The laid-back loveliness of Long An
 | Paradise regained: Plans are under way to develop charming Tan Lap Floating Village in Moc Hoa District into a tourism site. - VNS Photo Hoang The Nhiem
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|  | Barrels of fruit: Farmers harvest blue dragon fruit, a local speciality. - VNA/VNS Photo Hoang Hai
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| | A hundred reasons why: The Hundred-Column House sits in a 4,044sq.m garden. - VNA/VNS Photos Huu Thanh |  | In the pink-tipped: Farmers harvest lotus flowers in a pond in Moc Hoa District. - VNA/VNS Photo Pham Do
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|  | Business is buoyant: Floating houses on the Nhat Tao River. Local villagers rear fish. VNA/VNS Photo Pham Do
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| How to get there
From HCM City, visitors can travel nearly 50km by bus to Long An Province on National Highway 1A.
Visitors can also go by boat along the Sai Gon River in HCM City to Vam Co Tay River in Long An Province. |
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The Mekong Delta Province of Long An is famed for its romantic, unspoilt landscape. But visitors might be surprised to discover that it abounds in historical sites dating back to the mysterious ancient Oc Eo culture. Trung Hieu reports.
When Dang Quang Tuan, an overseas Vietnamese living in Germany, brought his family on a visit to Viet Nam, their first destination of choice was the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta.
"We stopped in the southern province of Long An because it is close to HCM City," says Tuan.
Just 47km west of HCM City, Long An is considered the entrance to the Delta. It is bordered by Tay Ninh and Cambodia to the north, HCM City to the east, Tien Giang to the south and Dong Thap Province to the west.
Long An is culturally diverse, populated with many followers of four religions: Buddhism, Catholicism, Cao Dai and Protestant.
It is an agricultural province lying between the Vam Co Dong and Vam Co Tay rivers, which supply alluvium to fertilise the soil which supports abundant fruit orchards year round. Long An also has vast rice fields and a diverse array of flora and fauna. All combined, these natural wonders create a village picture that is both peaceful and breezy.
One reason tourists are attracted to the province is the Oc Eo culture, which formed and developed in the Delta from the 1st to 6th century and absorbed many elements of Indian culture. About 20 prehistoric sites and nearly 100 Oc Eo cultural sites have been excavated in Long An, with 12,000 individual artefacts found.
The province also boasts 90 historical and cultural sites including many national heritage sites like the Binh Ta Relics in Duc Hoa District, the Tomb and Temple of Nguyen Huynh Duc, a founder of the Nguyen dynasty. His tomb in Tan An Town is one of the oldest tombs in Long An, entirely preserved in the same condition as it was when it was built in 817. Visitors also have the opportunity to explore the Rach Cat military post and the Hundred-Column House.
The Hundred-Column House is located on a coastal area in Long Huu Dong Commune, Can Duoc District. Constructed from 1901-03, the 882sq.m house features the architectural style of the Hue royal capital and the Nguyen dynasty (1802-1945).
The house was built entirely of wood, except for the stone floor, and located in the midst of a large garden. It has three main chambers and two sub-chambers.
Carefully looking at the wooden details of the house, Nguyen Phuong Hanh, a visitor from HCM City, points out that some of the wooden beams feature a pestle and a mortar – which manifest the harmony between Yin and Yang.
"Many decorations feature classical Vietnamese themes such as the four sacred animals (dragon, unicorn, turtle and phoenix), the four seasons, and the eight kinds of fruit used for ceremonies and ancestor worship. Items from the West, such as roses, squirrels and vines, also feature in the house's decorations," she says.
The Binh Ta site in Duc Hoa District is a complex dating back to the prehistoric and protohistoric periods developed by the Oc Eo culture under the ancient Phu Nam kingdom which existed from the 1st to the 7th century AD.
The complex, which features the Go Xoai, Go Don and Go Nam Tuoc architectural and archaeological sites, is located 40km north-east of Tan An, the provincial capital city.
