Exploring Cat Cat, a small rustic village in Sa Pa

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As one of the most attractive scenic areas in Sa Pa, the premier trekking base of Vietnam, Cat Cat is a lovely village with peaceful views and distinctive customs and practices of the ethnic H’mong.

PICTURESqUE SCENES

Surrounded by rice terraces and rolling green hills, Cat Cat village is considered a great place for trekking and sightseeing to experience the way of life in the mountainous area.

Along the way to Cat Cat village, you may also witness the picturesque scenes of Sa Pa, including mighty

mountains, immense forests, amazing terraced fields, beautiful valleys, and dazzling waterfalls. Spend a day in Cat Cat village, and you will never regret your choice.

In the early 20th century, the French discovered and made this land a resort for officials. And the beautiful waterfall at the entrance, which is pronounced “Catscat” in French, became the name of the village afterward. This waterfall originated from the Fansipan mountain, through the forest, delivering water directly to the rice paddy terrace fields, becoming the water source of the village.

Since Cat Cat village is tiny and approachable from Sa Pa town, you can easily spare a day from your Sa Pa tour to discover the best of Cat Cat village.

Sa Pa has always been famous for its breathtaking scenery and tranquil air. Enjoying the Sa Pa view when trekking to Cat Cat village in the morning is your first reward. Following the main road from Sa Pa to meet the trail to the bottom of Muong Hoa valley, where Cat Cat village sits, you will

see Fansipan mountain, the highest peak of all Indochina; although far, the look is extremely impressive. Keep moving forward, and you will be treated to splendid lush green vistas of flower gardens and rice terraces, then thrillingly experience walking over a narrow suspension bamboo bridge above the river before entering this small village.

THE BEST TIME TO TRAVEL

As part of Sa Pa, Cat Cat village bears the same weather conditions.

September-November/March-May: stable weather, dry sunny days, cold nights. Suitable for picnics and homestay.

April-May: the time for transplanting rice on terraced fields, and also the flowering season. If you want to have great photos, travel to Cat Cat village at this time.

September-October: the rice crop season with golden scenery across the hills. With fresh and pleasant air, you can make long-distance trips.

December-February: very cold, and ice can be found and sometimes it snows. This is also the season for peach blossoms. However, traveling through the villages may be more or less difficult. Source: Vietnamnet

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Yang Bay - a magnificent corner of Nha Trang

Apart from the beautiful beach and ocean, Yang Bay waterfall is a different beautiful corner of Nha Trang coastal city where tourists can enjoy and immerse themselves in the beauty of grandiose falls and dense forests.

Yang Bay, whose name means “waterfall of heaven” in the language of the regional Raglay ethnic minority, feeds much water into the Cai River in Nha Trang.

Several years ago, Yang Bay was still an unknown place. It lies deep in a valley surrounded by thick forest in the mountainous district of Khanh Vinh in the central province. Until now, the place has been discovered and becomes an ideal place to escape the bustling city for a while and appreciate some natural wonders.

Located 100m above sea level, Yang Bay waterfall consists of several cascades. From the top, the waterfall running through the natural forest makes a variety of stops, forming many small pools. Those receive the clean water from above and then after keeping it for a while, pour it out downstream.

The droplets then fly through the air in all directions, creating a thousand tiny sparkles. At the foot of the waterfall is a lager pond. A

layer of sand covers its bottom.

A series of small waterfalls in the area are streaming down to the lake making up the white water currents. Besides, wooden bridges, stone-made steps, and small caves exert a challenging feeling for tourists. In the resistance wars, the small caves were used as a shelter for the revolutionary soldiers.

Herein exists innumerable tropical insects, colored-multi butterflies, limpid small springs half hiding under the shadow of thick jungles and the sound of springs makes a romantic feeling for poetic souls…

According to a foreign tourist, this is a beautiful relaxed place to be and see. “We have a swim in clean clear slightly chilled water and watch the lovely waterfall at the same time”

Beside nature beauty, tourists can also enjoy many recreation activities in Yang Bay park that include swimming in the three different temperature natural hot springs, feeding the bears, crocodiles, pig racing, ostrich riding. There are gorgeous restaurants for tourists to have wonderful lunch.

In addition, when visiting Yang Bay, tourists can hear not only the sound of water splashing over the rocks but also the sound of the dan da, or lithophone. The typical musical instrument of the Raglay is made of stone slabs linked together by a cable. When hitting on the slabs, the sound is that of wild nature. The normal life of the regional Raglay ethnic minority will be also a reason for tourists to come and explore Yang Bay.