Enjoy “Ngan” - A kind of local seafood like clam near Bach Dang river.

“Ngán” is a kind of the local seafood like clam. However, it looks bigger than clam with white rough shell due to living under deep sand.
Ngan is a nutrient-rich food. Its meat is full of quality protit, carbohydrates, lipids, vitamins and minerals needed for the body.

In its season, the fishermen often have to step deeply in sand in order to take it out. Even its name is Ngan- Meaning depress in english however it is not like its name, it is famous for a unique delicious food in Halong with good smell and rich nutrients.

Ngan is catched or purchased then put in clean water into a pot and place in a pot of rice water, or soak in warm water for 2-3 hours and then they release sand. From processing ducks can be delicious and nutritious dishes is processed into so many different dishes like boiled Ngan, grilled Ngan, Ngan salad, Ngan noodles ... Ngan is prepared in the way have different flavor but perhaps more impressed with Ngan wine.

After hitting and being washed, Ngan is opened and take a bowl to catch the water and meat sections. Ngan’s meat should be washed with the water main to not get bored and keep your blades fresh. Most people are tired of that wine is made simpler but only the indigenous people know how the new gourmet Ngan wine.

Shortly after the pre-processing clean drop brought directly into the glass and then buffing it with chopsticks for the secretion of bile Ngan, bored reaction with alcohol and water bluish color turns pink wine. This is how most delicious Ngan wine processing and commonly known as the bored folk pudding. An excellent wine fed to ensure indescribable smell fragrant and spicy taste of wine, taste sweet, honest bored of it swirled in a glass of Ngan wine.

Appetizers of customers are grinding if men drink more afraid of life, we can warm up before drinking alcohol.

Visit us at Gray Line Halong Cruise to explore Halong Bay cruises & tours and have access to the best cruising services. Available information of Halong things to do and travel tips. For further details, please contact us at contact@graylinehalong.com and our professional team will get back to you as soon as possible.

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Mountain climbing - Lanha Bay

Climbing on Cat Ba Mountain is one of tourist's favorite activities, especially foreign tourists. Nowadays, on Cat Ba archipelago, there are 8 points trekking in Cat Ba and some other points of Ha Long Bay tour operators venturing into climbing Cat Ba. Most climbers are now tourists from Western countries and their main object is to explore much adventure tourism and trekking in the island of Cat Ba and Halong.

Journey to conquer the cliffs in Cat Ba always creates strong feelings and help visitors experience the trials and improve health. Moreover, mountaineering certainly gives visitors feel strange, mixed romantic trip in Cat Ba. The fact is next to the visitors “West” familiar, many tourists in countries with common interests to conquer steep cliff on Lan Ha Bay, Ben Beo in areas or deep in the valley Union (commune Pearl).
Climbing Lan Ha Bay
Cat Ba has beautiful hiking spots, poetic and has many relatively easy climb, it is the preferred location of new domestic tourist’s access or no mountaineering skills as the technology improved abroad “colleagues”. It is located on “Tien Ong” island on Lan Ha bay to a small island cave and the rest is rock with big stalactites. This is the ideal spot to climb, low cliffs, climbing routes simple, suitable for people afraid of adventure.

There are many best climbing routes in Cat Ba which are accessible at high tide. Topography and water depth here is suitable for free climbing on the sea. Or cliff right is next to Beo wharf, one of the main port of the island of Cat Ba, place of origin of the tourist train visit Lan Ha Bay, adjacent to Cat Ba town. Cliff climbing routes here are 5. The quality of the cliff is very good, but difficult to climb as the summer can be slippery, sticking more difficult. On the other hand, people should climb to the cruise begins at the foot of the wall can sometimes be problems instruments or objects. Be prepared good health, especially psychological and contact travel agencies, tour equipment to climb, especially utensils and necessary advice of professionals before joining climb Cat Ba Mountain.

