Ba Vi National Park is centred around scenic Ba Vi Mountain (Nui Ba Vi) and attracts Hanoi expats looking for a Sunday escape from the city. The park has over 2000 flowering plants, 12 of which have been classified as rare and precious – so please don’t pick any of the flowers or plants. There are also reportedly 12 species of mammal living in the park but human encroachment on the area has made the chances of seeing any of them pretty rare.

There are hiking opportunities through the forested slopes of the mountain and anyone who climbs up to the summit will be rewarded with a spectacular view of the Red River valley from the summit (elevation 1287m).

The Ba Vi Guesthouse in the park rents fan rooms with bath for US$6, or US$8 with air-con. Prices go up about US$2 per room on weekends.

Warning: you must have your passport with you to check into the guesthouse here; one traveller we met was sent back to Hanoi because he had forgotten to bring it along.

Ba Vi National Park is about 65km west of Hanoi Capital. Contact Hands pan VN Tours or Viet Vision Travel Tours (see the list of travel agents earlier in this chapter) for informal ion and current tour programs.

Quan Son Lake is situated in My Duc District. It is about 50 kilometres southeast of central Hanoi. It covers an area of 850ha with nearly 100 mountains and a diversity of plantation, pagodas and historic relics.

The lake water is clear with fresh air year round. Visitors to the lake will be taken by surprise at the natural beauty: the water, the clouds, the river and the mountains. Quan Son eco-tourism system is covered with rebirth-forests of rare plantation and animal species. Wildlife: birds, reptiles, mammals are plentiful in the forest. The area has retained traces of national cultures, festival traditional identities. The attraction lies in the natural beauties almost untouched and untapped.

Around the lake, there are pagodas. Linh Son Pagoda lies at the foot of the Linh Son Mount, mirroring in the Giang Noi Lake. Linh Son Grotto is nearby. Its not so large but there are beautiful stalactites and stalagmites. Pagoda of Cao and Ham Yen are close in sight. Ham Rong Pagoda is a must to see when in Quan Son. Its built in ancient architecture with decorative designs of dragons, phoenixes, plants, birds and flowers. The pagoda was a revolutionary base during the resistance-war against French invasion.

Camping, boating, fishing and trekking, swimming are available and please don’t forget to try the local specialties cooked by ethnic minorities in stilt-houses or night at the foot of the mountains.

Travelling to quan son Lake in My Duc, tourists will be impressed with scenery of wild nature of the lotus lake with the mountains mirroring on the water.

At the foot is Suoi Hai Lake. This artificial body of water was built in 1958, and protects 14 islands of varying sizes. There are many trees and fruit gardens on the islands and lakeshore.

Suoi Hai lake, twice as large as Hanoi’s West Lake (over 1,000 ha), 16 km from Son Tay, is famous for “wild geese shooting” all year round. And each season on Suoi Hai Lake is lovely, characterised by its own peculiar beauty.

Dong Mo Lake is located at the foot of Ba Vi Mountain, approximately 40 km from Hanoi. This artificial lake has long supplied water for the whole Son Tay area.

More than 20 islands emerge from the lake. With a total area of 1,300 ha, Dong Mo Lake is an ideal site for camping, Sunday picnics, or vacations. An international 36-hole golf course was opened in 1995.

A cultural village illustrating Vietnam’s ethnic minorities will be built in Dong Mo – Ngai Son region. Thus, this region will surely become an interesting tourist attraction.

Easily reached from Hanoi, Dong Mo Resort is an ideal place to escape from town and relax in a slow – paced environment.

Truc Bach (White Silk) Lake is separated from Ho Tay by D Thanh Nien, which is lined with name trees. During the 18th century, the Trinh lords built a palace on this site; it was later transformed into a reformatory for deviant royal concubines, who were condemned to weave a very fine white silk.

The Quan Thanh Temple (Den Quan Thanh) is on the shore of Truc Bach Lake near the intersection of D Thanh Nein and Pho Quan Thanh (see Central Hanoi map). The temple, shaded by huge trees, was established during the Ly Dynasty (1010 to 1225) and was dedicated to Tran Vo (God of the North), whose symbols of power are the tortoise and the snake. A bronze statue and bell here date from 1677.

