Picture post from Tam Coc, Ninh Binh Province Vietnam taken January 2015
The first in a 3 part post this one is a series of Landscapes in and around around Tam Coc in the Ninh Binh province of northern Vietnam. Often described as Ha-long Bay on land, in fact most of the limestone karsts rise up out crystal clear waters of the small local lakes and a meandering 2 kilometer stretch of the Ngo Dong river. I have spent 3 nights on a Halong Bay tour in 2013 and this was a very different experience but both worthwhile for different reasons. At the time of year we visited the the air hangs in a misty eerie adding to its magical ambiance. The town of Ninh Binh itself is of no great interest with little to see ort do so recommend you do as we did and stay in a shack by the side of one of the limestone karsts overlooking a small lake, magical. Nguyen Shack run by a Canadian and his Vietnamese wife its a wonderful place to stay.
A few of the biggest attractions here 1 the people in the small villages dotted around the place (covered in one of the next posts) and secondly a boat trip through calm waters in exploration of the limestone mounds. Many have tunnels that can be traveled in boats operated by local people. The trip we took lasted 3 hours and was one of the highlights of our travels in Vietnam. Some of the caves are very low and long meaning this is not suitable if you are in any way claustrophobic. it is however an incredibly peaceful and relaxing way way to spend a few hours with little more than the swish of oars pulling through the water. particularly if you go very early in the morning as we did scarcely seeing another boat during our tour.
Mountain goats are a common sight around the limestone outcrops
Cave mouth of passage through one of the many karst
There are also many shrines dotted around the banks and accessible by boat only
An ancient temple dating from the 15 hundreds
Each tunnel entrance has a signpost giving the name of the cave along with its length in meters
Local transport bamboo boat
A shrine in the hills
Bich Dong Pagoda
Around the area
Bai Dinh Pagoda
This post its contents and pictures is the copyrighted property of David Keegan 2015 ©
All pictures taken large format 320 DPI Picture quality is reduced to preserve copyright.s
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