cultural features reflected through the unique and rich customs and practices by the locals.

Ca Mau is a vast submerged region in the Mekong River Delta of Southern Vietnam with criss-crossing rivers and canals of thousands of kilometres long. Hence, water transportation plays an important role in the local commercial activities.

The area is endowed by nature with a great potential in eco-tourism. Visitors to this southernmost locality will have an opportunity to wander through the submerged mangrove forests, to visit the islands, bird sanctuary, human dwellings and wild nature conservation areas.

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Hon Khoai is one of the well-known landscapes of the southernmost province of Ca Mau, about 15kilometres from the mainland. Hon Khoai is a group of islets and the biggest island is called Hon Khoai.

Hon Khoai is a rock island with hills and forests including various kinds of precious wood such as Star wood. The wild natural landscapes attract tourists a great deal.

Formerly, Hon Khoa was called Giang Huong, Independence Island and Poulo Obi in the French domination. However, the locals get used to calling it Hon Khoai because it looks like the shape of a giant potato.

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Destinations:

• Tram Chim National Park

Location: The Park covers Communes of Phu Duc, Phu Hiep, Phu Tho, Tan Cong Sinh in Tam Nong District, Dong Thap Province, about 800m from Tram Chim Small Town.
Characteristic: The Park is in the lowest area of the Mekong River water logged plain submerged and in the centre of Dong Thap Muoi.

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Destinations:

• Cantho Tourist Gardens

Location: Located on every land and water route in Cantho City (Mekong Delta).
Characteristics:The gardens are a rich collection of fruit trees, flowers and diverse species of birds, fishes…

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Destinations:

• The Historical Site of the Provincial Party Committee’s Base

Location: Situated at Phuong Quoi Hamlet, Phuong Binh Commune, Phung Hiep District, Hau Giang Province.
Characteristics: The Provincial Party Committee’s base, also known as Ba Bai Base. The base covers 6ha of garden land, surrounded to the southeast by Xang and Lai Hieu canals, to the northeast by Ca Cuong canal, to the northwest by an old canal and to the southwest by Ba Bai canal.

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Destinations:

• Vinh Trang Pagoda

Location: Vinh Trang Pagoda is located in a large garden in My Phong Commune, Mytho City, Tien Giang Province.
Characteristics: The architecture of the pagoda is a harmonious combination of Asian and European types of architecture, creating the splendid, but simple features of this Buddhist pagoda.

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Destinations:

• Oc-Eo Remains Site

Location: Oc-Eo Remains Site is located in the mountainous region of Sap - Ba The in Thoai Son District, An Giang Province; 30km from Long Xuyen.
Characteristics: It is a vast ancient vestige of the Phu Nam Kingdom, a powerful nation in the Southeast Asia about two thousand years ago. In the Middle Ages, the ancient citadel of Oc-Eo used to be a commercial center.

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Destinations:

• Phu Quoc Island

Location: Phu Quoc Island lies in the Gulf of Thailand, Kien Giang Province, 45 km from Ha Tien and 15 km south of the coast of Cambodia.
Characteristics: Phu Quoc, the largest island in Vietnam, is also part of an archipelago consisting of 22 islands and islets. The island covers an area of 585km2 and is 50km long.

• Ha Tien’s Beauty

Location: Located about 90km from Rach Gia City.
Characteristics: Ha Tien is a seaside and fishing resort which offers several beautiful and interesting sites to discover.