Conquering Fansipan to be the champion

Climbers make their way to the top of Fansipan - Photo: Courtesy of Lua Viet Tours

In late September, we went on a tour called “Conquering the roof of Indochina” held by Lua Viet Tours to climb Mount Fansipan, 3,143 meters above sea level. We met at Hanoi railway station at 8:30 p.m. to catch the train to Lao Cai. That night we could not sleep and the weather was very bad.

At 9 a.m. the next morning, we transferred from Sapa Town to Tram Ton pass, which is at an altitude of 1,900 meters, where we started the climb. Dressed in proper mountaineering gear, we were eager for the journey ahead. On our shoulders were light backpacks with water, cookies and fruit and clothes and we carried the “Truong Son stick”. The local porters took the tents, sleeping bags and food ahead of us.

Fansipan is the highest peak of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, so it is called the “Roof of Indochina” while the local people call it Huasipan, which means large tottering rock. Located in Lao Cai Province in the northwest of Vietnam, 9km southwest of Sapa Town in the Hoang Lien Son Mountain Range, Fansipan is approved as an eco-tourist spot of Vietnam, with about 2,024 floral varieties, over 700 medical herbs, 66 faunal species, 347 bird species, 102 species of reptile and amphibians. Vietnamese people are proud of Fansipan and consider it the Garden of Eden that God gave to Vietnam.

From afar, magnificent and surrounded by white clouds, Fansipan looks proud and as charming as a mountain girl in waiting. In the cold wind, we passed along the tortuous roads through forests where trees wore moss coats. We smelled the different scents from the moss, grass, cardamoms, wet soil and many kinds of flowers.

On the way, we saw some huge dew-worms, 40 centimeters long and as thick as fingers, and heard frogs and birds. We had staffs for walking but sometimes we had to climb with our hands and feet. At noon, we stopped at a rest-point for lunch. After that, we continued our way upwards and the paths got wetter and more slippery. The beautiful scenery, however made us forget our tiredness. Many kinds of flowers displayed their beauty. The cold wind rustled the groves of bamboo. We reached the top camp at 17:45 p.m. After dinner, we put on extra coats and crept into our sleeping bags. It was raining outside and the strong winds were screaming.

In the morning, we started climbing in the rain. We encouraged each other and went on with a sense of excitement. At 10:45 a.m., we were on the top and feeling happiness all around, we hugged each other tightly and took pictures beside the metal triangular marker written “Fansipan 3,143 m – Roof of Indochina”. Anyone who has conquered the summit of Fansipan or other summits will never forget the happy moment, when we find out that we can scale the height, the difficulties and ourselves.

For the Daily’s readers: Lua Viet Tours company offers a promotion to the Daily’s readers who bring this paper with an article about Fansipan to the office at 677 Tran Hung Dao Street, HCMC’s District 5. You will enjoy a discount of 5% when booking a 5-day-4-night Fansipan tour "Conquering the Roof of Indochina with Lua Viet" for VND3.7 million (before discount), and will be given a free three-month subscription to The Saigon Times Daily. Tours will start from October 31 to November 5.

Related Articles

• Conquering Fansipan to be the champion
• Hanoi T&T win first V-League after scoreless draw
• Vietnam down Iran, go top

Tourism industry targets 12mln foreign visitors

The tourism industry plans to earn 8.9 billion USD in 2015 when the
country expects to welcome 12 million foreign visitors and host 28
million domestic travellers, according to a draft on tourism development
from 2010-20.

The industry would earn 15.9 billion USD in revenue in 2020, which would
contribute to 6 percent of GDP, according to the draft.

Nguyen Manh Cuong, deputy head of the Vietnam National Administration
of Tourism, said the development plan was drafted after his
administration extensively surveyed related ministries and sectors.

The draft would be submitted to Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung for approval, Cuong said.

In this period, the Vietnamese tourism sector would promote products
rather than images, said the deputy head of the Marketing Department
under the National Administration of Tourism, Nguyen Thi Thanh Huong.

The country's tourism sector has so far created specific tourism products to attract visitors.

