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Do Son Resort
With 2,450m of coast with full of fine sand, Do Son resort has been one of the national famous resorts for a long time.
Do Son peninsula situated on the ancient continent, 22.5km in length along the coast from Cam river mouth to Van Uc river mouth. Old people similes Do Son the head of a Dragon directing toward a precious stone (Hon Dau isle), whisking its tail to go to sea that created Bach Long Vi Islands. Traces of pre-historic men have not yet been seen in Do Son but there are a lot of historical relics. The most noticeable ones are Tuong Long tower and Van Ban pagoda which were built in 11th century. Tuong Long tower made of terracotta with 10 storeys on the top of mountain Ngoc Son. Foundation of Tuong Long Tower still exists. Bricks at the tower's foot can be read clearly: 'Ly gia de tam de, Long thuy Thai Binh tu nien tao' i.e. the brisk was made in 3rd Ly's Emperor, the fourth year of dynastic titled Long Thuy Thai Binh (King Ly Thanh Tong), it was the year of 1057 according to Calendar. Next to the tower is Van Ban pagoda. There is a bronze bell named Van Ban Bell casted in Tran's dynasty time and it is one of the oldest bells of Vietnam and now being display in Historical Museum in Ha Noi. Due to a sea storm, the bell was sunk under sea water for hundreds years. It was picked up by fish men in 1958 at the beach of zone 1. It is believed that this bell was made with very high proportion of gold thus made it durable to remain undamaged after hundreds years under seawater, its sound vibrates even very far away.
Historical traces improved that Do Son is a marine base of King Tran. In 1288, there was a fierce navy battle in Nhi Son Tower area, Dai Bang river mouth sunk hundreds of invaders' boats.
In 1741, Do Son was selected as navy camp by Quan He (He Lord), his name is Nguyen Huu Cau raised an army for the war. Buffalo fighting custom (exclusive and unique through out the country) was born based on the normal ceremony for encouraging people and solders.
Van Hoa hotel is situated at the end of Do Son peninsular, it was renovated to become a casino with 100 stone footsteps down to the sea. 4 km toward the sea from this point is Hon Dau lighthouse island. A temple of Nam Hai Than Vuong - a general of Tran's dynasty was located on this tiny island where there is an anniversary every 9 to 10 January. He is the god of luck protecting fish-men during rough sea days. Worshiping brings belief and luck then it empowers spirit of fish-men. Before any sea trip, fish-men usually called at this island to worship for luck and make them confident when at the most dangerous position at sea.
Attractive sightseeing, recreation and entertainment areas in Do Son resort as follows:
* Tuong Long tower, Pearl temple, Dragon stream (the remains of Ly's Dynasty time) in Ngoc Hai ward;
* Ba De temple at the foot of Doc mountain at the end of Xam wharf in Duyen Hai ward;
* Buffalo fighting festival: pre-qualification round held on June of lunar year, the final games held on August 9th of lunar year, at Stadium of the Town;
* Three beaches of Zone I, II, and III: from Dai Duong restaurant in the north of hill 72, we can have a whole view of eastern side of Do Son peninsula.
* Wharf 'No number' (unidentified): it is the starting point of 'Ho Chi Minh route' at sea for 'No number' ships of Vietnamese People's Navy to carry supplies from the North for the South of Vietnam in the war against American. At present the remain parts of the wharf can be seen at the shore of Green Valley at Zone III;
* Do Son Casino: formerly, it was Van Hoa hotel - an old building of European architecture with a nice open area and a helicopter runway.
* Cau Vong market: where you can buy a lot of dried fish, shrimps, tiny shrimps, xa xung, oysters, shrimp paste, shark's fin, conger pike’s swimming bladder, su fish.
* Ben Nghieng (sloping quay): at the end of Zone II of Do Son, there are high-speed ferries for tourists to visit Hon Dau isle, Cat Ba island and Ha Long bay.
* Bao Dai villa: on the Vung hill, in 1999, Do Son tourism hotel company invested for rehabilitation of 'Dinh Bao Dai' (King Bao Dai[1][1][1]s Palace). The palace is of about 1,000 m2 including great lounge where King Bao Dai receipt visitors; bed rooms of Queen Nam Phuong, princes and princesses. There are a dining room, a living room, a reading room, and a wine cellar; Royal Private Kitchen at base floor had been restored to its original state. Visiting here visitors could seat on the throne and try on King’s and Queen’s costumes;