Vietnam's Information
Nhận một câu hỏi?
Highway 6 traverses one final pass before leaving the northwest mountains. It's a steady climb along precipitous hillsides up to a col at 1200m, and then an ear-popping descent through sugar-cane plantations on the east side to Hoa Binh, on the edge of the Red River plain.
The main highway thunders straight past the center of town on a by-pass, but a hint of quieter days longer in its shaded main boulevard, Cu Chinh Lan, when there are a few simple restaurants and a distinct lack of tourists. However, there's little to detain you here, but you could always stretch your legs while taking a look at the dam wall southeast of the center, before pushing on for a couple more hours to either Hanoi or Mai Chau.
Less than 2km to the west of the city, the 620m-wide Hoa Binh Dam chokes the Da River to create a lake over 200km long, stretching most of the way to Son La. A reservoir is a beautiful place for a boat ride, but its main purpose is to feed Vietnam's largest hydroelectric plant, which came into being in 1994 and has gone some way to solving Vietnam's chronic power shortage.
You can get a worm's-eye view of the dam from the bridge that links Hoa Binh's main street (Cu Chinh Lan) with the industrial suburbs across the Da River, or you can drive right up to it - follow Cu Chinh Lan to its southeastern end, and continue round to the right. If you're interested in the working of the dam, it's possible ti go right inside the tunnels for a small fee. Staff at Hoa Binh Tourism can also arrange homestays in nearby Muong Villages as well as scenic boat trips on the reservoir behind the dam.
This fascinating museum, opened in 2015, is a labour of love, and offers insights into the lives of the Muong people, whose villages are scattered throughout Hoa Binh province. It consists of five stilt houses displaying gongs, ceramics, basketware, ancient rifles, and shamanistic paraphernalia. If you are lucky, you might get an explanatory tour from one of the staff there.
The military villages of the Mai Chau Valley, inhabited mainly by White Thai, are close enough to Hanoi (135km) to make this a popular destination, particularly at weekends when it's often swamped with large groups of students. the valley itself, however, is still largely unspoiled, apart from the appearance of a few new resorts that are popping up between the rice paddies. The bucolic scene of pancake-flat rice fields trimmed with jagged mountains is incredibly photogenic, particularly when the rice fields flourish.
Mai Chau is the valley's main settlement - a friendly, quiet place that has a bustling morning market frequented by minority people who trek into haggle over buffalo meat, star fruit, sacks of tra, or groundnuts. However, most visitors see little of the town, as they are bussed straight into the nearby White Thai villages of Lac and Pom Coong to spend the night in a homestay.
Just south of Mai Chau's center, a lane to the west leads across a few paddy fields to Lac and Pom Coong, neighboring villages that are home to prosperous communities of White Thai - though these days their wealth is derived more from tourist dollars than from farming. Most overnight tours include a guided trek around the valley, which for many is the highlight of their visit. In the evening, the traditional dance performances staged for tour groups after dinner are also interesting, with coy, long-haired girls acting out agricultural chores in a graceful manner. After the show, the audience is invited to join them in a dance and enjoy local wine from a big bowl through a bamboo straw. While too touristy for some, there is at least the chance to stay in a genuine stilt house - a true taste of rural Vietnam, particularly at dawn if your sleeping quarters happen to be above the henhouse. Avoid a weekend visit if possible, when the village is overrun with students from Hanoi.
One interesting route from Mai Chau is to cycle 12km south on Highway 15 to Co Luong, passing timeless rural scenes and reflections of mountains in the flooded paddy fields. At Co Luong, the Ma River joins the road, and huge limestone walls and dance bamboo growth adorn the riverbank. The active market here on Saturday mornings is worth the trip to see the array of handicrafts and fish.
Some 25km further south from Co Luong along Highway 15 lies the Pu Luong Nature Reserve, over the provincial boundary in Thanh Binh province, though this journey is better tackled by car or motorbike. It's a couple of hours' dive total to the south of Mai Chau and one that features yet more bucolic scenery, including rice terraces cascading down hillsides and remote homestays - as well as fewer tourists.
