|
HTML clipboard
Ham Rong Mountain, which belongs to the majestic
Hoang Lien Son Range in Sapa District, Lao Cai Province and is about 30
kilometers from Lao Cai Town, looks like a jaw of a dragon opening wide to the
sky.
It is an ideal destination for those who want to conquer a height and
contemplate the wild and beautiful nature of a mountainous region with the
clouds flowing gently above and the peaches blossoming everywhere. To me, a
southerner who made her first trip to this mountain, Ham Rong had a different
beauty in my eyes on these sunny April days of summer with warm sunlight and a
slightly cool breeze covering me all the way to the mountain despite the absence
of clouds, cold air and cherry blossoms.
A panoramic view of Sapa Town vaporous in mist seen from Ham Rong Mountain.
Legend says that long ago when Sapa was part of the ocean two dragons who were
brothers came here to play. When their father called them back home, only the
older dragon made it back while the younger lost his way because the gate of
heaven was closed. This dragon had to stay forever in the earth and his body
turned into the mountain with his head towards the sky where his family was.
That’s why the mountain, at a height of over 1,700 meters above sea level, was
named Ham Rong.
“Come on, move your feet, there are many interesting things ahead,” my fellow
traveler wakes me up by his voice while I am standing for a while breathless
from climbing the stone stairs leading to the mountain. He lends me his hands
and drags me to catch up with our troupe. We pass many rows of trees when
suddenly my eyes are overwhelmed by bright sunlight and a barrage of colors from
a flowered plain. All of this space is covered with flowers including orchids,
hydrangeas (hoa cam tu cau), daisies, gladioli (hoa lay on) and azaleas (hoa do
quyen) among others with bees and butterflies and bugs alighting on them and
birds singing melodious in the trees. At that moment, all my tiredness vaporized
and I thought myself lost in a fairyland while my hands were busy snapping as
many photos as possible as if it would all disappear if I was late capturing the
images.
Being so absorbed in the landscape, I was left behind by my troupe. Then, I
tried to move fast but was interrupted by the imposing scene of hundreds of
stone poles in diversified shapes and heights standing in front of me, a
collection called Thach Lam, or Stone Forest. If travelers come to Ham Rong in
the spring, they will be treated to Stone Forest covered with beautiful cherry
blossoms.
“Here you are! What took you so long?” my friend gives me a radiant smile and we
come together with our troupe to get to cong troi, or heaven gate, but the path
is now narrower, wide enough for only one person. We wait for each other, and
one by one, get through to the gate to contemplate the endless blue sky above.
Once passing there, all 15 of us stand still and admire the panoramic view of
Sapa Town below and the impressive mountains far away at the horizon. The place
where we stand is called san may, or cloud yard, where there is a small tower
for people to see all of Sapa from a height of 1,600 meters, so magical and
fanciful.
At that moment my heart was overwhelmed with an indescribable feeling. It could
have been my cheerfulness at conquering the mountain as I am not a wealthy girl
and this was my first time at Ham Rong, the mountain I have long dreamed of
seeing.
I had heard about Sapa, read about it and seen it on TV and the internet, but
none of it compares to actually having seen this famous landscape, Ham Rong
Mountain in particular, with my own eyes. Ham Rong, with its own beauty of
flowers, of stone, of air, contributes to the seductive appeal of Sapa. Why
don’t you come and discover Ham Rong Mountain as well as Sapa for yourself? It’s
worth it, I promise!
|