Source: Gray line Halong

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A trip discovery Coto island

I often imagined an image of a small island, one of the islands most remote lands in the Gulf of Tonkin, is playing with sides between the vast waves. Places that I have repeatedly detected on the administrative map, had wished to visit even if just once. And today, he has a chance to take Halong bay tour to discover this place.

We're out in a quiet summer day silent sea. Halong bay cruise departs at 13h30.I can feel sunny bright, salty of the sea and the cool of the wind. The ship glide smoothly over the water in countless shining silhouetted cliffs heaving rocks in the bay. After the two-hour journey, the waves pass illustrious place in the league, holding onto the solid concrete block piers, I’ve actually set foot on land Coto.

Other than what I ever imagined, Coto town also is busy and crowded like a land where the town. Just across the street along with stretches of concrete road clean. It houses permanent closely and spacious. It has grown to several high-rise hotels with modern architecture style. There are other affordable only by the scenery that is placed very close to the coast, where the waves of the Tonkin Gulf rushing around in white socks shore. By exuberance and intimate hand held, the district leaders of Coto gave us the unforgettable first impression about a real welcome open, like the warm feeling of a relatives back home rather crestfallen feeling of the first guests to visit the island.

It is pure Vietnamese names, associated with daily activities of the people and said to form part of each island featured this place. They are scattered, curved bow under, over 60km from the mainland, near the International Maritime. Therefore, it is possible for Coto islands as solid walls keep the sea side town northeast of the country that the Creator has given us favor.

Conversely history, Coto ancient name is Mountain man, was a long time residence of fishermen boats Northeast. This place is really crowded inhabitants from 1832, when Nguyen Cong Tru in the position of General Director of Hai An (Hai Duong - An Quang) has applied to the Nguyen dynasty established villages, appointed the rule. This is the first village - Huong Hoa village. Shortly after, the tax collectors and the Nguyen Huong Hoa build forts guarding the sea invaders. Over the French colonial period, many times split into the districts of Quang Ninh, 1994, Coto district was founded. Once established, the district has only 2,050 people, up to now the number has increased to nearly 6,000 people, including five ethnic groups: Kinh, San Diu, Muong, Tay and Hoa.

On the first district split, stacked difficult difficulties that people dread another mouth saying “yellow flies, beetles dogs, Coto wind”. Yet also withstand and overcome, so now, these “trifle” was worth nothing. Perhaps he was easy to open up more to share with our concerns about the difficulties still ahead.

Along with the general difficulty as all the other islands of the country, Coto has fresh water resources. In this region, annual precipitation is less; saline aquifers unusable, the entire fresh water needs of people are looking into these reservoirs with little reserve. Therefore, solving this problem has been posed many challenges to the leadership and the people here. At the same time, electricity demand is also indispensable in modern life.

After meeting with district leaders, the first point we want to visit the ruins of Uncle Ho monument. This is the first monument of Physicians and is also the only monument erected Uncle allowed from when he was alive. Uncle stood, tall and eastern sea front, facing west and waved his hands held high. Does she want you to Uncle oriented view of the South China Sea? Or Uncle want people Coto always loving towards capital? This Doctor would say, we can not understand in overnight, but take a look at the content clearly anniversary plaque : 8 am on 9-5-1961, the helicopter landed where this included presidents visited Ho Chi Minh people's Co To Island ... Well, at that time , the North was sprawled in the reconstruction of the country, the South is still the hot days of struggle rated U.S. to pursue imperialist independence completely, then the person aside worries that much to come here untidy made us even more once again impressed by the vision of a genius leader.

