Coming to Hoa Binh in the fall, Pham Tu was able to admire the golden season in Lac village and the sea of white clouds hanging halfway up the mountain in Hang Kia - Pa Co.
From the center of Hanoi, Tu and his group of friends traveled by motorbike via Thang Long Avenue to Hoa Binh, a distance of about 150km. On the way through Hoa Binh City, visitors can buy tickets to visit the Hoa Binh Hydroelectric Dam. This is the largest hydroelectric plant in Vietnam and Southeast Asia, completed in 1994.
Visitors can buy tickets for 50,000 VND to visit the complex or 20,000 VND to visit the open structure, or buy cruise tickets on Hoa Binh Lake for 1.5 - 2 million VND for a two-hour trip.
After passing the hydroelectric dam about 50km to Da Trang Pass, the group stopped at a rest stop. The easily recognizable feature of Da Trang Pass is the rock with the red flag with yellow star fluttering for tourists to check in. Food and beverage services are also available here.
The second place Tu's group visited was Lac village in Mai Chau valley. This is an ancient village over 700 years old that still retains its original features and traditional lifestyle of the Thai ethnic group, according to the website of the Vietnam National Tourism Administration.
When Tu arrived, the rice fields on both sides of the road leading to the village were golden, surrounded by green mountains. The peaceful space was suitable for cycling and sightseeing.
There is a car rental service to take you around the village for 400,000 VND per trip for 8 people or 600,000 VND for 12 people. Food services range from 600,000 - 800,000 VND per tray for 6 people and there are many restaurants for visitors to choose from, said Mr. Tu.
Tourists can visit and shop for a variety of handicrafts with diverse designs produced by the locals such as shirts, skirts, hats, bags, wallets, teddy bears, bows and arrows, crossbows, bamboo flutes, buffalo clappers, gongs, trumpets, and buffalo horns. In addition, visitors can also experience weaving, participate in singing and dancing, bamboo dancing, and campfires in the evenings of the locals.
Leaving Lac village, Tu's group went to the most exciting place to explore, Hang Kia - Pa Co valley (Mai Chau district, Hoa Binh province), located between rocky mountains and covered in clouds all year round. Located about 200 km from Hanoi, Hang Kia and Pa Co are two communes in the mountainous district of Mai Chau, which preserve the unique culture and traditional crafts of the Mong people such as hand weaving, brocade embroidery, indigo dyeing, beeswax painting, and forging, according to the website of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism.
The road to the cloud hunting spot in Hang Kia is convenient, you can travel by motorbike and car.
Hang Kia - Pa Co is located between Xa Linh and Luong Xa mountain ranges, with an average altitude of about 900m above sea level, and a cool climate all year round. Coming here, tourists often go to the Heaven's Gate area to hunt for clouds.
"The sea of clouds in Hang Kia is lower than the view, so it feels like you are standing on the clouds," said Mr. Tu. The layers of clouds lying halfway up are like a white cloth of nature stretched between two mountain ranges, stretching endlessly.
It is currently the season of cloud hunting in the northern mountainous provinces, so the cloud layer is thicker and more widespread. Compared to other famous cloud hunting locations such as Ta Xua, Y Ty, Ha Giang, Hang Kia - Pa Co "is quite peaceful, not many tourists, you can freely choose the shooting angle to capture all the majesty and poetry of nature in each photo", Mr. Tu shared.
Each season, Hoa Binh has its own beauty. Autumn is the time when golden rice fields and white seas of clouds appear. The gift of winter in Hoa Binh is red persimmons swaying under the bare branches. Spring is the forest covered with white apricot and plum blossoms or the pink color of peach blossoms. And summer is the time to enjoy ripe red peaches and plums on the trees, according to the website of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Hoa Binh province.
Coming to Hang Kia - Pa Co, besides the village exploration route, visitors can set foot on destinations that still retain their wild beauty such as tea hills, plum gardens in Ta Xong A area, Ta Xo area, and Thung A Lang.
Some other ideal places to hunt clouds in Hang Kia - Pa Co are the Pa Khom to Thung Mai route or on the top of Sam Tha mountain, where you can see Pu Luong peak (Thanh Hoa) and Pha Luong peak (Son La).
"Hoa Binh is a suitable tourist destination for those who like rustic, gentle and slow experiences," Tu commented after the trip. Tourist attractions in Hoa Binh have not been commercialized much, the natural scenery and people still retain their closeness and simplicity.
"Currently, the weather in Hoa Binh is warm during the day but quite cold at night and early morning, so bring warm clothes and prepare good health to be able to fully explore the autumn natural scenery of Hoa Binh," said Mr. Tu.
Quynh Mai Photo: Pham Tu
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