Danang's Cathedral Church.

Located at 156 Tran Phu Road,Hai Chau District is Danang's Cathedral also known as the Rooster Cathedral which was constructed for the French residents in 1923.

 Tran Phu Road was formerly known as Rue du Musée Street.

The locals called the Rooster Church as Con Gai Church because of the weathercock on top of the steeple. The actual name is Nha Tho Chinh Toa.

Today it serves a Catholic community of 4000 – it’s standing room only if you arrive late. The architecture of the cathedral is marvellous with several medieval–stained glass windows of various saints.

Masses are held from Monday to Saturday at 5 a.m. and 5 p.m., and on Sunday at 5:00 a.m., 6:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m .

The diocese of DaNang had about 57,870 believers (2.7% of the population), 68 priests and 38 parishes.

 Sacred Heart Cathedral at 47,Yen Bai Street in Da Nang has been assigned as the Cathedral of the diocese. The Sacred Heart Orphanage was Supervised by the Sisters of Saint Paul de Chartres.

There were many hundreds of children who were adopted from Sacred Heart Orphanage in Danang. The orphanage provides a refuge from the harsh conditions of the street and The Sisters of St. Paul of Chartres in Danang diocese offer the education, compassion, and friendship these children lacked while living on the streets.
Contact Tel: (84.511) 382 47 35 * Fax: (84.511) 389 30 58
E-mail : phaolodn@dng.vnn.vn

Bamboo Green Hotel.  (opposite Cathedral) Address: 177 Tran Phu St., Hai Chau Dist.,Da Nang City., Viet Nam

Tel : (84.511) 3822722 - 3823942 - 3830412 / 0903.512.949 - 0913.457.624
Fax : (84.511) 382 4165 Email: bamboogreen2@dng.vnn.vn ; thuriversidets@yahoo.com Room rates:USD45-USD80

Daesco Hotel (opposite Cathedral)
- Add: 155 Tran Phu Str, Da Nang City, Viet Nam
- Tel: (+84-511) 3892807 - 3892808
- Fax: (+84-511) 3892988
- Email: daescohotel@dng.vnn.vn
 Room rates:USD35-USD70

Danang has a very slow pace of daily life and you won't find street congestion all over.

 Compared to either Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City, traffic in Da Nang is always relatively light, although huge trucks blare along every now and again and there are brief 'rush hours.'

The hottest months of the year are June, July, and August, when the temperature can get to as high as 40 degrees Celsius, and it is generally very dry.
 There are usually tropical storms in October and November.


Mayana Hotel just opposite the intersection of Han Market.
40 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street , Hai Chau District

Yen Bai Road junction short distance from here.
 Room rates:USD20-USD30

In Danang it will be difficult to find low budget backpackers hostel and the cheaper hotels were normally full.

The My Khe and Bac My An (China Beach) area have better choice of low cost accomodations.

 My Khe was chosen one of the six of the most attractive beaches on the planet by Forbes Magazine, a famous American economic publication.

These areas were rich in military memories.

 Hoa’s Guesthouse, China Beach. About US$8..

Phưoc Loc, China Beach –Tel:84 511 3847609.   The hotel is located 20km southwest of town, and cost 300K VND by taxi from the city center. US$10-12.

 Houng Lan Hotel, 05 Pham Van Nghi, Tel:(0511) 3652269 (fax: 0511.3652694). About US$8

 Thien Duc Motel, 187 Dong Da,Tel:(0511) 3825232. About 8 USD per night..



Han Market -The colourful market is located right in central city, at the intersection of Hung Vuong St. and Tran Phu St., all day long busy with sellers and buyers in and out, and goods of all kinds.

 A lively and cheerful atmosphere permeates the marketplace from vendors in conical hats sitting on the ground with their small baskets of little fruits and vegetables to salespeople at their big well-stocked stands.
It is a nice place for shopping as well as snap-shooting.



Chua long Thu Temple along Tran Phu Street doesn't looked spectacular compared to the Long An Temple Pagoda located behind the Museum of Cham Sculpture, the Han River, Binh Ward,Hai Chau District, Da Nang. which is also the Temple of the Mahayana sect.

Other sight seeing temples worth visiting:

 Marble Mountains also called Ngu Hanh Son or Hon Non Nuoc (which mean mountain and water in Vietnamese), are located approximately 8km southeast of Danang City, close to the sea.

There are a number of caves, grottos and Buddhist temples on the mountains with nice natural entrances and tunnels.

The temples make the area a popular pilgrimage site

Most tourists will go to Thuy Son Mountain(admission:15,000VND), covering 15 ha, consists of three main peaks namely Thuong Thai, Trung Thai and Ha Thai.

Open tour charges 70,000VND,xe om about 20,000 VND



The Song Han Bridge  connects The Son Tra Peninsula with roads leading to  the long stretches of fine sandy China Beach.

From the Hai Chau Ward,there were bus stops across Danang Museum on Le Duan Road.

Buses at the Museum side will head to the new Danang Bus Terminal.

