Wandering in the land of sunshine

Not too noisy, the southern land of Khanh Hoa has the appearance of a "faraway land" full of sunshine and wind, with wild scenery, honest and kind people. There, you should slow down to explore the brilliant Cham culture present in the thousand-year-old Cham towers, in the Cham villages with rich identity... and many other interesting things.

Tourists visit and experience Mui Dinh sand hill. Photo: THAI HUY

The enchanting blue sea road

After the merger, Khanh Hoa tourism has expanded and become much richer. One day in early July, we traveled to the southern part of the province - where many people often joke: "What a land with wind like a whip, sun like a roasting stove". It is this harsh "specialty" that creates this land with beautiful natural scenery. Right at the beginning of the journey, we were treated to a feast of scenery as the car rolled on the Binh Lap - Vinh Hy route, with the deep blue sea on one side, the wild rocky mountains on the other side mixed with the green of the forests and wild grass of Nui Chua - Phuoc Binh National Park. Each bend opens up a beautiful pristine beach: Kinh Beach, Chuoi Beach, Nuoc Ngot Beach, Thung Beach... Stopping at Vinh Hy Pass - the highest point on this coastal route, before our eyes was a beautiful picture. The sunshine was like pouring honey. The wind blew strongly. The fishing boat was like a dotted stroke on the blue sea stretching as far as the eye could see, in the distance was the fishing village on Binh Hung Island. Here, many groups of tourists stopped to check-in, everyone wanted to capture the magical moment when the sea and sky met. Just that was enough to make me feel proud of the beauty of the land and people of Khanh Hoa on a new day.

Tourists take check-in photos on Vinh Hy pass.

The car started again! In front of us was Vinh Hy Bay nestled next to the majestic Nui Chua range. Tourists often come here to visit the fishing village, dive to see corals, walk on the white sand beaches or enjoy fresh seafood from the ocean. That day, we did not stop at Vinh Hy Bay but went to Hang Rai - a breathtakingly beautiful landscape in Nui Chua National Park - Phuoc Binh. Hang Rai is a million-year-old ancient coral reef, rising above the sea like a giant rock with rocky pits and jagged spikes. Below the edge of the ancient coral reef is another rock shelf to the north, also known as Da Muoi beach. Every time the tide rises, water overflows onto the rock surface, meets the slope and flows back into the sea, creating the image of amazing waterfalls on the sea surface.

Whispering of the Earth

Not only does it have unique scenery, the southern land of Khanh Hoa also preserves a thousand-year-old Cham cultural treasure. After lunch, we went to Po Klong Girai tower when the sun was still low. As soon as we stepped through the archway, we saw the towering tower rising against the deep blue sky. Po Klong Girai tower today is no longer as quiet as when we arrived many years ago. Many Korean tourists are visiting and learning about the mysterious and unique Cham culture. "I am especially interested in the architecture of the towers here, it is so special, it looks so majestic. According to the tour guide, the towers are built of baked bricks with natural adhesives, not cement, it is so interesting", said Ms. Kang Min Jun (a tourist from Korea).

Tourists have fun at Mui Dinh sand hill.

A researcher said that earth, water and fire are the fateful elements that created the Cham culture. Along with the Cham towers, Bau Truc pottery is the embodiment of the harmony between earth, water and fire through the talented hands of Cham artisans. In the late afternoon, we visited Bau Truc pottery village (Ninh Phuoc commune), talked with the artisans and then understood that behind those rustic ceramic jars is the quintessence of unique pottery art. Artisan Dang Thi Gach shared that Cham people take soil from clay in rice fields along the Quao River, combined with fine sand from the Quao River to create a mixture of raw materials to make Bau Truc pottery. Unlike most pottery villages in Vietnam and the world , Cham people make pottery entirely by hand and move around the product to shape it, instead of rotating the product on a turntable. After drying, the pottery is fired with firewood or straw outdoors, not using a closed kiln like other places. The firing process usually lasts several hours and creates the natural colors typical of Bau Truc pottery - usually reddish brown, ash gray, shiny black. Each ceramic pot becomes a unique and fascinating work of art.

Sweetness in the sunny land

The southern region of Khanh Hoa has the lowest rainfall in the country, almost all year round sunshine. That creates a rare semi-desert landscape in Vietnam, with sand dunes, grasslands, dry steppes - ideal for growing grapes, apples, raising sheep, goats... On this trip, we had time to visit the vineyards in Thai An (Vinh Hai commune) to enjoy fresh grapes, grape juice right in the garden, and chat with the locals. What a strange land! The sun is scorching, the land is arid but it produces sweet fruit. And like the fruit, the people here expose themselves to the harsh sun, diligently clinging to the soil and sand to live, but everyone's soul is simple and sweet!

Tourists visit the vineyard in Thai An, Vinh Hai commune.

After a long day of wandering, we rewarded ourselves with the specialties of the sunny land. "It would be a mistake to come to Phan Rang without enjoying grilled goat, grilled lamb, grilled monitor lizards with salt and chili", a travel colleague invited. The goats here are raised on rocky hills, eat wild grass, have firm meat, little fat, and a distinctive aroma. Monitor lizards live in the sand dunes of Son Hai and Phuoc Dinh, have white, sweet meat, and are very tasty as bait. While the men were sipping grilled goat with glasses of wine full of the aroma of new grapes, the group of women had time to borrow a motorbike and go to the famous banh can restaurant in Phan Rang. "Phan Rang people eat banh can with fish sauce, not fish sauce like in Nha Trang", my friend in the group recounted with delight.

Dam Nai wind power field attracts the attention of tourists.

Not flashy and splendid, the climate is not pleasant, but anyone who has set foot in the southern land of Khanh Hoa will surely want to come back - once, and many more times. So do we! This land not only has ancient Cham towers, beautiful beaches, but also Mui Dinh sand dunes, green Dam Nai wind power fields, pure white Ca Na salt fields, majestic Nui Chua - Phuoc Binh National Park... and many other destinations waiting to be discovered!

XUAN THANH

Source: https://baokhanhhoa.vn/du-lich/202507/lang-du-tren-mien-dat-nang-68622d6/