The island of god

Tourists take a boat along the canal in the Mekong Delta - Photo: My Tran

The rivers and channels of the amazing Mekong Delta contain many islands that are interesting to visit. The richly fertile island of Cu Lao May, or May Islet in Vinh Long Province is also known as the land of God.

To get there, take a ferry from Tra On Market for VND1,000. Xe om (motorbike taxi) are also available for VND2,000. The islet, which was formerly named Luc Si Thanh Island, located in Tra On District, covers about 4,000 hectares.

Once on the island explore the orchards of oranges, pomelo, rambutan and star apples by hired bicycle or motorbike. Tourists can also visit the rice paper making village and see how the paper that is wrapped around so many delicious Vietnamese rolls is made.

Hau Thanh Temple on the island is where King Tu Duc conferred the title of Hoang Thanh Bon Canh (The land of god) in 1852. The quiet temple is surrounded by trees. In the lunar fourth month every year, there is a traditional festival at the temple which attracts many pilgrims and visitors.

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The slow boat to Phu Quy Island

A stunning beach on Phu Quy Island

Phu Quy Island, also called Thu or Khoai Islet, is 120km from Phan Thiet City, between the mainland and Truong Sa Archipelago. The island covers 16 square kilometers and has many cultural and religious relics typical of central coast farming communities.

We left Phan Thiet Port at 7 a.m. The slow boat took eight hours. I was seasick most of the way because of the bumpy conditions. It was very tiring, but I jumped up straight away when the siren signaled our arrival.

Seen from the sea, Phu Quy Island looks like a dragon playing with clouds. From another angle it looks like a giant whale crossing the ocean.

Linh Son Pagoda on Cao Cat Mountain

The port is very busy. The locals speak with an accent that is hard to understand but they are very friendly. There are plenty of houses and coconut trees. Despite no fresh water streams, drinking water isn’t a problem because it can be pumped up from underground.

The island has many hills, knolls and sand dunes. Most of administrative offices, stadiums, schools, entertainments and traffic systems on the island are still new and there’s a few more being built. It looks a bit urban but there are  no numbers and no street names.

During four days on the island, I visited many places and met many foreign backpackers who were there to enjoy swimming or surfing on the island’s stunning beaches or bicycling around the trails. It has tourism appeal and will probably take off as a new destination in a few years.

I visited Linh Quang Pagoda in Tam Thanh Commune, which is over 250 years old, and contains artifacts from the Nguyen Dynasty. Also, Thay Nai Temple built in the 17th century is a place where fishermen come to worship. Every year, locals hold a festival to pray for peace and better life.

A stone house by the sea - Photos: Le Ba Lu

Linh Son Pagoda, located on Cao Cat Mountain at 120 meters above sea level, is a beautiful building. It’s very peaceful. From there, I looked out across the island to see tiny boats drifting on the sea and coconut palms, the people in the town looked as small as ants.

When you come to Phu Quy you have to try the seafood - grilled lobsters, steamed turtle with salt and many kinds of dishes made of squid, oysters and clams. Long Vi Restaurant near Thay Nai Temple is a good venue.

There are just six hotels and guest houses in Tam Thanh Commune and they are all well equipped. The island only has power from 7:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. everyday, but the weather at nighttime is a bit cold so there’s no need for a fan.

Phu Quy Island District comprises 10 islands, of which only Phu Quy is inhabited. The district has three communes, 5,466 households with 27,000 people, most of them fishermen.

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Quang Binh’s bird island

VietnamPlus Bird Island is being promoted for eco trips - Photo: VietnamPlus

About 70 kilometers from Quang Binh Province’s Dong Hoi City, there is a deserted island called Chim (Bird) or Gio (Wind) Island that is home to many sea birds.

Two different boat services are available from Dong Hoi City to the island.

A four-hour boat leaves from Nhat Le-Dong Hoi seaport and there is a two-hour service from Canh Duong seaport in Quang Trach District.

The sky above the rocky island is always full of birds that nest there. Standing on the highest rock, the view goes forever in every direction, just miles of sea and endless sky.

Far from your computer you can sit and gaze on the ocean, listening to the waves and birds.

Not many tourists travel there because of the long boat journey, but a few go in summer. Mainly it is used by fishermen, otherwise it is untouched, the air is clean and the water is blue.

The local authorities are planning to promote the image of the island to local and foreign tourists, especially nature lovers who are interested in birdwatching.

Other islands in the province include Vung Chua, Yen and Doi islands.

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A quiet island get-away near Nha Trang

A view of Chuong Beach on Binh Ba island in Nha Trang City - Photo: Q. Vuong

The white sandy beaches and coral reefs of Binh Ba island are only a short motorbike and boat ride from Cam Ranh Township in the central coast province of Khanh Hoa.

The coral island presents a change of pace from the province’s bustling capital, the beach resort town of Nha Trang.

To get to the island, go to Cam Ranh bus station and take a motorbike taxi for VND10,000 to Ba Ngoi Wharf. From the wharf, there is a boat to Binh Ba at 10 a.m. for VND10,000 per person and VND5,000 per student. There are two boats that head back to the mainland - at 5 a.m. and 12 p.m.

Nom Beach is a quiet little stretch of smooth sand and very blue water. Along the beach are some rocks, where it is nice to sit and watch the waves. Locals use the beach in summer for bathing and often go there at night when the moon is full for small parties.

The path from Nom Beach to Chuong Beach passes wild flowers, colorful snails and rocky outcrops with small caves. If you take your snorkel and goggles to Chuong Beach, you can see many colorful corals in the sea. There are also a lot of bird nests on the island making it interesting for nature enthusiasts.

