The most beautiful
postcards and landscape paintings or photo-graphs come to life with
just one glimpse of Cham Island (commonly known in Vietnamese as Cu Lao
Cham).
 |
|
Fishing for compliments: Boats at Cu Lao Cham. |
Strung
along in the shape of mermaid, the eight islets that form the island
are lush green paradises fringed by pristine white-sand beaches and
blue waters.
Individually, they are
known as Lao (Pear), Dai (Long), La (Leaf), Kho Me (Large Rocky Islet),
Kho Con (Small Rocky Islet), Tai (Ear), Mo (Tomb) and Ong
(Grandfather). Together, they present 40,000ha of extraordinary beauty
and vast ecological diversity.
Cham Island also presents a
pristine lifestyle with most residents living on fishing off the Lang
and Huong beaches. A small portion are engaged in agriculture, making
handicrafts or hiring out their labour.
The island is situated 20km off the coast of central Quang Nam Province’s Hoi An Town.
The biggest islet, Hon Ong, has a population of 3,000, mostly fishermen.
Cham Island is home to
1,500ha of tropical forest and 6,700ha of sea featuring a wide range of
marine fauna and flora, that include many endangered species. Two of
them, salangane (swallows) and the long-tailed monkey, are listed in
the Viet Nam Red Book of endangered species.
 |
|
Watch your step: Tourists enjoy travelling by boat in the balmy waters around the town of Hoi An. |
Lecturer
Hans Dilev of Denmark’s Aarhus University says the Cham Island is one
of the few places in Viet Nam that still possesses a large area of
vegetation and a wide range of rare and endangered animals.
Its crystal clear waters
are also a great place for tourists to go scuba diving or take a ride a
glass bottomed boat and partake of the magical sights beneath the water.
Huong and Ong beaches are particularly popular because the waves here are smooth and gentle.
Despite its proximity to
the world famous heritage site of Hoi An Town, the Cham Island offers
unspoilt vistas and glimpses into a way of life that has altered little
over the last several decades.
A boat from Hoi An is the
only way to access the islets. Visitors can breathe pure air, enjoy the
limpid sunlight of the central region and watch flying fish skim over
the surface of the water while taking a cruise in a wood boat offered
by local tourism companies.
A boat trip takes about an hour and a half, and a speedboat finishes it in just 25 minutes.
An ancient-looking wooden pier welcomes visitors to the Cham Island.
One of the first things a
visitor can do is to take a stroll along the beach and see rocks piled
up in special shapes very close to the forest.
Small tea shops with
thatch-leaved roofs on the beaches of the Cham Island are renowned for
a special kind of drinking water which has a dark yellow colour like
eugenia tea.
"We boil ten kinds of
leaves which are picked in the forest. Residents of the island rarely
get sick because they drink this gentle and nourishing water," said the
owner of the tea shop.
Islanders are learning
quickly about responding to tourist needs and the hospitality industry
is developing rapidly. Visitors can easily go on sightseeing tours by
boats around the islets, hire fishing and diving gear, and have special
dishes at reasonable prices.
The Cham Island never fails
to win kudos for its seafood and delicacies like octopus, lobsters,
fish fin, abalone, bird’s nest, shellfish, cua da (rock crab) and sea cucumbers.
The signature dish of the island, though, is steamed or boiled vegetables served with mam nem,
a type of fish sauce. More than ten kinds of vegetables, each its
distinct flavour - buttery, bitter, acrid and tart - combine superbly
with the hot, salty and sweet dipping sauce.
Tasty rock crabs
 |
|
Tranquil waters: Tourists enjoy kayaking. |
Another
famous product and dish of the island is the rock crab. These creatures
live in springs and small caves in the mountain. They play an important
role in the local inhabitants’ livelihood. Almost all islanders can
catch rock crab, which is tastier than those got from the sea.
Rock crabs are kept for sale in iron baskets in front of every house, together with dried and spiced fish, or squid.
Stories about the life of
fishermen are another highlight. "I love to go fishing in September and
November. A shark catch is worth days of fishing or cuttlefish," says
veteran fisherman Dinh Day who owns two fishing boats. For a price,
tourists accompany local fisherman as they go shark fishing.
"Shark fishing is very
dangerous but its fin is nutritious and expensive. Fishermen have to be
brave, smart and combine forces to not get eaten by them," says Day.
Day says he usually catches
sharks that weigh about 70kg, but there are times when he lands one
that is over 200kg. Traders will pay VND8 million (US$420) per kilogram
for the big fish.
Visitors can also observe
swallow nests that are perched precariously among the island’s towering
cliffs, or visit a temple built to honour the ancients who first
discovered the birds’ nests.
According to
archaeologists, Cham Island was first settled in about 3,000 years ago,
and its inhabitants established business contacts with external
countries some 1,000 years ago. A quantity of ancient artefacts of the
Sa Huynh, Champa and Viet cultures can be found here.
Cham Island has been added
to UNESCO’s World Network of Biosphere Reserves, areas that focus on
sustainable development and environmental protection.
Viet Nam currently has
eight UNESCO-recognised biosphere reserves. Others are Can Gio Mangrove
near HCM City, the Cat Ba Island in the northern port city of Hai
Phong, Cat Tien National Park north of HCM City, the Kien Giang
Biosphere Reserve in the southern province of Kien Giang, the Red River
Delta Biosphere Reserve near Ha Noi, the Western Nghe An Biosphere
Reserve and Cape Ca Mau.
.