Area: 1,503 km 2
Population: 1,448,000
Provincial capital: Hai Phong City.
One of three largest cities in Vietnam after Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh
City, Hai Phong is situated 102
km east of Hanoi and 20km from the sea. It was officially founded in 1888.
The city lies on the
bank of the Cam River and is a major international seaport of the North.
It was already a
commercial port some centuries ago when merchants from China, Japan,
France, Spain and
Portugal came to trade.
Hai Phong enjoys an excellent position. A railway joins it with the
country's capital and puts it in
direct communication with the large mountainous region of Viet Bac and
southwestern China
(Yunnan and Guangxi). Other land roads ensure communication between Hai
Phong and Hon Gai -
Cam Pha, Vietnam's foremost coal mining area, and with Ha Long Bay, a
famous tourist spot of
Vietnam. Through Hai Phong, contact is established with other ports of the
country and with foreign
countries.
In the past, the bed of the Cam River, subject to silting, was not
dredged and widened, as it should
have been. Therefore, ships of more than 5,000 tonnes had to anchor in Ha
Long Bay from where
were transported to the shore by barge. The port is now able to
accommodate vessels of 10,000
tonnes.
Virtually, the only seaport in North Vietnam through which aid was
received, Hai Phong was a
major target of the USAF bombardment and US Navy attacks during the US
escalation against
Vietnam (1965-1973). Yet, Hai Phong has long-standing patriotic
traditions. On the Bach Dang
River, brilliant victories over the Northern feudal aggressors were gained
in 939 by Ngo Quyen and
in 1288 by Tran Hung Dao. The Communist Party established grass-roots
organizations in the town
as early as in 1920-1930. During the first Resistance War, guerrilla
caused much damage to the
enemy at Nui Voi, Ha Sen and Cat Bi airport, which contributed to the
triumphal Dien Bien Phu
Campaign (1954).
Hai Phong is also an industrial town. After 1955, former industrial
establishments soon resumed
normal activities. New factories were set up. The most important among
them are the Cement
Plant, the Mechanical Engineering Factories of Duyen Hai and Ha Long, the
Bach Dang Shipyard,
the Woolen Carpet Factory Hang Kenh, the glass works and, especially, the
Fish-canning Factory
with its associated fishing fleet.
Nowadays, Hai Phong is joining the whole country in the of renovation,
speeding up the
implementation of its own economic to build export processing and
industrial zones to develop the
city's local industries.
An international tourist and recreation centre at Do Son is taking
shape. In addition, projects to
upgrade the facilities of the port and National Road No 5 linking Hai
Phong and Hanoi are also
under way. Besides its naturally beautiful seascapes, Hai Phong also
attracts people keen on its
unique traditional festivals, ceremonies, and places of historic and
cultural interest.
TOURIST SPOTS
Do Son beach. This seaside resort, 22 kilometres southeast of
Hai Phong City, stretches along a 4
km-long promontory which ends with a group of islets. The
promontory has nine peaks, hence the
name of Cuu Long Son (Nine dragons). The French turned Do Son into a
summer resort for their
expatriate community and the Vietnamese upper classes and built Do Son
Airport in 1950.
The sea resort town is composed of tree zones, each having bathing
beaches, hills and forests.
Around the hills are French-style constructions looking towards the sea.
Since 1975, many large
hotels and guest houses have been set up over the town and Do Son has
become a weekend sea
resort for Vietnamese and foreigners.
Do Son village is famous for its yearly buffalo fighting festival.
Cat Ba National Park. Cat Ba is composed of over 360 small
islands situated between Ha Long
Bay and Bai Tu Long Bay to form a spectacular island scenery. The biggest
among them is the Cat
Ba Island, 40 kilometers east of Hai Phong City. Covering 10 thousand
hectares of forests and 4
thousand hectares of sea water, it is of great value for its interrelated
diverse ecosystems of forest
and sea; Cat Ba Island has now been made a National Park. There are many
limestone hills over
the island, the highest one being Cao Vong rising 322m above sea level,
where a lot of marvelous
grottoes are found.
In the Cat Ba National Park there remains the largest area of tropical
primeval forests in Vietnam
which are habitat for over 700 species from 150 families of plants and 20
species of mammals, 69
of birds and more than 30 of reptiles and amphibians.
- Du Hang Pagoda. It is located in Le Chan district, 2km
southwest of the centre of Hai Phong.
The pagoda was built at the beginning of the 11th century and
was repaired and rebuilt many times.
The pagoda keeps many valuable relics such as Buddha statues, bronze urns,
bells, gongs, and
ancient books of Buddhist teachings.
Hang Kenh Communal House. Built in the middle of 19th
century, the communal house is
famous for its wooden sculptures and a statue of King Ngo Quyen, a
national hero who defeated
the Northern enemy in the historical battle on the Bach Dang River.