Officials are now eyeing Meeting, Incentive, Convention and Exhibition
(MICE) events and health care tourism as potential sectors that might
attract tourists from Southeast and Northeast Asia.

The industry will also need to focus on attracting more tourists from
the EU, North America, Australia and Overseas Vietnamese.

In addition, programmes to study market opportunities in India and the Middle East will also be established.

Recently, the administration kicked off a slogan and symbol contest for the Vietnamese tourism sector.

The first prize is worth 50 million VND (2,500 USD) and the deadline
is December 15. Domestic and foreign companies, organisations and
individuals are able to participate./.

Related Articles

• Int’l arrivals in city take on faster track in Oct
• HCMC to relay grand sale program to November
• Energy group asks for 50% price hike
• Foreign sea leases deprive locals of living
• Preparations for congress reviewed

The grave of Yersin – friend of the Vietnamese

The grave of doctor Alexandre Yersin on a hill near Nha Trang City - Photo: Anh Viet

On your tour of the central coast city of Nha Trang, after exploring the islands and beaches, you should head south on National Highway 1A for 20 kilometers to visit the grave of the physician and bacteriologist, Alexandre Yersin. The Swiss/French who had made Vietnam his home is best known for discovering the bacteria that causes the bubonic plague. The grave is in Suoi Cat Commune, Dien Khanh District, Khanh Hoa Province.

Accessed via a small trail, the grave is on a hill under the shade of rubber trees. The tombstone says he was a “Benefactor and humanist, venerated by the Vietnamese people”.

Yersin (1863-1943) was born in Switzerland to a Swiss father and a French mother. He studied in Switzerland and later moved to France where he obtained a degree in medicine. Yersin devoted 50 years of his life to work in Pasteur Institute

He traveled to Nha Trang for the first time in 1891. At the end of 1899, he came back and established the Pasteur Institute. He devoted 50 years of his life to microbiology, virology, and epidemic research and he developed a vaccine against the bubonic plague.

Living modestly, he gained the trust of Con hamlet villagers. He traveled in the mountains and recorded his observations. He also recommended to the government to establish a hill station in what is now Dalat.

Yersin died in Nha Trang on March 1, 1943. According to the instructions in his will, his body was buried with his face to the earth and facing the sea so that he could forever embrace his second homeland.

For the many things he did for Vietnam, he is the most beloved French person to the people here.

Related Articles

• PM foresees bright future for co-operation with Africa
• Citibank employees celebrate Global Community Day
• Future doctors look for clues in crazy race
• President welcomes more co-operation with Spain
• Painters show works inspired by nature, nostalgia

Malaysia encourages Vietnam to develop homestay services

Dato Hj Sahariman Hamdan (L), Chairman of Malaysia Homestay Association, talks with Huynh Ngoc Nga, marketing manager of Vietnam Discovery magazine at the Malaysia Homestay Seminar on Saturday - Photo: My Tran

Vietnam has potential to develop a very strong homestay tourism market, a Malaysian tourism official told the Malaysia Homestay Seminar and Travel Mart at the Duxton Hotel Saigon in HCMC.

“We are proud of our country and the achievements of homestay tourism. Your country is endowed with beautiful natural landscapes, your country has enough human resources, and I think you, Vietnam, can also develop homestay tourism as much as we are doing and have done,” said Mohd Akbal Setia, Director of Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board in HCMC on Saturday.

Dato Hj Sahariman Hamdan, Chairman of Malaysia Homestay Association, said that homestay tours are an experience where tourists stay with selected families, interact and experience the daily life of these families and local culture.

The local tour operators that attended the event were very interested in the success of Malaysia’s homestay industry.

It is not classified as accommodation, Setia said. Tourists to each state in Malaysia can taste the state’s unique culture and entertainment activities such as traditional dances, songs, food, folk games and sports, he said  Homestay visitors get to witness first hand farming practices such as rubber tapping, fish farming, paddy farming, cocoa, palm oil, fruits and jungle trekking, white water rafting, and craft villages, he said.

