Ha Long Bay (Vietnamese: Vịnh Hạ Long) is a UNESCO World Heritage site located in Quảng Ninh province, Vietnam. The bay features thousands of limestone karsts and isles in various sizes and shapes. Image File history File links Acap. ... A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a specific site (such as a forest, mountain, lake, desert, monument, building, complex, or city) that has been nominated and confirmed for inclusion on the list maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 State... Image File history File linksMetadata Ha_Long_Bay_with_boats. ... A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a specific site (such as a forest, mountain, lake, desert, monument, building, complex, or city) that has been nominated and confirmed for inclusion on the list maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 State... This is a list of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Asia, Australia and the Pacific. ... A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a specific site (such as a forest, mountain, lake, desert, monument, building, complex, or city) that has been nominated and confirmed for inclusion on the list maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 State... UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) is a specialized agency of the United Nations established in 1945. ... Quảng Ninh is a large province located along the northeastern border of Vietnam. ... For other uses, see Limestone (disambiguation). ... Karst topography occurs when a landscape is marked by underground drainage patterns. ...

Etymology

Local legend says that long ago when the Vietnamese were fighting Chinese invaders, the gods sent a family of dragons to help defend the land. This family of dragons began spitting out jewels and jade. These jewels turned into the islands and islets dotting the bay, linking together to form a great wall against the invaders. The people kept their land safe and formed what later became the country of Vietnam. After that, dragons were interested in peaceful sightseeing of the Earth and decided to live here then. The place where Mother Dragon flew down was named Hạ Long, the place where the dragon children attended upon their mother was called Bái Tử Long island (Bái: attend upon, Tử: children, Long: dragon), and the place where the dragon children wriggled their tails violently was called Bạch Long Vỹ island (Bạch: white- colour of the foam made when Children Dragon wriggle, Long: dragon, Vỹ: tail).

Geographical location

Halong bay is in northeastern Vietnam, from E106°56' to E107°37' and from N20°43' to N21°09'. The bay stretches from Yên Hưng district, past Hạ Long city, Cẩm Phả town to Vân Đồn district, bordered on the south and southeast by the Gulf of Tonkin, on the north by China and on the west and southwest by Cát Bà island. The bay has a 120 kilometre long coastline and is approximately 1,553 square kilometres in size with 1969 islets. The area designated by UNESCO as the World Natural Heritage Site includes 434 km² with 775 islets, of which the core zone is delimited by 69 points: Đầu Gỗ island on the west, Ba Hầm lake on the south and Cống Tây island on the east. The protected area is from the Cái Dăm petrol store to Quang Hanh commune, Cẩm Phả town and the surrounding giants zone. Hạ Long   (also known as Hong Gai) is a capital city of Quang Ninh Province, Vietnam. ... Cẩm Phả is a coastal town in Quang Ninh, Vietnam. ... The Gulf of Tonkin is located to the south of China. ... Cat Ba is an island of approximately 140 sq. ...

Climate

The bay is a sea islands in tropical wet with 2 seasons: hot and moist summer, dry and cold winter. Average temperature is from 15°C- 25°C. Annual rainfall is between 2000mm and 2200mm. Halong bay has the typical diurnal tide system (tide amplitude ranges from 3.5-4m). The salinity is from 31 to 34.5MT in dry season and lower in rainy season. For other uses, see Temperature (disambiguation). ... In meteorology, precipitation is any kind of water that falls from the sky as part of the weather. ... This article is about tides in the Earths oceans. ... Annual mean sea surface salinity for the World Ocean. ...

History

Soi Nhụ culture (16000- 5000 BCE)

Located in Hạ Long and Bái Tử Long, there are symbolic archaeological sites such as Mê Cung and Thiên Long. There are mounds of remains of mountain shellfishes (Cyclophorus) and spring shellfishes (Melania), some fresh water mollusk and some rudimentary labour tools. The main living procedures of Soi Nhụ's habitants were catching shellfish and fish, collecting fruits and digging for bulbs and roots. Their living environment is coastal area unlike other Vietnamese cultures, for example those found in Hoà Bình, Bắc Sơn, etc.

Cái Bèo culture (5000- 3000BCE)

Located in Hạ Long and Cát Bà island, its habitants developed to the level of sea exploitation.