The Red River, also known as the Hong – Red, Song Cai, Song Ca – Mother River (Vietnamese), or Yuan River (Chinese), is a river that flows from southwestern China through northern Vietnam to the Gulf of Tonkin.

The Red River begins in China’s Yunnan province in the mountains south of Dali. It flows generally southeastwardly, passing through Dai ethnic minority areas before leaving China through Yunnan’s Honghe Autonomous Prefecture. It enters Vietnam at Lào Cai Province. Once reaching the lowlands near Viet Tri, the river and its distributaries spread out to form the Red River Delta. The Red River flows past the Vietnamese capital Hanoi before emptying into the Gulf of Tonkin. Tonkin is the former name of the northern provinces of Vietnam and thus the eponymous body of water receiving the main river of “Tonkin”.

The reddish-brown heavily silt-laden water gives the river its name. The Red River is notorious for its violent floods with its seasonally wide volume fluctuations. The delta is a major agricultural area of Vietnam with vast area devoted to rice. The land is protected by an elaborate network of dykes and levees.

The Black River and Lo River are the Red River’s two chief tributaries.

Location: West Lake is in Tay Ho District, Hanoi.

Characteristic: West Lake, also called Ho Tay, is the biggest lake in central Hanoi, covering 500ha. In the past, West Lake used to be part of the Red River. West Lake, a beautiful spot in Hanoi, was once a resort for mandarins and kings.

Two legends explain the origins of Ho Tay (West Lake), also known as the Lake of Mist and the Big Lake. According to one legend, Ho Tay was created when the Dragon King drowned an evil nine-tailed fox in his lair, which was in a forest on this site. Another legend relates that in the 11th century, a Vietnamese Buddhist monk, Khong Lo, rendered a great service to the emperor of China, who rewarded him with a vast quantity of bronze from which he cast a huge bell. The sound of the bell could be heard all the way to China, where the Golden Buffalo Calf: mistaking the ringing for its mother’s call, ran southward, trampling on the site of Ho Tay and turning it into a lake.

In reality, the lake was created when the Song Hong (Red River) overflowed its banks. Indeed, Song Hong has changed its course numerous times; alternately flooding some lands and creating new ones though silt build lip. The flood problem has been partially controlled by building dikes. The highway along the east side of Ho Tay is built upon one.

The lake was once ringed with magnificent palaces and pavilions. These were destroyed in the course of various feudal wars. The circumference of West Lake is about 13km.

The Tran Quoc Pagoda is on the shore of Ho Tay just off D Thanh Nien, which divides Ho Tay from True Bach Lake. A stele here dating tram 1639 tells the history of this site. The pagoda was rebuilt in the 15th century and again in 1842. There are a number of monks’ funerary monuments in the garden. This is one of the oldest pagodas in Vietnam.

On the south side of the lake is a popular strip of outdoor seafood restaurants (see Places to Eat later in this chapter) while the north side has been ear-marked for the development of luxurious villas and hotels.

Tag: Hotels in Hanoi, Hanoi Tours, Halong bay cruises, Mekong river cruises, Ho Chi Minh city Tours

Location: Hoan Kiem Lake is located in the center of Hanoi.

Characteristic: Hoan Kiem Lake also called Lake of the Restored Sword. The name Lake of the Restored Sword is derived from a legend.

Hoan Kiem Lake is an enchanting body of water right ill the heart of Hanoi. Legend has it that in the mid-15th century, Heaven gave Emperor Ly Thai To (Le Loi) a magical sword which he used to drive the Chinese out or Vietnam. One day alter the war, while out boating, he came upon a giant golden tortoise swimming on the surface of the water; the creature grabbed the sword and disappeared into the depths of the lake. Since that time, the lake has been known as Ho Hoan Kiem (Lake of the Restored Sword) because the tortoise restored the sword to its divine owners.

The forlorn Thap Rua (Tortoise Tower), topped with a red star, on an islet in the middle of the lake, is often used as an emblem of Hanoi. Every morning around 6 am, local residents can be seen doing their traditional morning exercises, jogging and playing badminton around this lake.