“We have jungle homestay, we have island homestay, we have paddy homestay, we have mountain homestay, so we offer diverse options for tourists,” Dato Shahariman said.

As far as landscapes and places of interest were concerned Vietnam was on a par with Malaysia and should exploit the potential, the conference heard.

“Homestay’s development is based on the landscapes, cultural and historical values and people, said Lam Van Son, director of Can Tho Tourist Company.

“We can have mountain homestay in Daklak, Sapa, Lai Chau, island homestay in Nha Trang, Phu Quoc, orchard homestay in Can Tho, Vinh Long, craft village homestay in Hanoi and highlands homestay in Dalat,” Son said. Huynh My An, marketing manager of Viettours said, despite having 54 ethnic groupings with rich cultures and histories, we still don’t know how to promote it to international tourists.

Established since 1995 at Temerloh Village in Pahang State, the Malaysian homestay program has spread to 227 villages around the country. Local villagers are trained by the governmental organizations and can earn good incomes, said Dato Sahariman, adding that last year, Malaysia had 161,000 tourists that used homestays.

“The Malaysian government has provided significant funding to build infrastructure in remote areas and a lot of farmers can speak English to communicate with tourists. In Vietnam, we need support from government and an association for homestay tourism,” said Nguyen Thi Anh Tho, director of Viet Legend Travel.

“We have homestay services scattered in some regions such as Mekong Delta, Mai Chau, Buon Ma Thuot and Dalat but they have developed in isolation, so we are not using everything we can to develop the service,” Tho said.

For more information about packages and costs for homestay tours to Malaysia, visit website http://www.homestay.motour.gov.my.

Related Articles

• Gamuda, Sacomreal enter JV to develop township
• Trade union development gets Danish support
• IFC: Vietnam needs to increase PPP to support economy
• Party reports come in from provinces
• PM foresees bright future for co-operation with Africa

Pho-tastic

Pho kho Gia Lai, a Central Highlands delicacy offers a fantastic new take on beef pho

Pho kho Gia Lai is a variety of the staple Vietnamese dish from the central region

“I spent a long time trying to bring this dish to Saigon and still make sure it would retain the flavor of my hometown,” said Quang Huy, owner of pho kho Gia Lai in Binh Thanh District.

The term Gia Lai refers to a Central Highlands province of Vietnam and, while the endless battle rages between acolytes of northern pho (clear broth, no added extras) and southern pho (greens galore, clouded broth), pho kho Gia Lai offers an intriguing alternative.

It shares a number of common characteristics with its southern and northern neighbors.

Pho kho Gia Lai also primarily consists of meat, rice noodles and savory broth. Gia Lai noodles are somewhat chewier than the polar varieties.

It is a dish with both pork meat and beef.

Unlike northern pho, both pork and beef bones are simmered over a small flame for five to seven hours to create the broth. The dish itself is typically accompanied by tender beef, thinly sliced and briefly cooked in the broth.

The pork meat is minced or chopped, and placed on top of a bowl of steaming noodles, and sprinkled with fried shallots.

Like southern pho, pho kho Gia Lai comes with fresh greens and bean sprouts.

But the dish is served a bit differently.

Central diners receive a bowl of chopped meat over noodles and a separate dish of meat swimming in broth.

Here in Ho Chi Minh City, a squeeze-bottle of hoisin sauce (a savory, dark, ketchupy condiment derived from soy beans, sweet potatoes and wheat) is usually within hands reach and is typically used to dip the beef in.

In the Central Highlands, the hoisin sauce is indispensable.

It’s usually tossed directly in with the noodles along with a spritz of chili oil and lemon juice. If you’re feeling like a true

Highlander, add some thin chili slices to give the meal a real kick.

A bowl of pho kho Gia Lai is VND25,000 to 30,000.

Pho kho Gia Lai is available at the following places in Ho Chi Minh City:

* 288 No Trang Long Street, Binh Thanh District

* 194 Dang Van Ngu Street, Phu Nhuan District

Pho-tastic

Pho kho Gia Lai, a Central Highlands delicacy offers a fantastic new take on beef pho

Pho kho Gia Lai is a variety of the staple Vietnamese dish from the central region

“I spent a long time trying to bring this dish to Saigon and still make sure it would retain the flavor of my hometown,” said Quang Huy, owner of pho kho Gia Lai in Binh Thanh District.

