Cu Chi Jeep Tour by Vietnam Travel Depot (New, Extremely Hot!!!!)

At 10.00 am, from Saigon, we hopped on Jeeps and drove to Cu Chi Tunnels for a new hot adventure. Our “land - force” were tourists, operators from Vietnam Jeep Tours (Vietnam Travel Depot) and 11 jeeps (A1, A2).

Arrived Cu Chi Tunnels at 12.00 am, everyone was too exciting to wait for discover Tunnels – an amazing complex of underground tunnels used during the Vietnam War – the Viet Cong’s Under World: an elaborate underground community made up of 250 km of tunnels and chambers below the city and which was built with simple tools and bare hand.

Here are some real photos and video clip from this jeep tour. Hope you love this and will join us some days!

Hope you love this and will join us some days!

Vietnam Jeep Tours (Vietnam Travel Depot)

The only one who makes everything different with Jeeps!

Ph: +84 98 924 5868

sales@vietnamtraveldepot.com

INTRODUCTION TO VIETNAM FLAVORS BY VIETNAM TRAVEL DEPOT

Hochiminh City, Vietnam – Vietnam Travel Depot has introduced Vietnamese cooking class for international travelers to experience how some typical authentic Vietnamese dishes are prepared and cooked.

Set in a refine lush tea garden in the heart of Saigon, the experience include a morning local market visit (optional, suggested for morning section) guided by our chef to select the best and fresh ingredients followed by an introduction to the traditional courses such as “pho” (beef noodle soup) or “nem” (fried or fresh spring rolls), then of course participants will make the dishes of their own under the guidance of our English or Japanese speaking instructors. The class ends with a friendly taste of the self-made dishes with lots of fun and stories to share.

The class opens two sections per day from 10am to 1pm or 2pm to 5pm and lasts for three hours to learn three dishes for 1-10 participants maximum. Cost for participant is US$45/person. Booking in advanced is essential.

About Vietnam Travel Depot

Online travel portal specialized in travel to Vietnam focusing on individuals and small groups travel. More information the company, its offers and rates please visit www.vietnamtraveldepot.com or Tel: (84 8 ) 5404 3116.

Cam Ranh to become international airport

Cam Ranh Airport in the central coastal province of Khanh Hoa will become an international airport with the opening of an official direct air route linking Cam Ranh and Vladivostock in Russia on December 12.

This was announced at a recent working session between Chairman of the Khanh Hoa provincial People’s Committee Vo Lam Phi, leaders of the Minh Nhat Ltd.Co. and representatives of Russia’s Vladivostock Avia and Transero Airlines.

Under the agreement, TU204 aircraft will be used for a flight every two weeks and the flight frequency will be increased later. Another air route will also open for flights from Moscow to Cam Ranh and vice versa.

Mr. Phi also asked hotels and guest houses to offer promotion programmes and lower service prices on the occasion of the inauguration of Cam Ranh international airport.

Travel agents’ hotels have pledged 50-70% discount in hotel room prices for nearly 130 international tourists flying from Russia to Cam Ranh on December 12.

The national aviation sector invested more than VND200 billion in building a new terminal, air traffic control station, a modern runway lights and other facilities in Cam Ranh Airport.

The capacity of the new terminal doubles the old one, which was only capable of loading 300 passengers per hour.

(Source: VNA)

Nguyen-era items show in Hue

Forty-eight relics from the Nguyen Dynasty era donated by private collectors to the Hue Royal Fine Arts Museum are on display at the former royal capital’s An Dinh Palace. The Hue Royal Fine Arts Museum, run by the Hue Historical Relic Preservation Centre, houses a large collection of relics from the time of Vietnam’s last imperial dynasty, which ruled from 1820 to 1945.

The objects on show at the exhibition, organised by the museum, are mostly made of silver, brass, precious stones, porcelain, silk, wood and paper.

Among them are a pair of ivory tusks donated by a Vietnamese expatriate living in France, a tea set gifted by Doan Phuoc Thuan, a collector in the central coastal province of Phu Yen, and a collection of King Minh Mang’s poems written on paper donated by Frenchman Andre de Crozet.

A set of three life-size brass statues of Jesus’s mother Mary, donated by a Hue-based company, is among the most valuable relics on show.

