Son Doong - the world’s largest cave is now OPEN to tourists

Son Doong, the world’s largest cave in the north-central province of Quang Binh, will open soon for long day tours on a trial basis, local authorities have decided.

A source from the province's People's Committee, the local government, said Sunday that the tours will be open for up to seven tourists at a time and around 15 local people will work as tou rguides and porters.
Each tour can be designed for four to six nights, according to a statement signed by the province's vice mayor Tran Tien Dung.

A Dan Tri report, citing the statement, said that if the trial proves beneficial and convenient, the cave will be developed for regular tours between February and August every year.

Son Doong, which is 150 meters high and 200 meters wide, became known worldwide in 2009 when it was explored by members of British Cave Research Association led by Howard Limbert and his wife Deb Limbert, guided by local resident Ho Khanh.

Four months ago, the British couple opened free English langauge and caving classes for residents of Son Trach Commune to prepare them to take advantage of opportunities caving tourism brings into the area.

They said they wanted to reciprocate the support they have received since 1990 in exploring many caves, including Son Doong, in the Phong Nha-Ke Bang system.

Many such explorations have seen the network of 300 different grottoes and caves win UNESCO world heritage recognition in 2003 for its unique beauty, biodiversity and geological diversity. Tourism revenues for the commune doubled from 2009 to VND24.5 billion (US$1.2 million) in 2011.

While wanting local residents to benefit, Howard Limbert said at a meeting with Vietnamese experts last December that the negative environmental impacts of caving tourism needs to be minimized. He  said caves should be closed regularly and for enough time.

Any necessary construction needs to be made with natural materials like wood, the power of lighting needs to be reduced or, better still, there should be no lights and only footpaths should be illuminated, he said.

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Hue to have full free wi-fi coverage by year-end

The People’s Committee of Thua Thien Hue has planned to cover Hue City with free wi-fi service by the end of this year.

Hoi An in Quang Nam Province has become the first tourist city to provide free wi-fi service to residents and visitors.

The Viet Nam Posts and Telecommunications Group is providing the service in Hue. Relevant agencies are surveying and installing 181 wireless internet connection facilities in Hue and the ancient village of Phuoc Tich, Phong Dien District, Thua Thien Hue Province. First wi-fi hotspots will be installed at railway stations, airports, bus stations, wharves and the public places where there are many tourists.

Costs for running the service will be covered by local budgets and contributions from some enterprises such as hotels and travel agencies.

Source:VietNamNet

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UNESCO praises Hanoi’s preservation efforts

The Director of UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre, Kishore Rao, has highlighted the efforts made by Hanoi to preserve the ancient royal citadel of Thang Long.

After inspecting the Thang Long Citadel in Hanoi on September 13, Rao said he was delighted to return to the citadel and impressed at the amount of work that the Centre for the Preservation of Thang Long-Hanoi Cultural Heritage has completed since the site was officially recognised as a World Heritage site in 2010.

As part of a project funded by Japan from 2010-2012, the centre held a number of seminars to assess the archaeological work that needs to be done at the citadel and completed its management strategy, including an action plan for the period 2012-2015.

The centre will continue to carry out the commitments the Government made to the International Council for Monuments and Sites on Thang Long Citadel and will carry on with research and training cadres in the field.

Source: VNA

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Cruise tourism in Southeast Asia begins to boom

Cruise tourism in Vietnam is growing in the context that this segment begins to boom in Southeast Asia.

Phan Xuan Anh, chairman of Viet Excursions, said cruise lines from the U.S. and Europe are promoting new destinations in Asia, including Vietnam. Therefore, the company has recorded a rise of 1.5 times in the number of orders for the tourism season from November 2012 to April 2013, the best growth so far.

Viet Excursions not only caters to cruise ships arriving in Vietnam, but also those visiting Cambodia. From Cambodia, tourists can take chartered flights to Thailand, and then travel to Singapore.

Meanwhile, Saigontourist estimated the company would welcome 130,000 international cruise tourists this year, rising 25-30% against 2011. Along with the cruise ships coming from Asian countries, Saigontourist is receiving cruise ships from Europe and many international river cruise ships.

In the next tourism season, from November 2012 to March 2013, Saigontourist will welcome some 80,000 tourist arrivals, mostly those coming from China on cruise ships operated by StarCruises.