The term Gia Lai refers to a Central Highlands province of Vietnam and, while the endless battle rages between acolytes of northern pho (clear broth, no added extras) and southern pho (greens galore, clouded broth), pho kho Gia Lai offers an intriguing alternative.

It shares a number of common characteristics with its southern and northern neighbors.

Pho kho Gia Lai also primarily consists of meat, rice noodles and savory broth. Gia Lai noodles are somewhat chewier than the polar varieties.

It is a dish with both pork meat and beef.

Unlike northern pho, both pork and beef bones are simmered over a small flame for five to seven hours to create the broth. The dish itself is typically accompanied by tender beef, thinly sliced and briefly cooked in the broth.

The pork meat is minced or chopped, and placed on top of a bowl of steaming noodles, and sprinkled with fried shallots.

Like southern pho, pho kho Gia Lai comes with fresh greens and bean sprouts.

But the dish is served a bit differently.

Central diners receive a bowl of chopped meat over noodles and a separate dish of meat swimming in broth.

Here in Ho Chi Minh City, a squeeze-bottle of hoisin sauce (a savory, dark, ketchupy condiment derived from soy beans, sweet potatoes and wheat) is usually within hands reach and is typically used to dip the beef in.

In the Central Highlands, the hoisin sauce is indispensable.

It’s usually tossed directly in with the noodles along with a spritz of chili oil and lemon juice. If you’re feeling like a true

Highlander, add some thin chili slices to give the meal a real kick.

A bowl of pho kho Gia Lai is VND25,000 to 30,000.

Pho kho Gia Lai is available at the following places in Ho Chi Minh City:

* 288 No Trang Long Street, Binh Thanh District

* 194 Dang Van Ngu Street, Phu Nhuan District

Pho-tastic

Pho kho Gia Lai, a Central Highlands delicacy offers a fantastic new take on beef pho

Pho kho Gia Lai is a variety of the staple Vietnamese dish from the central region

“I spent a long time trying to bring this dish to Saigon and still make sure it would retain the flavor of my hometown,” said Quang Huy, owner of pho kho Gia Lai in Binh Thanh District.

The term Gia Lai refers to a Central Highlands province of Vietnam and, while the endless battle rages between acolytes of northern pho (clear broth, no added extras) and southern pho (greens galore, clouded broth), pho kho Gia Lai offers an intriguing alternative.

It shares a number of common characteristics with its southern and northern neighbors.

Pho kho Gia Lai also primarily consists of meat, rice noodles and savory broth. Gia Lai noodles are somewhat chewier than the polar varieties.

It is a dish with both pork meat and beef.

Unlike northern pho, both pork and beef bones are simmered over a small flame for five to seven hours to create the broth. The dish itself is typically accompanied by tender beef, thinly sliced and briefly cooked in the broth.

The pork meat is minced or chopped, and placed on top of a bowl of steaming noodles, and sprinkled with fried shallots.

Like southern pho, pho kho Gia Lai comes with fresh greens and bean sprouts.

But the dish is served a bit differently.

Central diners receive a bowl of chopped meat over noodles and a separate dish of meat swimming in broth.

Here in Ho Chi Minh City, a squeeze-bottle of hoisin sauce (a savory, dark, ketchupy condiment derived from soy beans, sweet potatoes and wheat) is usually within hands reach and is typically used to dip the beef in.

In the Central Highlands, the hoisin sauce is indispensable.

It’s usually tossed directly in with the noodles along with a spritz of chili oil and lemon juice. If you’re feeling like a true

Highlander, add some thin chili slices to give the meal a real kick.

A bowl of pho kho Gia Lai is VND25,000 to 30,000.

Pho kho Gia Lai is available at the following places in Ho Chi Minh City:

* 288 No Trang Long Street, Binh Thanh District

* 194 Dang Van Ngu Street, Phu Nhuan District