At the time of the exhibition’s opening, Nguyen Huu Hoang donated a porcelain basin and plate, Le Gia donated a land register, and a group of collectors presented a pair of vermilion-lacquered gilded wood panels.

The exhibition will go on until the end of the year.

(Source: VNA)

Cultural features of Cu Da ancient village

Cu Da Village is located in Cu Khe Commune, Thanh Oai District, Hanoi. It is considered as one of the two most ancient villages in the former Ha Tay. Its ancient and tranquil beauty attracts many tourists and researchers both in and outside the country. Cu Da Village is really a symbol of Vietnamese ancient villages in the northern delta areas and it also hides cultural sediments of great values that have still been kept intact today.

Cu Da ancient village, an attractive tourist destination in Hanoi
Cu Da Village is located on the bank of the Nhue River, about 15 kilometres from center of Hanoi, bearing characters of a Vietnamese village with hundred-year-old banian-trees, rivers, ponds, village wells and ancient mossy walls.

Cu Da villagers still keep traditional and neighbourly lifestyle which has been maintained from generation to generation. So, once visitors coming Cu Da, they will find it easy to inquire the way to some family in the village. This is really a respectfully cultural feature of Cu Da people.

In the 1920s, 1930s, thanks to the favourable location ‘close to the market and the river’, Cu Da was a very busy place for traders to do business all day and night. As a result, Cu Da village’s economy was developed rapidly and the living standard of villagers was improved considerably compared to other regions. Cu Da villagers moved to all regions in the country to do business and settle down there. Some people who were better off had come back to the home village and brought along with them the cultural characters from the city. Houses with the western architectural style mixed with traditional art were built. These were communal houses built under the French-style so that villagers could gather together and make decisions on things of common concern. Each house was numbered like in a big city. Cu Da is among a few Vietnamese villages whose houses were numbered. This has made it so unique, rarely seen in any village in the northern delta area.

The cultural features of Cu Da have been preserved intact which serve as an evidence of a flourishing development period. The most remarkable relics in Cu Da are 50 French-style villas. Partly damaged by time and historical changes as they were, these houses are still kept intact with typical French style. These are two-storey villas with balcony, archway, enamel tile-paved pillars, porcelain-paved walls and so on. Tiles to pave and decorate houses were all made in France in 1910 – 1920 and imported to Vietnam. Architectural patterns and designs of these houses remain, showing the harmony between eastern and western architecture in the early years of the 20th century.

Not only bearing European-style architecture, Cu Da is also imbued with traditional values of a riverside village in the northern delta area.

These were ancient Vietnamese houses and houses of worship built one century ago. These iron wood houses with delicate carvings still stand there to the test of time. The most remarkable house is the ancient house of Trinh The Sung built in 1874 under the Tu Duc’s reign. The house features the typical architectural art of the Nguyen Dynasty as it was made entirely from timber with sophisticated patterns on its doors.

The cultural characters of Cu Da ancient village are also showed through other constructions like temples, pagodas and shrines. Cu Da temple is one of two relics of Cu Da Village recognised as the nation’s historical site. Xa Tac Worship Ritual was set at Cu Da Temple to offer sacrifices and considered as the most beautiful worship place preserved until today. This place of worship dates back to 1921, made from precious stones carved with dragons and symbols of four sacred creatures: dragon, unicorn, tortoise and phoenix. Xa Tac Altar is not only used for the worship of the God of Land and the God of Farming, but it also implies typical features of a historical period in the past.

Cu Da Village is also famous for other ancient communal houses which are used to celebrate common activities and festivals of the whole village.

Such unique relics on a flourishing development period of Cu Da riverside ancient village have made it a ‘must-see’ tourist destination, attracting an increasing number of visitors and researchers in and outside the country.

(Source: Nhan Dan)

Ca Tru and Quan Ho folksongs recognized by UNESCO

The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has inscribed Vietnam’s Ca Tru on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on October 1.

Ca Tru is chamber music in which the singer is rewarded for each of her successful passages by bamboo tablets, which can be converted into money.

The recognised heritage will immediately be registered on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity or the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding and will be preserved at an international level.

A day earlier, Quan Ho was also recognized by UNESCO in the same category of Ca Tru.

