Peaceful Dat Mui - Ca Mau

Coming to Ca Mau Cape means coming back to the simple, rustic roots of the Fatherland. The cape at the end of the S-shaped map gently curves in a soft line, also a proud dot in the vastness.

More than 100km from the center of Ca Mau city is Dat Mui - the southernmost point of the country, also the last point of the Ho Chi Minh road. Km 2436 of the Ho Chi Minh road belongs to the Ca Mau Cape National Tourist Area. This historic road starts from Pac Bo, Cao Bang province, passes through many provinces and cities and ends at the southernmost point.

Mother Statue in Ca Mau Cape.

Come to Ca Mau to calm your mind, to understand why this land is called the place where "the land knows how to bloom, the forest knows how to walk and the sea is fertile". The comparison is both strange and familiar, like the way the land and people here move silently, to silently add layers of alluvium to the Fatherland every day, accumulating sweat, blood and generous, passionate love.

National GPS coordinate landmark 0001 - Ca Mau Cape.

Standing on the observation deck, embracing the vast view of the sky and earth, suddenly seeing the sea and the forest blend together, land and water have no boundaries...

In the morning, the sun rises majestically in the east, in the afternoon, sets in the west, and every moment is brilliant and splendid, as if the Cape is the only place that can capture both ends of the day in one magical frame. The silence in that boundless vastness makes us forget all the hustle and bustle. In the far south, there is only the sound of wind and waves whispering stories of the past.

The wonderful and coincidental moment when the bird swooped down on the monument.

Vietnam's National GPS 0001 (kilometer 0) coordinate marker is one of the four extreme points marking the territory of the Fatherland on land (along with the northernmost point is Lung Cu Flagpole (Ha Giang), the westernmost point is A Pa Chai commune (Muong Nhe, Dien Bien), the easternmost point is Mui Doi (Van Ninh, Khanh Hoa) and the southernmost point is National GPS 0001 coordinate marker (Dat Mui, Ca Mau).

GPS 0001 has become a proud symbol. Near the coordinate marker, there are also ancient maps on display, such as: "An Nam Dai Quoc Hoa Do" from 1838, "Hoang Trieu Truc Tinh Dia Du Toan Do" from 1904 proving the sovereignty of the Truong Sa-Hoang Sa archipelagoes as belonging to Vietnamese territory. That is a clear affirmation: The sea and islands are sacred flesh and blood, an inseparable part of the beautiful country.

The peaceful beauty of the southernmost region of the Fatherland.

Also in this place, there is a symbol that makes any tourist want to stop the longest to admire and contemplate, which is the Pano of a ship facing the East Sea, the sail engraved with the coordinates of Ca Mau Cape.

The special source of emotion probably comes from contemplation, that everyone wishes to once stand at the end of the country, where all roads seem to stop to begin a new journey - towards the open sea or towards one's heart.

Solemn on the big day.

In the middle of the mangrove forest, visitors can walk on the monkey bridge. The experience makes the heart beat with excitement and at the same time, like returning to childhood. The mangrove trees grow on the alluvial land, the mangrove trees follow each other to create a vivid and durable ecological picture. Each cluster of roots digs deep into the ground and water like hands holding the soil every inch. No noise, no demands, just living quietly - like the quality of the people in the southernmost land.

Local specialties and cakes are respectfully offered by the people to the Ancestors' Death Anniversary.

In addition to the scenery, Dat Mui also gives us flavors. Firm Ca Mau crabs, mudskippers lurking on the mudflats, fragrant coconut-fried snails... all blend in with the sincere, warm invitation of the people. Each dish has a story, a drop of sweat, affection, and cultivation.

This special land witnesses a unique cultural exchange between ethnic groups. Khmer pagodas stretch out in the sun, the Nghinh Ong, Via Ba Thien Hau, Chol Chnam Thmay festivals... contribute to a lively cultural symphony. Kinh, Hoa, Khmer people... live together, share a piece of holiday cake, go through the flood season together, preserve every inch of alluvial land, invite guests to their home to "eat a hearty meal"...

People's hearts are always simple and sincere.

Perhaps, the most precious thing that Dat Mui brings is the peace of space, of the depths of the soul, calling back the feeling that we thought we had lost in the midst of the hurried days. The quietness of Dat Mui-Ca Mau makes visitors linger, miss, not willing to leave the land of love that is so caring.

In the modern life, the far south is now different. The roads are wide, the constructions are spacious, the houses are solid instead of simple mangrove roofs... In the calm water season, the green mangrove forests shine in the sunlight reflecting on the canal surface, the red sails of the households starting to do tourism flutter in the wind. But the hearts of the people in the land of "fish sauce first, mangrove later, cajuput closely following" are still simple like that.

Symbol of boat and sail at Ca Mau Cape.

Every third lunar month, when the characteristic colors of flowers begin to fall and line the water's edge, it is also the time when people in the far south - thousands of kilometers away from the homeland - still respectfully preserve the sacred source on the anniversary of the Hung Kings.

In the warm, shimmering sunlight and the scent of incense spreading throughout the space, the solemn, emotional atmosphere gently penetrates every soul. The beat of the drum, the pace of steps, the prayers... blend with the heartbeat. The Hung King's death anniversary in the southernmost land is always solemn and full of emotions, gathering all components, classes, and ages with a heart turned towards the origin.

Hung King's death anniversary in Ca Mau took place solemnly and warmly.

Every house has flowers to offer, cakes to offer... mostly homemade with a pure heart, dedicated, not bought ready-made, or bound by form. The atmosphere is solemn yet bustling, respectful yet close and familiar. Spiritual depth and pride seem to be deeply ingrained in the souls of the people here.

Standing silently before the statue of Mother Au Co in the middle of the land that is gradually encroaching on the East Sea, listening to the wind blowing fiercely against the edge of the forest, clearly feeling the steadfastness in the mother's figure, holding her child in one hand, leading her child by the other, her gaze far away. The beauty is tolerant, steadfast, eternal.

The national flagpole in its majestic and spacious beauty.

Somewhere I hear the echoes of space and time, echoes from the northern mountains and forests, from the Red River Delta, from the source of Phu Tho transmitted all the way here. Perhaps Father Lac Long Quan and Mother Au Co, on their journey down to the sea and up to the forest, walked and lit a lamp to light the way for generations of descendants to follow.

Km 2436 marks the end point of the Ho Chi Minh Trail.

Leaving Dat Mui-Ca Mau on a windy afternoon, I clearly felt my heart being washed by the cool water of memories, of the love left from the southernmost land. I felt even more anxious and moved every time I thought about the southernmost land - the land of sincere dreams like the alluvium that constantly accumulates.

In that place, every inch of land, every person carries within them a part of legend. Legends seep into the mangrove forests, the mangrove forests, and even the sound of waves whispering in their ears. In that place, children are born hearing the call of the sea, and when they grow up, they learn to walk on monkey bridges before running around on spacious asphalt roads. And they learn to bow their heads and clasp their hands before the ancestral altar before they can even spell.

Source: https://nhandan.vn/binh-yen-dat-mui-ca-mau-post871676.html