Ninh Bình vùng đất mang vẻ đẹp kì ảo

Impressive view of Vietnam's stunning landscape. Extraordinary nature you'll remember for a lifetime. A place rich in history just begging to be discovered. And the light shimmering through the enchanted caves. A magical and alluring charm. Spiritual vibes and traditional handicraft villages. Welcome to Ninh Binh, the land of shimmering beauty. I am Brad Hirsch from America but now you can call me Bao. I am a lover of both nature and travel and I chose to live the rest of my days right here in Vietnam. It's quite an enchanting destination for me to discover. About 100 kilometers south of the capital of Hanoi, we have one of Vietnam's northern provinces, Ninh Binh. With its own unique ecosystem, Ninh Binh truly stands out owing to its diversity of nature. The U.S. Forbes magazine has named Ninh Binh one of the top six destinations in Asia and one of the 23 best destinations in the world in 2023. I can't wait to check it out. Nestled out in these beautiful mountains, here we are at a very historic temple. I'm really excited to show you all why this is one of the most iconic and special and popular places to check out in the area of Ninh Binh. This is the site that many wish to visit at least once in their lifetime. There is nothing more wonderful than enjoying the fresh air on a peaceful morning in the ancient capital of Hoa Lu. Fortunately, today I met Miss Nguyen. She's a tour guide at the Hoa Lu Ancient Capital Cultural Relics Preservation Center. I definitely have a lot of interesting things to learn about this place. This is the temple of Dinh in the 10th century. According to the belief, wherever the king lived, where the king lived and where the king died, people would build a temple. After the end of the civil war in the 12th century, in the year 968, at this historical site of Hoa Lu, Dinh Bo Linh officially ascended to the throne of the emperor. And it's been 1,055 years since then. Tourists come to Hoa Lu to visit the temple. We are brought back to the past, more than 1,000 years ago. It is the bridge between the past and the present. We can come to Hoa Lu to feel, to remember, to pay tribute to the first emperor of the ancient Vietnam. Listening to Uyen's story and feelings for Hoa Lu's ancient capital, I too likely felt the invisible connection from the past to the present. Vietnamese people always remember the prowl. When you drink water, think of its source. They are proud of their nation's history. And they have preserved that spirit and magic to this day. So for now, it's goodbye to the ancient capital of Hoa Lu. Next, I will explore a place often referred to as the Ha Long Bay on land. It has majestic limestone mountain ranges, ancient relics, and a captivating river meandering through the mountain horizon. It's such a delightful day of just paddling, hearing the sounds of the jungles out here, getting a chance to touch the water, see the grass, see the mountains. It's truly an experience that feeds the soul. The area of Tam Coc Bich Dong was recognized as a World Heritage Site in June 23, 2014. In the past, this area was a vast waterway. As the waterway did not stop deep into the mountain, we can see that there are still cracks at the bottom of the mountain. This is a proof for the ancient sea. So when you come here, you can see that we have returned to the origins of the ancient Vietnam. I understand why you like this area and why you are so proud of it. Because it's so beautiful here. The most important thing is that it's clean and beautiful. Tam Coc is famous for its beautiful scenery, magnificent scenery, and beautiful rivers. And this is the only place in Vietnam that has been able to maintain the water rice cultivation on the river. And it is one of the five most beautiful rice fields in Vietnam. This place has rice fields not only in spring with green rice fields, but also in May, when the rice fields turn yellow like a S-shaped field. And to have a rice field like this, you have to have a natural love and the commitment of all the local people and the Tourist Administration to keep this rice field so that tourists can visit this place not only to admire the beautiful scenery, but also to experience the most beautiful rice field in Ninh Binh. What a delight! This is just one of the many majestic sights out here in the Ninh Binh area. I definitely see why UNESCO wanted to put Tam Coc as a World Heritage Site. Through the hard work of the locals, they're able to keep this place nice and clean and natural as it has been for thousands of years. It's a beautiful experience that everyone should come here and enjoy. In Ninh Binh, there are many lovely places for you to enjoy the scenery and take spectacular photos. For example, Mua Cave is where you can take in a panoramic view of the golden season, the high season for the ripe paddy fields. If you visit Ninh Binh in May and June, you can take pictures in the pink lotus fields. Welcome to Vietnam Discovery! For the more spiritual folks, visit the Bai Dinh Pagoda Complex, including the largest gold-plated bronze Buddha statue in Asia, the longest corridor of Arhats in Asia, and the tallest stupa in Southeast Asia. If you love traditional craft villages, you can visit the Bo Bat pottery village. You can visit the Ninh Van stone village. As for me, today I will have an interesting experience in a traditional craft village that brings joy to many couples here in Ninh Binh. It's one of the things that makes this village here in the Kim Chong area really something special. And here today, we're going to get a chance to actually focus in as we meet one of our uncles here, Mr. Phan, and we get a hands-on tour and a deeper look all about this wonderful and ancient art. I've been doing this craft since my parents were born. So my parents have been doing this craft for a long time. How long have you been doing this craft? I've been doing this craft for about 100 years. It's hard to say, but I'd like to know if there's anything special about this craft. My uncle Kim Son has been doing this craft since his parents were born. He's still doing this traditional craft, but he doesn't do it with a machine. He does it by hand. So he holds the two sides together like this and this. He does it by hand, so it's tighter on this side. It's not made of fabric. Traditional craft is made of wood, so it's very special. My uncle Kim Son's traditional craft is very flexible. Do you have a husband? I'm