Quan Họ folk songs form the northern provinces of Bac Ninh and Bac Giang, are performed as alternating verses between two women from one village who sing in harmony and two men from another village who respond with similar melodies, but with different lyrics.

More than 119 cultural items from 34 nations have been nominated as an Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding but only 15 have been approved.

Vietnam has been commended for its vision in preserving its cultural heritages. Next, the country will nominate its Giong Festival and Xoan singing.

(Source: VOV)

Non-stop travel between Vietnam and Cambodia

From September 30 all vehicles will have freedom of movement between the Samat international border gate in Tay Ninh Province in Vietnam and the TrapeangPlong border gate in KamPongCham Province, Cambodia.

This is the second international border gate to be put into use by the two countries. The first, Moc Bai-BaVet, started operating in September, 2006.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Transport Le Manh Hung praised the cooperation shown between the transportation sectors of both countries for their efforts to implement the Agreement on Road Transportation signed by both governments.

As a result, seven border gates connecting the two countries are now in operation. Both countries have opened up their borders so vehicles do not have to stop, which saves time, cuts costs and boosts trade, tourism, and investment.

Deputy Minister Hung and his Cambodian counterpart Takch ChanKosal also agreed that both countries should make more effort to exchange information, manage transport links and work together to make it easier to travel between both countries.

(Source: VNA)

Folk music is a mere phone call away

At a time when the modern music industry in Viet Nam is producing mostly flash-in-the-pan pop stars, modern technology is starting to prove convenient in keeping traditional music alive.

The 87 - year - old lady is performing folk songs on mobile

Fans of quan ho (love duets from the northern province of Bac Ninh) no longer need to visit the province to enjoy live performances of this ancient folk music.

Now the music is just a phone call away.

Thanks to such clubs as the Hoa Dinh Club in Hoa Dinh Village, Bac Ninh City, quan ho fans can dial in to listen to their favourite love songs, performed live by well-known singers.

With modern technology often distracting from the country’s traditions, it’s a refreshing change to see it help promote an ancient art form for Vietnamese everywhere.

The Hoa Dinh Club’s head, Tran Van Quyen, says most customers who phone in requesting songs are overseas Vietnamese and people in other provinces.

"It all started at a quan ho singing competition and festival in Spring 2008," he recalls.

During the festival, the club’s artists met with many tourists who said they wanted to enjoy these folk songs from home.

"At the end of the festival, we returned to our day jobs. The quan ho singers of Hoa Dinh Village continued to practise every Saturday evening.

"One day, some of the tourists who had my mobile phone number called me, saying that they wanted to enjoy some songs. We couldn’t refuse their passion for the music," he says.

At present, the club has 51 members, including elder, middle-aged and young people. The oldest member Nguyen Thi Bay is 85, but she still isn’t too old to teach young people how to properly sing the classic melodies.

Bay and other club members are ready to sing via mobile phones to fans, free of charge.

"The most important thing that we gain is that we can popularise the culture of quan ho and images of quan ho artists who are friendly and hospitable to people both in the country and abroad," he says.

"We don’t join the club for money," says artist Nguyen Thi Ly. "We are determined to preserve the ancient folk songs and we want the songs to be handed down to future generations."

The director of Bac Ninh Province’s Culture, Sports and Tourism Department, Dang Van Tuc, said the service has received a lot of attention.

"This service also helps popularise quan ho to the world. We want quan ho to be recognised one day as a UNESCO heritage. During this time of international integration, people all over the world can simply pick up their cell phones and listen to songs by famous singers."

Recognising the potential of wireless communication, the department has asked the provincial People’s Committee to give each quan ho club a mobile phone to help boost this service.

For many old people living in rural villages, mobile phones have been an unaffordable luxury, but there has been a recent spike in the number of elderly with mobile phones.

According to artist Nguyen Thi Thuy, quan ho is an acquired taste, and not everyone wants to listen to these old folk songs.

"That’s why we the quan ho singers always respect the requests of people who really want to listen to the songs. Among them, many are overseas Vietnamese who visited the homeland but didn’t have a chance to visit Bac Ninh," she says.

During the summers, the club also organises classes to teach quan ho to children in the village.

Other than the Hoa Dinh Club, many other clubs have been formed, attracting new performers and fans. They include clubs in Dao Xa Village in Phong Khe Commune, Bac Ninh City, and Diem Village in Hoa Long Commune.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is completing files on quan ho to submit to UNESCO, asking the organisation to recognise the music as an intangible part of their culture.