Hạ Long culture (2500- 1500BCE)

Early

Lately

Feudal period

History shows that Halong Bay has been the setting for local naval battles against Vietnam's coastal neighbours. On three occasions in the labyrinth of channels in Bach Dang river near the islands the Vietnamese army stopped the Chinese from landing. In 1288 General Tran Hung Dao stopped Mongol ships from sailing up the nearby Bach Dang River by placing steel-tipped wooden stakes at high tide, sinking the Mongol Dubhai Khan's fleet. Events February 22 - Nicholas IV becomes Pope. ... Template:Infobox Celebrities cleanup-date|March 2006}} Trần Hưng Đạo (陳興道) (1228-1300) was a Vietnamese Grand Commander-in-Chief during the Trần Dynasty. ... Honorary guard of Mongolia. ...

During the Vietnam War, many of the channels between the islands were heavily mined by the navy of the United States, some of which pose a threat to shipping to this day. Combatants Republic of Vietnam United States Republic of Korea Thailand Australia New Zealand The Philippines National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam Democratic Republic of Vietnam People’s Republic of China Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea Strength US 1,000,000 South Korea 300,000 Australia 48,000... Naval redirects here. ...

System of isles and caves

Thien Cung grotto

The bay consists of a dense cluster of 1,969 limestone monolithic islands, each topped with thick jungle vegetation, which rise spectacularly from the ocean. Several of the islands are hollow, with enormous caves. Hang Đầu Gỗ (Wooden stakes Cave) is the largest grotto in the Halong area. French tourists visited in the late 19th century, and named the cave Grotte des Merveilles. Its three large chambers contain large numerous stalactites and stalagmites (as well as 19th century French graffiti). There are two bigger islands, Tuan Chau and Cat Ba, that have permanent inhabitants. Both of them have tourist facilities, including hotels and beaches. There are a number of wonderful beaches on the smaller islands. For other uses, see Limestone (disambiguation). ... Alternate meanings: Cave (disambiguation) The outside world viewed from a cave A cave is a natural underground void. ... For other uses, see Graffiti (disambiguation). ... Cat Ba is an island of approximately 140 sq. ...

Some of the islands support floating villages of fishermen, who ply the shallow waters for 200 species of fish and 450 different kinds of mollusks. Many of the islands have acquired their names as a result of interpretation of their unusual shapes: such names include Voi Islet (elephant), Ga Choi Islet (fighting cock), and Mai Nha Islet (roof). 989 of the islands have been given names. Birds and animals including bantams, antelopes, monkeys, and iguanas also live on some of the islands. For other uses, see Fish (disambiguation). ... Classes Caudofoveata Aplacophora Polyplacophora Monoplacophora Bivalvia Scaphopoda Gastropoda Cephalopoda † Rostroconchia The mollusks or molluscs are the large and diverse phylum Mollusca, which includes a variety of familiar creatures well-known for their decorative shells or as seafood. ... Bantam may mean: American Bantam, a series of compact cars produced between 1937 and 1941 Bantam (chicken), a small (or miniaturized) domestic fowl Bantam (military), British Army jargon (First World War) for men below the minimum height for enlistment X-4 Bantam, a US test aircraft Bantam (city), a city... This article is about the herbivorous mammals. ... Approximate worldwide distribution of monkeys. ... For other members of the family Iguanidae, see Iguanidae. ...

Civilization

Floating fishing village

A community of around 1600 people live on Halong bay in four fishing villages: Cửa Vạn, Ba Hang, Cống Tàu and Vông Viêng in Hùng Thắng commune, Hạ Long city. They live on floating houses and are sustained by capture fishing and marine aquaculture (cultivating marine biota).

Originally in Ha Long Bay there was only one fishing village. Now there are about ten.

Honourable name

In 1962, Vietnam Ministry of Culture, Sport and Tourism arranged Halong Bay as National Renowned Lanscape Vestige.

The bay was World's Natural Heritage listed by UNESCO at the 18th meeting of the Committee of the World Heritages of UNESCO (in Phuket, Thailand on December 17th, 1994) for its outstanding universal aesthetic value according to the criteria explained in the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention. On December 2nd, 2000 at the 24th meeting of Committee of the World Heritages in Cairns, Australia, Halong bay was admitted as a World Heritage Site for its outstanding geological and geomorphological value according to the criteria of that Convention.^[1] Elabana Falls is in Lamington National Park, part of the Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves World Heritage site in Queensland, Australia. ... UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) is a specialized agency of the United Nations established in 1945. ... Phuket (Thai ภูเก็ต) is one of the southern provinces (changwat) of Thailand. ... Year 1994 (MCMXCIV) The year 1994 was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by the United Nations. ... Cairns is a regional city located in far north Queensland, Australia. ...