very proud of my uncle Kim Son's traditional craft. All of my uncles are men. Are you his wife? Yes, I'm his wife. How long have you been working together? We've been working together for almost 30 years. We have a lot of love for each other. We've been working together for a long time, so we have a lot of love for each other. Can you show me how to do it? Ah, okay, let me show you how to do it. Alright, good. Despite the many hardships of making these sedge mats, I can still see the happy, working smile of the person who loves the traditional craft of his homeland. I tell you, if you love nature as much as I do, then right out here, the ecotourism zone will be your new paradise. If you want to walk around, take a bicycle, or even get on a boat, there's hundreds of species of birds to see, plenty of flowers and plants, and gardens and islands. It's truly a wonder to behold. This is one of the largest nature reserves in the north. It is located in the Tung Yam ecotourism area, and it's part of the famous Chang'an landscape. And it's just 12 kilometers to the southeast of Ninh Binh City, with the terrain hidden deep among the mountains that form a limestone windbreak. This makes Tung Yam the ideal home for countless birds. Ah, such a marvelous area, isn't it? I really gotta say, being surrounded in the clouds of birds like this is truly breathtaking. Because people love nature, the environment, and the people of Tung Yam. Even the red-leafed trees have a responsibility to the river and the lake. They teach the visitors not to litter. The red-leafed trees collect the garbage themselves, and don't let the trash on the lake. You've been working here for a long time, but I'd like to ask, why do you like to work here? Every time I bring a group of visitors here to watch the birds, they feel at ease. They feel happy because they can keep the environment, and the number of birds that come back one day increases. The birds are still born here. The birds come back to me with my right hand. Phuong, he has operated a boat service here in Tung Yam for nearly 15 years. As I listen to Aung Phuong passionately tell the story about the birds in Tung Yam, I feel the magic and the love that has linked the people here to nature. They know how to protect and care for their shared home. So the birds will return forevermore. In Ninh Binh, there's another place you must definitely visit. A place with colorful nature, and a richness of flora and fauna. The place was honored in the World Travel Awards as Asia's leading national park for five consecutive years from 2019 to 2023. In this particular occasion, when I visited, I was lucky to witness the wonderful, magical spectacle of butterflies in flight. Yeah, when did you buy the butterflies? If you have butterflies, which one do you like? I like the black one, the one with the largest wings. This one right here. It's so big. It's bigger than the others. I used to see a lot of people catch this one and put it on a piece of paper to play with. But now, people tend to look at the butterflies in nature. So I'm very happy. Phuong is a place with a lot of different animals and plants. I hope to contribute a small part of myself to preserve Phuong so that future generations will have a chance to see these beautiful animals and plants. Along with gentlemen like Mr. Phuong, I know many scientists and conservationists who also love Coop Phuong National Park just as much. They want to preserve the natural beauty of the tropical rainforest. It can be seen that Ninh Binh is returning its focus to nature. I went from one surprise to the next because this place has so much majesty to offer. I walked through the gate as it's contrasting with the early morning light breathing in the fresh air of heaven and earth. How enchanting. Quiet and overwhelmed by what I saw here. I was lost in another world. The Tien Ha Cave. A time that seems to stand still. Raptured at the mysterious and wild charm of stellastites of all shapes and sizes. These have formed over millions of years. Entering through the stairs leading down into the Tien Ha Cave I'm immersed in a shimmering, fanciful light. Now every cave in the world has something special to offer and right here at the Tien Ha Cave they've got several skylights that really create that blend between the underworld and the outside world. A difference in temperatures, a difference in feelings, colors and lights. The Tien Ha Cave is absolutely a must visit. When you visit the Tien Ha Cave do you think it's beautiful? Yeah! I think so too because it's so quiet and there's a lot of beautiful things in it. You're very proud of the Tien Ha Cave because outside is the sky and in here is the river. You're very proud of the Tien Ha Cave because there's a river and in here how long is the river? 500 meters. This river is 500 meters long. I'm with the tourists wherever they go I come back home Đường, đường tới, đường tới tương lai. Right high. Cảm ơn, xin cảm ơn. What a special experience to be able to hear some local cultural music, but also whilst here in the silence of these caves, the beautiful Stelastites. You know, just the sound of the paddling through these gentle waters. This is an amazing cave. You know, the galaxy cave. But beyond that, I think it's overall a beautiful experience of serenity, a little touch of that underworld, and another experience in another layer, that is the Vietnam and the landscape beauty. But I think it's so special. Not only is it more silent, maybe more dark, maybe a little more wet, but all in all, much more beautiful. So Vietnam is known to be a very friendly place, but in my experience out here in Ninh Binh, every person I've met has really gone that extra mile to not only share parts of their own culture, but also share their pride that they have in the area, keeping it clean and conserving the environment, but also being able to show that and share that with the world. So it's been a really beautiful experience to meet the people out here, and I think they are really what make this area shine. Perhaps the land and its people are intertwined, creating a poetically divine spectacle in Ninh Binh. Visiting Ninh Binh, I explored history, nature, and people's lives. I listened to stories that was not too rowdy, but rather quite gentle, gradually touching the intuitive and eternal corners of my soul for the first time. This is the first, but not the last time I come here to Ninh Binh. How about you, my friend?