A short hike up the hill there are ruins of an old French military base. The top of the hill has beautiful sunset views.

Most of the island residents are fishermen. Shrimp is the main catch.

There are very few if any facilities for tourists on Binh Ba, so it’s important to prepare a good picnic lunch or take a tent if you want to stay the night. Otherwise you can eat at some small restaurants and ask one of the locals if you could stay the night. The beach, however, is a great place to camp and have a barbecue.

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Wade into a special experience

While most eco-tourism sites in Vietnam host a variety of flora and fauna, Co (Stork) Island in Chi Lang Nam Commune of the northern province of Hai Duong boasts 20,000 wading birds.

A boat ride on An Duong Lake is a special experience, as thousands of storks and night-herons take turns in flying back and forth for food, covering the expanse above the lake.

The best time to see this is early in the morning when the night-herons are back and storks set out on their hunting forays, and late in the afternoon when the two species exchange their “working shifts” again.

If you happen to take a trip to the island between September and April, don’t forget to bring along a camera with a zoom lens or a pair of binoculars to see hundreds of eggs in the nests built by the birds on trees and in shrubs, or to watch baby storks practice flying.

Residents say during eight months of the year, thousands of storks from other places fly to the island and lay eggs.

At least 12 species of water-walking birds have been spotted on the island, which is some 70 kilometers from Hanoi. These include the storks, night-herons and rare cinnamon bitterns.

The island, covering nearly 3,000 square meters, also houses another 170 animal species like otters. The An Duong Lake, which is up to 25 meters deep, has fish weighing up to several dozen kilograms each.

Visitors to the island will no doubt hear legends about it from local residents. It is said that during the 15th century, three deluges struck a big dyke along the Red River, breaking it into pieces. The island was formed after the second disaster.

In 1994, authorities of Thanh Mien District, where the island is located, invested in a project to turn the island into a tourism site, which now attracts some 40,000 visitors annually.

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A giant tortoise, a whale and upturned bowls

Tourists angling at Ha Ba (Sea God) Tail, also known as Dua Beach, one of the scenic spots on Tre Island

From afar, it looks like a giant tortoise swimming in the sea, and locals appropriately call it the Tortoise Island.

It takes about an hour on an express boat from the Rach Gia Port to get to Tre Island in the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang.

With its mountains, rocky beaches and coves, the island’s rugged and wild beauty is eye-catching by itself, but it also offers places of cultural interest that add to its attraction.

To discover the island fully, hiring a motorbike or a bicycle to ride along the 12-kilometer long road that circles it is the best option. The fresh and cool air from the sea, the wild flowers growing wildly on the mountains and some scenic spots make the ride a highly enjoyable activity.

Around 15 minutes of riding our bicycles clockwise from the wharf, we arrived at the Ong Nam Hai Temple, which is dedicated to a five-ton whale that beached on the island in 2006.

In Vietnam's fishing culture, whales are considered sacred. Legend has it that whales have saved the lives of many fishermen by pushing their boats through rough seas.

Whenever whales arrive on land, dead or alive, local fishermen believe they bring luck and safety at sea. When they see a dead whale, they pull the carcass ashore and hold a burial ceremony. Several years later, they exhume the skeleton and enshrine it in a temple.

From the Ong Nam Hai Temple, we continued to go along the road which formed a unique promenade with the sea on one side and a mountain on the other. Soon, we reached the Ha Ba (Sea God) Tail, also known as Dua Beach. The transparent water tempts you to swim, and both tourists and locals love to catch oysters, or do some fishing. We didn’t miss the opportunity to take some spectacular pictures.

We then went to the Chen (Bowl) Beach, the most famous scenic spot on the island. Along the shore for about two kilometers, numerous large and small rocks dot the seascape. During high tide, most of them are submerged, and when the waters recede, they reappear like so many overturned bowls.

GETTING THERE

• From Ho Chi Minh City, tourists can take a flight or a bus to reach Rach Gia Town in the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang. The town is 250 kilometers west of HCMC. • Then, visitors can take a bus, taxi, or xe om (motorbike taxi) for a 15- minute drive to the Rach Gia Port. • From 7 a.m. everyday, express boats carry passengers from the port to Tre Island. The last boat that travels back to the port departs at 4 p.m. • For tourists who want to stay at Tre Island overnight, there are guest houses near the wharf on the island. Children living on Tre Island play at Chen (Bowl) Beach

Sitting on these upturned bowls after swimming, we watched locals’ fishing boats bob about in the distance as well as the spumes left from the express boats that came in and left the island. Not far from us, some relatively flat-bottomed “bowls” formed ideal perches for some visitors to try their luck at fishing.

There are only two families living on Chen Beach. They were willing to let us hire necessary utensils to cook the seafood that we had bought from the small market near the wharf. You can also bring your own utensils to the beach.

Having a self-cooked meal on the beach was a pleasant experience that we are going to remember for a long, long time.

Our final destination on Tre Island was Dong Dua, a small bay where coconut palms reach out to the sun along the coast. Apart from swimming at the rocky beach here, local guides accompanied us as we attempted to conquer the mountain. On the way up, we were sustained by the sight of mango, banana and jackfruit orchards

We had to climb over large rocks and sometimes get into small caves before scaling the 400-meter-high peak. It was challenging, but the prize was worth it. We could see wild orchids growing out from the caves and more important, the panoramic and dazzling overview of the island from atop was a fitting finale to a most memorable weekend.

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