One can also hail a bus to Hoi An at any of these bus stops-20,000VND non aircond.(only buses going towards the river section)

 Crossing the bridge will be Phan Van Dong Road.The road along the beaches is Hoang Sa Road. Golden Sea Hotel is in the mid section of Pham Van Dong Road.




Tan Vinh Hotel(Khách Sạn Tân Vinh) is in Hai Chau Ward .
Very near the riverside,a short distance to the Song Han Bridge. Location: Phan Dinh Phung Road.

Indochina Riverside Hotel
 Phan Dinh Phung Road

Minh Anh Hotel beside Tan Vinh Hotel.

Danang Zion Hotel.

The South Central coast of Vietnam lies the 4th largest city of Vietnam.

Danang city is located at the mouth of the Han River.

The first Europeans to visit Danang were the Portuguese explorers who regularly stopped at the port city of Hoi An which was about 30km south of Danang.

 Later the French,Spanish traders and missionaries follow suit. During the early 19th century,the emperor at that time prohibited European vessels from conducting trade in Hoi An port except the Han port in Danang which till today is the largest commercial port in the central region.

 Due to the persecution of Roman Catholic missionaries, French troops with the help of Spanish troops from the Philippines overpowered the Vietnamese stationed in Danang and soon a conflict of closed to two decades gradually strengthened the French occupation of the whole of southern Vietnam and forming Cochinchina with Saigon as the principal city.

In 1887,it became the Union of French Indochina and the Spratly Islands were annexed to French Cochinchina. Cochinchina was renamed to Republic of South Vietnam in 1947.

 During the Vietnam War,Danang was a major United States airforce base and the world's busiest airports during the war.Close to 3,500 marines were deployed to secure the US Air base,freeing South Vietnamese troops for combat against the communist North Vietnam.

 Danang city is a half way point between Hanoi(759km) in the north and Ho Chi Minh city(960km) in the south.

Nha Nghi Si-on (Zion Hotel)

Hoang Van Thu Road(off the main road,first lane)
Tel:05113 828 333/334 Fax:05113 828 233 email:sionhotel@gmail.com
Rates:USD10 per night.(a large room,queen size bed,aircond) (Route Map)


 Danang International Airport was just 5km south west of the city centre and 8km to the beach area.
Travelers on arrival at the airport will have to rely on the taxis easily available on the left exit and the fares can range from USD5-USD10.

For those solo travelers who prefer a cheaper mode,walk from left exit passing by the old terminal building and a very short distance will be some of the xe om (motorcycle rider) offering a trip downtown for 20,000 VND.

 In the event that one feel like walking to town,it's just a 15minutes leisurely walk.From the place where the xe om riders,walk for less than a kilometre will be a small traffic circle and head on straight down along Nguyen Van Linh,You can find some cheap hotels along the way with prices around 250,000 VND.

HAGL Plaza Hotel Danang building is at a bigger traffic circle along Nguyen Van Linh and upon reaching here while keeping to your left will be three road junctions.

Ong Ich Kiem Road will lead to the BIG C Hypermarket and is near to a very busy local market at Pham Ngu Lao Road.

 The middle road is Trieu Nu Vuong having shops and businesses.

 The most ideal path to the riverside area where most of the guesthouses hotels were located is via Hoang Dieu Road.

HAGL Plaza Danang

01 Nguyen Van Linh street Danang, Vietnam

Room rates from USD95-USD400/night
Phone Numbers: 84 511 2 22 33 44/ 54
Fax Number: 84 511 2 22 33 55

 Distances to the following places:
Cham Museum – 1 km
 Danang Beach – 2 km
Marble Mountain – 2 km
Hoi An ancient town – 20 km

Hidden Ha Tinh billionaire

Vietnam's low profile richest man,Pham Nhat Vuong was born in the central province of Ha Tinh in 1968. Vuong studied geological economic engineering at Moscow Geology University in Russia.

After school in 1993, he moved to Kharkov, Ukraine, where he created LLC Technocom, a producer of more than 100 dehydrated food products, including instant noodles and mashed potatoes.

The business was later sold to Nestle SA at an undisclosed price. In 2001,he returned to Vietnam to set up Vincom and Vinpearl. Today at the age of 44,he's the President and chairman of Vingroup Joint-Stock Company(stock quote:VIC.vn)as well as Vinpearl Joint Stock Company(stock quote:VPL.vn)with total asset value in the domestic stock market over VND21.044trillion(over USD1 billion). In September, 2009, the main headquarters of Technocom Group were moved to Hanoi and the name changed into Vingroup.

 Vuong’s wife, Pham Thu Huong, has become the fourth richest investor, with VND3.227 trillion (USD154.4 million). She was ranked as 6th in the list of top-ten richest investors, with VND2.262 trillion (USD108.2 million), as of December 29, 2010.

Wedged between Quang Binh province to the south and Nghe An province to the north, Ha Tinh's best known feature is a road leading out of the province -- to Laos.

It's through this province that snaking Route 8 leads to the Nam Phao / Cau Treo border crossing between Vietnam and Laos.

On the Lao side, the road links up with Lak Xao, continuing on eventually to the Mekong River, while on the Vietnamese side, Route 8 strikes west till it intersects with Highway 1 near Hong Linh and not all that far from Vinh -- the capital of Nghe An province to the north.

