%%H?i Phòng, one of three largest cities in Vietnam after Hà N?i and Thành Ph? H? Chí Minh (Hochiminh City), was officially founded in 1888. Situated 120km east of Hà N?i, H?i Phòng lies on the coast of the Pacific Ocean. With a warm climate and sunny beaches, H?i Phòng has favourable conditions for tourism. H?i Phòng is also a major sea port lying on the international sea lane from East-West and North-South. It was already a commercial port some centuries ago when merchants from China, Japan, France, Spain and Portugal came to trade. Nowadays, H?i Phòng is speeding up to implement its own economic projects to build an export processing zone and an industrial estate to develop the citys local industries, particularly the chemical industry , ship-building and the production of construction materials. An international recreation centre in Ð? Son is taking shape. Also under way are projects to upgrade the facilities of the port, and National Highway 5 linking H?i Phòng and Hà N?i. Besides its naturally beautiful seascapes, H?i Phòng also attracts tourists by its unique traditional festivals, ritual ceremonies and places of historic and cultural interest. * Ð? Son Beach : Immediately upon setting foot in H?i Phòng, the French turned Ð? Son into a summer resort for their community and the Vietnamese upper classes. Ð? Son Airport was built in 1950. The sea resort town is composed of three zones, each having bathing beaches, hills and quiet pine forests. In Zone II, stands a former summer residence of B?o Ð?i, the final king of Nhà Nguy?n. In Zone III, there is a small construction in imitation of a pagoda. It is called "Pagodon". At the very tip of the peninsula built on the top of a large hill is Van Hoa Hotel. This is the finest architectural work in Ð? Son. *Hàng Kênh Communal House was built in 1856. It is famous for its inestimable works of wooden sculpture : 156 pieces of engraving with the figure of a dragon as the main theme. There are altogether 308 dragons of different shapes and sizes. Of high artistic value are a statue of King Ngô Quy?n and a palanquin. Every year from the 16th to 18th days of the lunar second month, ritual ceremonies, festivals, performances of chèo, tu?ng and other folk songs and traditional games are held at the house, attracting a large public participation. * Cát Bà National Park : Situated on Cát Bà Island, this Park covers 15,200 ha, including 9,800 ha of forests and 4,200 ha of sea waters. Cat Ba Island is the biggest of Cát Bà group of 366 islands. They join H? Long Bay and Bái T? Long Bay to form a spectacular array of sea and island scenery. Cát Bà National Park mostly includes limestone hills with an average height of 150m. There are also marvelous grottoes and white sand beaches. The largest area of tropical primeval forests in Vietnam remain in this Park. According to initial statistics, there are some 745 species in 149 families of plants, including various species of rare wood trees that need to be protected (Cho doi, Trai ly, Lat hoa, Kim giao for example). Cát Bà National Park is home to 20 types of mammals, 69 birds and more than 30 reptiles and amphibians. The rarest are the V?oc (white-headed monkeys) which are seen on the high limestone mountain walls along the islands coast. Also seen are mountain goats, deer, wild boars and various kinds of beautiful birds such as kingfishers, hornbills and hawks. Some 20km to the northeast of H?i Phòng is B?ch Ð?ng River which runs through a rugged terrain close to the sea. Also named Van Cu or Rung River, B?ch Ð?ng River entered Vietnamese history with the resounding military exploits of national heroes Ngô Quy?n (938AD), Lê Ð?i Hành (981AD) and Tr?n Hung Ð?o (1288). Generally, their usual strategy was to plant secretly the pointed stakes in the bed of B?ch Ð?ng River. The Vietnamese troops lured the invaders into the ambush, and launched a counter-offensive at the ebb. Consequently, many enemy warships were sunk because they had been pierced by those dangerous stakes. * Voi Mountain : Standing out of many earth hills and vast rice fields is a mountain area dotted with beautiful grottoes such as Long Tiên and Hong Voi. At the height of 156m, the ground levels to form Bàn C? Tiên (Fairies Chessboard). From here, you have a splendid view of the prosperous, peaceful countryside landscape of H?i Phòng. Its just like enjoying a vivid Chinese ink drawing.