The Go Xoai Temple, excavated to a depth of 1.9m, was used by the ancient Phu Nam residents to conduct religious ceremonies. Many valuable items can be viewed at the site, such as statues of the gods Shiva and Vishnu, and sacred objects like Linga and Yoni.
"Among the gold items found in Go Xoai was a gold leaf document of Buddhist prayers written in ancient Sanskrit letters. All of the Binh Ta sites are Brahmanism temples, a religion that appeared in India in the 1st century BC and spread to the southern part of Indochina in the early Christian era," says Pham Van Ngan, a cultural researcher from Australia.
However, Tran Minh Tue, a visitor from Ha Noi, says he is not a fan of archaeology.
"I think the most interesting part about visiting Long An is enjoying the romantic and poetic landscape while floating along the peaceful Nhat Tao River," he says.
Under the hot summer light of southern Viet Nam, the river is very blue, with water ferns and coconut trees reflecting off the water, he says.
Though the river looks very peaceful now, this is where National Hero Nguyen Trung Truc sank the French colonialist warship Esperance during a fierce battle in 1861.
Eco-tourism potential
Visitor Dang Quang Tuan says that he cannot forget the feeling he had as his group travelled through a cajeput forest by boat on their way to visit the Centre of Study, Preservation and Development of Herbal Medicine in Moc Hoa District.
"We enjoyed the fresh air in the wild nature, almost untouched by human hands. Cajeput trees give off a delicate perfume which helps us forget the fatigue and dust that are found in noisy cities.
"At the Centre, after enjoying some cool glasses of lemon juice sweetened with honey, we visited a medicinal garden with more than 50 species of plants used for their essential oil and medicinal value," Tuan says.
The 800ha cajeput forest is an ideal place for visitors to watch huge flocks of birds and travel around the canals to study herbal medicine and enjoy local cuisine.
"At the end of our visit, many people chose to buy honey, dried fish and herbal medicine as souvenirs," he says.
Another can't miss is the Tan Lap Floating Village in Moc Hoa District, 15km from the Cambodian border.
This eco-tourism area covers 135ha and is surrounded by another 500ha of natural wonders. The province has earmarked VND100 billion ($4.7 million) to develop the area as a tourism destination for Long An in particular and the entire Dong Thap Muoi (Plain of Reeds) in general.
Another popular destination is the Binh An drum- making village in Thu Thua District, where many generations of prestigious drum makers have pursued their craft. Many old drums from the village still exist in other localities like Tinh Vien Pagoda in HCM City and Long An Pagoda in Kien Giang Province.
In the first half of this year, 179,500 tourists visited Long An, an increase of 26 per cent compared to the same period last year.
"This year, the province expects to welcome 360,000 tourists, a 25 per cent increase over last year," says director of the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism Pham Van Tran.
"Our target for the 2011-15 period is for Long An to have a 30 per cent annual growth rate in turnover from tourism, which requires a 24 per cent increase in the total number of tourists annually," he adds.
Tran says the province is calling for investment in tourism development, with key projects in the works, including a 23ha entertainment park in Duc Hoa Town; a cultural park in Ward 6, Tan An City; Tan Lap Floating Village in Moc Hoa District; and Rach Cat Military Post in Can Duoc District.
Visitor Tuan's wife, Nguyen Thu Hang, seems to have a real fondness for the local cuisine, especially the canh chua ca chot (sour soup with local fish), ca loc nuong trui (baked snake-headed fish) and lau mam (hot pot).
"Each food shows the strong style of local people and their land, so I think it is a nice feature for visitors," Hang says.
"I believe there are many other tourism destinations waiting for us to explore," says Tuan. "Poetic and tranquil Long An is being renewed to attract visitors who want to seek out new things. The ancient Oc Eo culture still has many mysteries waiting for us to find and study." - VNS