Ha Tinh is off the beaten path, but here you can see the “real Vietnam”, whatever that is.

The main town is Hong Linh with sub-Districts: Huong Son, Duc Tho, Nghi Xuan, Can Loc, Huong Khe, Thach Ha, Cam Xuyen, Ky Anh, Vu Quang, Loc Ha.

 Ethnic groups here includes Viet (Kinh), Thai, Muong, Chut.

 Locating at the east of Truong Son Mountain Range, Ha Tinh's terrain is both narrow and sloping, tilting towards the east. To the west is a high mountain range (with average height of 1,500m), following with a range of hills, small and narrow elongated plain and coastal sandy banks.

Mountainous terrain accounts for 80% of the province's natural area that is sharply differentiated and divided, forming deferent ecological areas.

There are 14 rivers such as Ngan Pho, Ngan Sau, Cay. The coastline is 137km. Ha Tinh belongs to the tropical monsoon area. The annual average temperature is 23.7ºC.

There are two clear seasons:Raining season lasts from August to November. Annually average rainfall is from 2500mm to 2650mm, account to 54% of whole year.Dry season is from December to July next year. The weather is dry, hot and highly vaporizing West- Southern wind (blowing from Laos).

 The province has many special internal tourism places ecologically, historically, culturally, namely
National Park of Vu Quang, Ke Go reservoir, Hong Linh Mountain. Dong Loc Road Junction - a monument sticking with glorious victory of Vietnam against the US.

Then, tourists are able to relax in Xuan Thanh, Thien Cam, Thach Hai or Deo Con beaches, or in medical treatment area of Son Kim Hot Spring. Ha Tinh preserves many temples, pagodas such as Cua Dieu Tower, Huong Tich, Bich Chau, Yen Lac pagodas, Tam Lang, Chieu Trung temples. Coming there, visitor do not forget make tour to some of handicrafts villages such as Van Cham, Minh Long iron, Duc Lam cooper, Cam Trang pottery, Thai Yen wood, Ha silt, Ho cloth.

Ha Tinh City is 341km from Hanoi.


ACCOMODATIONS:

1) Thai Hotel a three star hotel located in the center of Hong Linh Town, near the Song Lam River. Add: Block 10, Bac Hong Precinct, Hong Linh Town, Ha Tinh province, Vietnam Tel: (84-39) 570788 ; Fax: (84-39) 836716

2) Song La Hotel at Thien Cam beach. Add: Thien Cam Beach, Ha Tinh province, Vietnam Tel: (84-39) 862666 ; Fax: (84-39) 862581

3) Binh Minh Hotel Add: 1 Tran Phu road, Ha Tinh town, Ha Tinh province, Vietnam Tel: (84-39) 856825 ; Fax: (84-39) 857875

4) Huong Sen Hotel Add: 2 Nguyen Tat Thanh road, Ha Tinh town, Ha Tinh province, Vietnam Tel: (84-39) 855589 ; Fax: (84-39) 857875

5) Lam Kieu Hotel Gia Lach- Nghi Xuan, Ha Tinh town, Ha Tinh province, Vietnam Tel: (84-39) 821461 ; Fax: (84-39) 821225

6) Cong Doan Guesthouse Thien Cam Townlet, Cam Xuyen Dist., Ha Tinh, Vietnam Tel: (84-39) 862 226

7) Hoanh Son Guesthouse Pho Chau Townlet, Huong Son Dist., Ha Tinh Tel: (84-39) 875 253

8) Hoanh Son Hotel Ky Nam Commune, Ky Anh Dist., Ha Tinh, Vietnam Tel: (84-39) 869 009 ; Fax: (84-39) 857 875

9) Huong Thuy Hotel Ha Huy Tap St., Ha Tinh Town, Ha Tinh, Vietnam Tel: (84-39) 885 412

10) Kieu Hoa Hotel Add: Tran Phu St., Ha Tinh Town, Ha Tinh, Vietnam Tel: (84-39) 857 025

11) Lam Hong Hotel Bac Hong Ward, Hong Linh Town, Ha Tinh, Vietnam Tel: (84-39) 835 357

12) Tan Giang Hotel 33 Nguyen Cong Tru St., Ha Tinh Town, Ha Tinh, Vietnam Tel: (84-39) 855 583

13) Thanh Sen Hotel 1 Nguyen Cong Tru St., Ha Tinh Town, Ha Tinh Tel: (84-39) 856 002 ; Fax:(84-39) 855 484

14) Thien Y Hotel Thien Cam Townlet, Cam Xuyen Dist., Ha Tinh, Vietnam Tel: (84-39) 862 345 ; Fax:(84-39) 862 397

15)Cao Phu Guesthouse Tran Phu St., Ha Tinh Town, Ha Tinh, Vietnam Tel: (84-39) 856 712

16) Sinh Thai Hotel No 2 - Xuan An - Nghi Xuan - Ha Tinh Tel: (84-39) 3822208 Fax: (84-39) 3822373 MAP:Thành phố Hà Tĩnh