Just as modern technology seems to facilitate cheaply produced music, this original use of cell phones proves that tradition does not have to be traded for modernity. This also proves that quan ho culture still has a strong presence.

Club telephone numbers The following clubs provide live performances on Saturday evenings. Fans can listen in by calling: Hoa Dinh Club in Hoa Dinh Village, Bac Ninh City 095 372 3234 Dao Xa Village Club in Phong Khe Commune 0241 246 329 Diem Village Club in Hoa Long Commune 0241 862 092

(Source: VNS & VietNamNet Bridge )

Vietnam Travel Depot Launches Facebook Page

Hochiminh City, 21 Sep 2009 –Vietnam Travel Depot has launches its page on the social network Facebook to stay in touch with friends and company customers.

The page will features images, videos and latest news about travel in Vietnam as well as updates about Vietnam Travel Depot offers, its initiatives in creating ultimate travel experience, travel stories written by travelers.

Vietnam Travel Depot Facebook page is open for everyone and can be view here. Registration to Facebook is required in order to view our page.

About Vietnam Travel Depot: Online travel portal specialized in travel to Vietnam focusing on individuals and small groups travel. More information the company please visit www.vietnamtraveldepot.com or Tel: (84 8) 5404 3116.

Dalat “Crazy House” joins bizarre global list

A uniquely odd architectural work in the Central Highlands city of Dalat , has been shortlisted by the Chinese People’s Daily as one of the world’s ten most bizarre buildings.

French travel guide Hachette has also highlighted the “Crazy House” as a not-to-be missed hotel stay on any trip to Vietnam.


The house, occupying nearly 1,600m² on Huynh Thuc Khang Street, was completed in 1990 as a personal project by architect Dang Viet Nga. The controversial building once dismissed as “crazy” has now become a regular feature on tourist visits to the city.

The free-form undulating structure is quite unlike anything else in Dalat, let alone Vietnam. The house is constructed on a numerous levels with a naturalistic theme interpreted through concrete curves, twists and bends, giving it the appearance of an out-grown tree. The interior is equally unorthodox, with almost every surface twisting, curving and running fluidly along the internal corridors, stairwells and rooms.

Mismatched windows give the impression of a fairytale house straight from Little Red Riding Hood, while stone tigers, bears, eagles, kangaroos and pheasants decorate the environs adding to the surreal environment.


The building has been dogged by controversy since conception with arguments centering on the structure’s insufficient architectural integrity, ad-hoc character and lack of formal aesthetic.


Nga shrugs off criticism, “Many people have criticised me, even my colleagues. I don’t blame who don’t understand me.” Instead she believes that the controversial character of the house has won her more attention.

“When they first saw the house, people would exclaim that it was a “crazy house”! So that’s how it got its name, and now, it’s one of Dalat’s leading tourist attractions,” Nga says.

Nga is more concerned with conveying history and myth through the structural and decorative styling of the house rather than conforming to strict architectural rules. The house for her is interconnected by “a cobweb, which can be conceived as a bridge linking reality and the spiritual world, linking the self and the infinite universe,” she says.

(Source: VNA, Image: Google)

Lower fares for early-booked train tickets

From September 15 to December 15, passengers who buy the Hanoi-HCM City train tickets will enjoy fare reduction of up to 20 percent per a ticket. The price for return tickets will be slashed by 20 percent for both ways.

The Vietnam Railways Corporation said that this promotional campaign aims to attract passengers during the off-tourism season. Accordingly, if passengers buy the Hanoi-HCM City tickets at least 60 days before their trip, they will enjoy a 20 percent fare reduction and 10 percent for buying tickets from 15 to 59 days before the departure.

Individual and group passengers who buy return tickets for long trips will also enjoy fare reduction, including 7 percent for groups of 20-29 members, 9 percent for 30-39 members, 13 percent for 40-49 passengers and 15 percent for groups of at least 50 members.

Individuals who buy train tickets for the trip of over 1300km will enjoy a reduction of 20 percent for both ways. If they buy tickets at least 60 days before the trip, they will enjoy up to 36 percent of fare reduction.

Source VNE