Halong natural heriatge

Brief history
 

Ha Long is about 180km from Hanoi and covers an area of over 1500 sq km but only 434sq km are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site ( designate as such in 1994).

Ha Long is situated in north Vietnam with a 120 km coastline, in the Gulf of Tonkin near the border with China.

Ha Long bay means bay of the Descending Dragon in Vietnamese langue. “Ha” means “descending” and “long” means “dragon” in Sino Vietnamese

Local legend says that long ago when the Vietnamese were fighting Chinese invaders, the gods sent a family of dragons to help defend the land. This family of dragons descended upon what is now Ha Long Bay (hence the name "Bay of Descending Dragons") and began spitting out jewels and jade. These jewels turned into the islands and islets dotting the bay, linking together to form barriers against the invaders. The people kept their land safe and formed what later became the country of Vietnam.

History shows that Ha Long bay has been the setting for local naval battles against Vietnam’s coastal neighbors. On three occasions in the labyrinth lf channels in Bach Dang river near the islands the Vietnamese army stopped the Chinese from landing. In 1288, General Tran Hung Dao stopped Mongol ships from sailing up the nearby Bach Dang river by placing steel – tipped wooden stakes at high tide, sinking the Mongol Dubhai Khan’s fleet.

During the Vietnam War, many of the channels between the islands were heavily mined by the navy of the United States, some of which pose a threat to shipping to this day.

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Vietnam Attractions

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