Vietnam - The Rough Guide to Southeast Asia on a Budget - page 912

as meatballs in tomato sauce and patatas bravas . Daily
11am-10pm.
Oasis 118/5 Tran Hung Dao. The specialities at this low-
key bar/restaurant are their British standbys - think
shepherd's pie and fish & chips - as well as Western break-
fasts. There's live football on TV on weekends and the
music is solid Britpop. Daily noon-10pm.
Phuong Binh House 118 Tran Hung Dao. Excellent
grilled fish, seafood and other Vietnamese dishes, a prime
beachside location and a cheerful backpacker vibe make
this place hugely popular. The downside is that continents
may drift before you get served. Daily 11.30am-10pm.

Thach Dong Cave Pagoda and
Mui Nai Beach
his pleasant circular cycling route takes in
Ha Tien's outlying attractions. Strike off
west along Lam Son, through rice fields,
coconut groves and water palm, past a war
cemetery (2.5km from town), from where
it's 1.5km to the first of three marked
turnings - all with toll gates (5000VND)
- to Mui Nai peninsula, a relatively
peaceful, dark-sand cove, complete with
numerous cafés and restaurants.
You'll see the 48m-high granite outcrop
housing Thach Dong cave long before you
reach it - 4.5km past Mui Nai, a right
turn deposits you at its base. A
monument shaped like a clenched fist
and commemorating the 130 Vietnamese
killed by the Khmer Rouge near here in
1978 (which prompted the Vietnamese
to invade Cambodia and overthrow Pol
Pot) marks the entrance (daily 7am-5pm;
5000VND) to hach Dong, beyond
which steps lead up to several Buddhist
shrines hidden inside a network of caves,
which are also home to a colony of bats.
From here, another 3km along the
circular road brings you back to Ha Tien.
ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION
By boat Superdong ( W superdong.com.vn) hydrofoils
depart for Ham Ninh port on Phu Quoc (8am & 1pm daily;
1hr 15min; 230,000VND) from the south bank of the To
Chau River; tickets can be booked at the o ce at 11 Tran
Hau (daily 7am-9pm). Ngoc Thanh boats leave daily at
8.15am (1hr 30min; 210,000VND); buy tickets through
agencies in town or at the dock.
By bus Buses terminate at the bus station about 2km
north of town, though they can often drop you off at the
petrol station 400m from the centre. Local buses to
elsewhere in the delta depart when full from early
morning. Private Mai Linh a/c minibuses can be booked
through your hotel.
Destinations

HA TIEN
Right near the Cambodian border and
lapped by the Gulf of hailand, Ha Tien ,
with its riverfront promenade and
crumbling colonial buildings, is the most
appealing town in the delta.

11

WHAT TO DO AND SEE
Ha Tien is big on atmosphere, and
beyond the lively waterfront market
there are a couple of appealing pagodas in
and beyond town, as well as elaborate
tombs and a good stretch of white beach
- all of which can be explored by bicycle
or motorbike.

Tam Bao Pagoda
A few minutes along Phuong hanh from
the waterfront is the Tam Bao Pagoda - a
Buddhist nun community founded by
feudal lord Mac Cuu in 1730. he cheery
yellow, thirteen-storey pagoda is fronted
by a statue of the Goddess of Mercy on a
lotus blossom, and a large Buddha
reclines nearby on a pedestal.

Mac Cuu Family Tombs
Nui Lang, or the Hill of Tombs, where
Mac Cuu , the seventeenth-century feudal
lord who founded Ha Tien, and his family
are buried, is found west along Mac Cuu
which branches off the main Phuong
hanh. Mac Cuu and his relatives lie
buried in peaceful, wooded grounds in
semicircular Chinese graves. Mac Cuu's
grave is uppermost on the hill, daubed
with a yin and yang symbol, and guarded
by two swordsmen, a white tiger and a
blue dragon. From this vantage point,
there are good views down to the river.

Can Tho (5-6hr); Chau Doc (3hr); HCMC
(8hr); Rach Gia (3hr).
Services There's an ATM at Agribank, 37 Lam Son. Bikes
can be rented from the Viet Toan and from the Tien Trang
café across from the Hai Van; both 30,000VND/day.

ACCOMMODATION
Du Hung Hotel 27 Tran Hau T 077 3951555. This pink
hotel has good river views and friendly management.
Bicycles and motorbikes avai lable for ren t; wi-fi signal
weak on upper floors. Double 140,000VND