Cruise tourism in Southeast Asia begins to boom. Large cruise ships in the world have made presence in the region, dropping anchors in Singapore, one of the regional countries with strength in cruise tourism.

This is informed in a press release of the division for ASEAN cruise tourism under ASEAN Tourism on the occasion of the two-day conference Cruise Shipping Asia-Pacific opening on Monday in Singapore.

Large cruise ships such as Costa Deliziosa of Costa Cruises, or those operated by Royal Caribbean and Voyager of the Seas choose Singapore as the main port from now to 2013. Other ships of Costa Cruises and those of StarCruises have already chosen Singapore as the main port.

They are also expanding the port network into Kuala Lumpur, Langkawi, Penang, and Malacca in Malaysia; Bangkok, Phuket, and Koh Samui in Thailand; Bali and Komodo in Indonesia; and HCMC, Danang and Halong Bay in Vietnam.

Source: SGT

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Hanoi –world’s cheapest city for tourists

The rating is based on the average cost of one night’s accommodation for two at a four-star hotel, inclusive of dinner and return taxi fares over a 3.2 kilometre route.

The other cities from Asia are Beijing in China, which came second, closely followed by Bangkok in Thailand and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia.

Cities in Europe have once again come out as the most expensive destinations to visit.

The most expensive is London in the UK, followed by Oslo in Norway, Zurich in Switzerland, Paris in France and Stockholm in Sweden.

The results were from a survey of US cities, which receive the largest number of international visitors during the period from June 1 to August 31.

Source: VNA

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Hanoi, Hoi An among best Asian destinations

According to an online poll conducted by the magazine, regarded as a leading authority on the regional travel industry, Hanoi remains in sixth position, as recorded last year, while Hoi An is rated seventh.

Bali island in Indonesia ranks first, followed by Phuket in Thailand and Hong Kong .

The Hanoi Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism said the title helps the capital city’s tourism sector promote its image and position in the eyes of domestic and international friends.

The magazine’s representative presented the title to the department in Hanoi on Aug. 22.

VNA

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Unusual foods from Central Vietnam

Central Vietnam may be a barren land but it has given the country many delectable food items.
Among them are fermented fish intestine and fermented squid.

There are some kinds of fish whose intestines too are delicious. Tuna, for instance. But normally you would expect the intestine to be cooked and eaten just like the flesh. But, strangely, the intestine is turned into a delightful paste in Binh Dinh Province.

To make it, get the intestine of triggerfish or tuna, ensuring it is large and fresh. It is not necessary to wash it because it is not dirty and does not contain any toxic substance. But remove the gall bladder to make sure the paste is not bitter. With a sharp knife make a delicate cut to drain the viscous substance inside. Then cut it into small pieces, put in a container or glass jar, and add salt, with one portion of salt for two portions of intestine. Cover the jar tightly and put it in the sun for three to seven days. The intestine shrinks and becomes a paste.
Fifteen days later, after soaking up the salt, it produces a dark liquid. It takes another two to three months to get the extract, which no longer smells fishy. Throw away the intestine and use only the thick sauce. It is tasty and fragrant, delicious when eaten with hot rice, vermicelli, bánh hỏi (fine rice vermicelli), or bánh cuốn (steamed rice rolls). To make it even tastier, put a pan over low heat, add some oil and chopped garlic for fragrance, and then the sauce. Stir it well and add some sugar and seasoning to get a greasy dark sauce that smells good. You can add chilli to make it spicier.

Fermented squid
Cuttlefish paste is made in a similar manner. Choose fresh fish with firm flesh, and wash but not clean its intestine.

To prepare the paste, a specialty of Quang Ngai Province, mix one bowl of salt with three bowls of the intestine, mix well, and put in a container.

It ferments and usually turns black because of the internal ink bag. It is advisable not to discard the bag because locals think it is the extract of the squid. If it is removed, the fermented squid turns lighter but also less tasty.
The fermented squid can be eaten raw, but the texture is somewhat tough. So people often chop it into small pieces and put it in a bowl of chopped ginger, chili, and garlic. Then, add some chopped pineapple and one will have delicious sauce. It is eaten with hot rice and herbs and vegetables.

If you don’t fancy raw fermented fish intestine or fermented squid, add pork belly and braise to get a delicious dish.

Mix the pork belly with the paste, add some seasoning and sugar, then put in a pan over low heat. Braise until the meat soaks much of the paste and the latter turns thicker.

By Nguyet Anh, Thanh Nien News

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