The next day, the Head District Party Committee Propaganda Department took us on a tour around the island. Just go, he has presented to us thoroughly on the lives of her children. Taking advantage of the terrain located in offshore areas of the Gulf of Tonkin, between a large fishing with the country's focus on an area of 300km2, where people often say: “Step foot is off ", living all jobs weak people come here is the sea. Co Sea is blessed with many precious products such as pearls, spiny lobsters, sea urchins, abalone ... and nearly 1,000 species, including 60 species of high economic value, with large reserves, fishing is often the object, such as red snapper, but, grouper, collection, birds, smelt, herring, silver cheek or molluscs: abalone, clams, oysters, snails ... Especially lately, with jellyfish lasted for 3 months each year, fishermen were able to get rich on their home waters by the income from hundreds of millions to billions per season. Sea by clinging, harnessing the power of reason and its advantages, people have gradually Co out of poverty, building economic stability, stability. The model of the rural economy is gradually confirmed the success of the movement and the construction of new rural development.

Not only are blessed to produce, Coto also been given a unique wild beauty: green sea always in here, white sand beaches, smooth, gentle stretching untouched sight. Anyone coming here will not forget the feeling of euphoria float when immersed in water where the Red beach still, still running, in Van ... If the beautiful coral reef hidden away under the clear waters other far infatuated travelers make fun diving with the gentle slopes to the other people fascinated by the quiet beauty of primeval forests are preserved almost intact. Casuarina groves as green contours breaker compartment. And particularly we are impressed with trees play in Dong Tien. It's a familiar crop has just strange. Quen is because at first glance, it is identical to the banyan tree, also has a towering original, rough, also the father of interlaced as the giant snake wrapped around the main body. But a closer observation noticed the difference though is very small but it was enough to create its own special features.

This is its leaves, smaller leaves and rugged than most. He is the father of both interlaced as carved out from the stem, powerful plug deep underground, down the rocks, again just like the long arm reaching up from the ground, and then clustered together to produce a synergy, support for spreading canopy pride, soar. Is it only in Coto new broom, or it alive somewhere else, I do not know. Just know that, as he stood looking at it, the plant suddenly evokes in me the life, health cling fiercely on an island between the immense seas waves coincide. Suddenly I remembered the name of a mass movement to protect national security with the theme: “Keep peaceful island”, is a movement that has been done people Coto very positive and productive results. It turns out that in this place, peaceful aspirations and determination to defend the sovereignty of islands not only ingrained in the consciousness of every human being, but it also seems like the instincts of a species of plant in the world he seems to stand.

Three days in Coto, no more to be able to fully understand and deeply all, but enough to have an overview and more clarity on the remote islands of the country.

By Gray line Halong

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Luon Cave – Luon Grotto

Situated on Bo Hon Island, 14 km south of Bai Chay Beach is the Luon Grotto. In front of the grotto is Con Rua Islet, and the Sky Gate is on the right. Here the cliffs stretch vertically out of the pure blue and smooth water. At the water-level, an arched entrance leads to the grotto, just at the base of the island. Passing through the pretty entrance, you come across a tranquil round lake, surrounded by luxuriant trees and high dangerous stone walls. Monkeys run to and fro in groups, benjamin fig trees shade the landscape and many orchids hang their sweet-scented flowers. In the lake, many species abound: shrimp, fish, crab and scuttle-fish.

This is an enclosed group of islands. It connects with the sea via a 4-meter-wide, 100-meter-long, and 3-meter-high mouth. Inside the grotto, the 1-km2 brackish lake is surrounded by mountains. On the cliff one still find traces of fossils of fresh-water snails, which prove that men used to live there and this must have been a deep valley then.
The beauty of the site is the mingling of a number of factors: the mountain’s size and form, the color of the water and the clouds.

To visit Halong bay, you can join a Halong bay tour. Currently, Gray Line Halong is offering many hot deals and promotion packages for Halong bay cruise. Please visit Gray Line Halong official website to get further details and contact us at contact@graylinehalong.com to have access to the best cruising services.