Halong bay was introduced to nominate by New Open World Foundation as World's 7 Natural Wonder having result on 08/08/2008.[1]

The Kissing Rocks

Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (2272 × 1704 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (2272 × 1704 pixel, file size: 1. ...

Geology and geomorphology

History of tectonics

Scientists say that Halong bay has experienced at least 500 million years in the various geological states of orogeny, marine transgression and marine regression. During the Ordovician and Silurian periods (500-410 million years ago), Halong bay was deep sea. During the Carboniferous and Permian periods (340-250 million years ago), Halong Bay was at shallow sea level. // Orogeny (Greek for mountain generating) is the process of mountain building, and may be studied as a tectonic structural event, as a geographical event and a chronological event, in that orogenic events cause distinctive structural phenomena and related tectonic activity, affect certain regions of rocks and crust and happen within... Sea level measurements from 23 long tide gauge records in geologically stable environments show a rise of around 20 centimeters per century (2 mm/year). ... Marine regression is a geological process ocurring when areas of submerged seafloor are exposed above the sea level. ... Artist impression of the Ordovician Sea. ... For other uses, see Silurian (disambiguation). ... The Carboniferous is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Devonian period, about 359. ... The Permian is a geologic period that extends from about 299. ...

Karst geomorphology value

As of simultaneous combination of factors like thick limestone layer, hot and moist climate and slow tectonic process in whole, Ha Long bay has had a complete karst evolutionary for 20 million years. There are many of karst topography kind in Ha Long such as karst field. Karst topography is a three-dimensional landscape shaped by the dissolution of a soluble layer or layers of bedrock, usually carbonate rock such as limestone or dolomite. ... Livanjsko Polje and (in the background) Mt Dinara A polje is a large flat plain in karst territory with areas usually 5 to 400 km². The name derives from the word for field in South Slavic languages. ...

Biodiversity

Ha Long Bay is host to two ecosystems: a tropical, moist, evergreen rainforest ecosystem and a marine & coastal ecosystem. The bay is home to seven endemic species.

Endemic species

Livistona halongensis

Impatiens halongensis

Chirieta halongensis

Chirieta hiepii

Chirieta modesta

Paraboea halongensis

Alpinia calcicola

The many islands that dot the bay are home to a great many other species, including (but likely not limited to): 477 magnoliales, 12 pteris, 20 salt marsh flora and 4 amphibia, 10 reptilia, 40 aves, and 4 mammalia. Families Annonaceae Degeneriaceae Eupomatiaceae Himantandraceae Magnoliaceae Myristicaceae The Magnoliales are an order of flowering plants. ... Representative Species Pteris cretica Pteris ensiformis Pteris vittata Full List of Pteris species Brakes are ferns of the genus Pteris. ... An Atlantic coastal salt marsh in Connecticut. ... For other uses, see Amphibian (disambiguation). ... Orders  Crocodilia - Crocodilians scary crocodiles. ... For other meanings of bird, see bird (disambiguation). ... Orders Subclass Monotremata Monotremata Subclass Marsupialia Didelphimorphia Paucituberculata Microbiotheria Dasyuromorphia Peramelemorphia Notoryctemorphia Diprotodontia Subclass Placentalia Xenarthra Dermoptera Desmostylia Scandentia Primates Rodentia Lagomorpha Insectivora Chiroptera Pholidota Carnivora Perissodactyla Artiodactyla Cetacea Afrosoricida Macroscelidea Tubulidentata Hyracoidea Proboscidea Sirenia The mammals are the class of vertebrate animals primarily characterized by the presence of mammary...

Economy

Tourism

Ha Long Bay is perhaps the most popular travel destination of the country. Foreigners and natives alike are attracted to its natural, universal appeal, not to mention the shopping and dining prospects located close by.

Cuisine

Seafood in Ha Long is diversifying. Cuttle-fish- mực, oyester- hà, cyclinae- ngán, prawn (penaeidea- tôm he, panulirus- tôm hùm, parapenaeopsis- tôm sắt...), spunculoideas- sá sùng, nerita- ốc đĩa, charonia tritonis- ốc tù và, cà sáy... are popular in many famous delicious dishes. Species See text. ...