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Make a plan to travel Halong bay

Travel Planning: 

For many visitors, they feel regret for a short tour. So if possible, you should choose the Halong bay cruise program 3 days 2 nights to discover many interesting place in Halong. If you are a large group of friends, family or colleagues, you should hire an entire boat. You will be taking a lot of interesting activities during the trip: the collective activities (team - building), kayak competition, swim brush, cooking contest, visit floating villages, caves. If you want to have an anniversary to life with dinner on cruise, floating on, or dreaming on the beach, you will never feel regret for this choice.

Weather: 

European Tourists often come to Vietnam in the winter from December to April when the weather is more about 10-20 degrees because they have more vacation at this time. But the best weather to visit is April, or September 5, 10 longer by the day, blue sky, pleasant weather, visitors can swim, enjoy the morning sunrise or sunset late afternoon.

License: 

Currently, the Management Board of Ha Long Bay tightly controlled tour boats, staying on the bay. You can book tours through hotel, tour operators provide the necessary information on passports, identity cards before you go. Then the company will help your yacht registration information with the administration department immigration-Quang Ninh police. Every day, the port authority board will be based on specific weather conditions decided to put the yacht are operating or not. Normally the yacht bay and overnight visits are 6:30 am -level command. With overnight cruise on the bay, the captain will permit and vessel registration point for sleep management. In case you do not supply port command to sleep, you will have a choice in Ha Long wait for better weather the next day to go sightseeing and driving to or tour guides will take you back to Hanoi. In such cases, tour operators, cruise will make arrangements for your reasonable schedule.

Itinerary: 

Depending on conditions, as well as pockets of time, you can choose for themselves the various itineraries. With day cruise visiting the bay, you can set the program to visit 4, 6 or 8 hours. Most yachts are from Bai Chay wharf and takes about 45 minutes from Bai Chay to popular attractions such as Palace Cave, Wooden cave, Titop Island. With yacht overnight, you have no still the choice: If you need a private space, freedom journey comfortable you can choose 2 separate vessels room. Certainly the staff friendly, professional service style training and managed by foreigners, you will experience the most wonderful. With 2 times recognized by the UNESCO as a world natural heritage by highlighting the global value of the natural landscape in 1994 and the value of science in geology, geomorphology 2000, Ha Long Bay was a scenic, a leading tourist destination in the country. It has been attracting large number of tourists to Ha Long in particular and Vietnam in general; increase the amount of foreign currency, tourism investment attraction, creating great opportunities for tourism development as well as tourism in Quang Ninh. The advantages it also poses challenges for Bay Management Board should promote the management, conservation, promotion and exploitation of heritage values - the world's natural wonders of Ha Long Bay, focusing more advanced investment quality, quality tourism activities, as well as the diversity, abundance and sustainability of tourism products to Halong Bay forever worthy of that title.

Currently, Gray Line Halong is offering many hot deals and promotion packages for Halong bay cruise. Please visit Gray Line Halong official website to get further details and contact us at contact@graylinehalong.com to have access to the best cruising services.

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Tet reminds Vietnamese customs

Tet is from “Tiet” it means a season or “weather”, or understanding in other meanings Tet is a festival. Tet is the occasion of family reunion, visiting relatives, ancestor worship. Tet is also an opportunity to rest, to play to prepare for a new year.

Tet tradition reflects the particularities of culture Vietnam through many generations, and will depend on the region of the country. But we can still divide into two main types: Tet with family and Tet with village.

Tet is the time as all family members gathering. Whoever is going far for studying will be home around December 23 to welcome the New Year with family. Typically 1 Vietnamfamily spent half months to prepare for the New Year, such as housekeeping, shopping, decorating house... Normally Tet customs with families include: visiting ancestral graves, grandparents shadowy procession, fireworks, exodus, stormed the house, good life, taciturn, visits, and continuous abstinence.

We also welcome Tet traditions from ancient villages because society is organized according Vietnam village system, in which the village is the smallest unit. Welcoming New Year with villages include: up yet, Lucky early spring, the crowd singing the Spring Festival as they sing, then wrestling, rowing competition, competition for food.

The spring recreation include: pen spring opening, Festival couplets, New Year paintings, knife sharpener, rated chess lion dance.
Food is very much spring day on the altar but usually always have 4 fruits (bridges, coconut, papaya, mango) stands for " spending enough bridges " in the South, also in the North often green bananas, grapefruit, blueberries, persimmons, eggs, Buddha's hand fruit. Especially some indispensable on ancestral altars that pair’s rice cakes, jam box.

Some cultural practices:

Visiting ancestral graves: From 23 December to 30 children in the family gathered together enough east to visit, remodel ancestral graves and bring fruit aroma lamp to cozy, inviting ancestral spirits to eat Festival for children.

Give the kitchen god to heaven also known as king kitchen. Legend each year to theHeaven god gives kitchen god 1 time, on December 23 to report to God what's happened in that time of year. So on that day people usually worship Vietnam is a precursor to Apple solemn adoration of the Creator and to 30 re-offered to invite grandparents and military Apples spend the holidays. According to custom, practice outside of Kitchen god  also coat crown tray of rice paper, double- hia, and carp drop in the water bowl to create military ride to heaven. Generally this ratio in order to keep the commandments we should preserve behavior, because everything would ship up to the Jade Emperor.

His torch shadowy third: the festival invited him to spend the holidays with her children and grandchildren.
On the afternoon of 30 December, on the ancestral altar was presented first feast included fruits and food. The chief offered incense on the altar, begging ancestors witness and bless the family many blessings in the new year. By then everyone in the family are respectfully invited to join hands and shadowy grandparents spend the holidays.

Fireworks: firecracker believed to be able to drive out evil spirits and bring blessings for the new year. There are legends that among teenagers Na 2 Asian couple or vandalism Vietnam harm people, they are just afraid of light and noise, and the people we laid out loudly dazzling fireworks to chase the 2 teenagers. New Year's Eve fireworks right (time between 12 midnight reconciled December 30 of the previous year and the first of the new year), people set off firecrackers at the same time, all sorts of wild crunchy crackers main gun and the burning smell firecrackers mingled scents of incense on the altar lights create a very special festival atmosphere of our nation.

Today not many people still believe the fireworks to banish evil spirits, but firecracker explosions today represents the day the jubilant excitement of spring, determine crimson fireworks symbolize good luck for the new year . But now this is no longer customary for the production and fireworks have caused too many tragic accidents.

Choose a family member passed out in the first minute of the new year. The exodus to view the calendar, choose a good direction, steamed with lucky old to look forward to in the new year when stepped out of the house.

There are so many people believe that the first step in his house at the beginning of the year will bring luck, bad for families throughout the year. Should one or inviting people have luck (thriving, happy family) stormed home to Dum. The bath house had dressed, walked into the front door and went around the house, the kitchen, implying bring luck in every corner home.
In the morning first day of Tet, the children in the show filial piety through good old congratulated for their parents and grandparents. Good old as the Vietnam notion that each person that day to 1 year old, regardless birthday as Westerners.
Li xi word means: is the transliteration from Cantonese to Vietnamese, formerly the “marketing margin “in kanji, which means money, benefits. To celebrate the age of the children, the adults in the family donated the money and wished them a small fast growing, reaching that learning in the new year. It is placed in the red bag, because red symbolizes luck.
Visiting customs: it's time to welcome all the dear friends to visit, and also visited paid holidays. Usually the first day is dedicated to the good life for elders, relatives. 2nd day for teachers, the 3rd is fun to visit with friends
In the first 3 days it is common to eat voices cautious words and actions because we believe that it may bring bad luck for the whole year. For example, do not sweep, scan identify most guns out of the money being considered to the door sweep. No drugs or knives gift of being seen as a sign of illness and conflict. Do not lament or weep smashing dishes because it is a sign of the breakdown of the family. Do not wear white or black because being seen as a sign of mourning.

By Gray line Halong

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