Waterways transportation

Fishery and aquaculture

Pictures of Ha Long Bay

In literature

Nguyễn Trãi wrote about Halong bay: "This wonder is ground raises up in the middle of the high sky". Xuân Diệu utter a praise: "Here is the unfinished works of the Beings...Here is the stones which the Giant played and threw away". Nguyên Ngọc summarized: "...to form this first- rate wonder, nature only uses: Stone and Water...There is just only two materials themselves chosen from as much as materials, in order to write, to draw, to sculpture, to create everything...It is quite possible that here is the image of the future world". Ho Chi Minh remarks: "It is the wonder that one cannot impart to others". Pham Van Dong embarrassed: "Is it one scenery or many seceneries? Is it the scenery in the world or somewhere?". Nguyễn Tuân recognized that:"Only mountains accept to be old, but Ha Long sea and wave is young for ever". Nguyá»…n Trãi (Hán nôm 阮廌), also known under his pseudonym Ức Trai 抑齋 (1380 - 1442) was a Vietnamese Confucian Scholar, politician, strategist and poet. ... Ngô Xuân Diệu (February 2, 1916 - December 18, 1985) more commonly known by the pen name Xuân Diệu, was a prominent Vietnamese poet. ... For the city named after him, see Ho Chi Minh City. ... Pham Van Dong (March 1, 1906 – April 29, 2000) was an associate of Ho Chi Minh. ...

Che Lan Vien sensed: Che Lan Vien was a great poet of Vietnam but he was not Cham. ...

"Hạ Long, Bái Tử Long- Dragons were hidden, only stones still remain

On the moonlight night, stones meditate as men..."

Lord Trịnh Cương overflowed with emotion: "Mountains are glistend by water shadow, water spill all over the sky". Trinh Cuong ruled Vietnam from 1709 - 1729 (he ruled with the title An Do Vuong) Trinh Cuong, one of the Trinh Lords who ruled Vietnam. ...

Huy Cận was agitated: "Night breathes, stars wave Ha Long's water".

In popular culture

• It was the theme of Robocon (Asian Pacific Robot Contest) hold in Vietnam in 2007: "Discover Halong" [2]
• The band dredg wrote a song titled Ha Long Bay.
• In the 1997 James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies, James and Wai Lin attempt to chase down Elliot Carver played by Jonathan Pryce in the Ha Long Bay area.
• It was featured on the Amazing Race 10 on "Leg 4", which was originally aired on October 8, 2006.
• It was featured in the programme The Hairy Bikers' Cookbook.

Dredg is an American Progressive/alternative rock band from Los Gatos, California. ... This article is about the spy series. ... Tomorrow Never Dies, released in 1997, is the eighteenth spy film in the James Bond series, and the second to star Pierce Brosnan as MI6 agent James Bond. ... Elliott Carver is a fictional character in the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies. ... Jonathan Pryce (born John Price; June 1, 1947) is a Welsh stage and film actor. ... The Amazing Race 10 is the tenth installment of the popular reality television show, The Amazing Race. ... is the 281st day of the year (282nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

See also

• Ha Long
• Halong Bay Photos
• Halong Bay Information
• Pictures from Halong Bay 2008
• Vote for Vietnam Campaign

Hạ Long   (also known as Hong Gai) is a capital city of Quang Ninh Province, Vietnam. ...

Notes

1. ^ Halong Bay - UNESCO World Heritage Site. UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Retrieved on 2007-07-04.

Coordinates: 20°54′N, 107°12′E Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... is the 185th day of the year (186th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a specific site (such as a forest, mountain, lake, desert, monument, building, complex, or city) that has been nominated and confirmed for inclusion on the list maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 State... Huế (化 in Vietnamese Chữ nôm, 順化 in Chinese characters) is the former modern capital of Vietnam. ... Há»™i An   (Hui An: 會安) is a small city on the coast of the South China Sea in central Vietnam. ... Mỹ SÆ¡n (Mee Sern) is a Hindu temple complex, located in the village of Duy Phú, in the administrative district of Duy Xuyên in Quảng Nam province in Vietnam, 69km southwest of Da Nang, and approximately 10km from the histroic town of Trà Kiệu. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Vietnam. ... Phong Nha-Ke Bang is a national park in Vietnam. ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...