Hai Duong Guide - All you need to know
Hai Duong Province is on the Red River Delta. Its name derives from Sino-Vietnamese, meaning "ocean", though in fact, the modern province is landlocked. Nowadays, Hải Dương is among the most industrialized and developed provinces in Vietnam.
It borders with Bac Ninh, Bac Giang provinces on the north, Hai Phong, Quang Ninh provinces on the east, Hung Yen province on the west, Thai Binh on the south. The network of rivers includes Thai Binh, Rang, Kinh Thay, and Dao rivers’ giving good conditions for agriculture and water transportation.
The natural land area of the province is about 1,652km2. The topography is gradually low down from the Northwest to the South - East. Hai Duong province comprises of two main regions: the mountainous area (the highland) and the flat area. The mountainous area, which accounts for about 11% of the total natural land area of the province and mainly covers the two districts of Chi Linh and Kinh Mon, is suitable for the construction of the industrial and tourist establishments, planting the fruit trees, the timber trees and a variety of industrial trees. The plain area, which accounts for 89% of total natural land area, at the average of 3-4 meter high above the sea level, even and flat terrain, fertile soil is suitable to plant the food trees, the foodstuff trees and the industrial trees in short term.
The province is proud of traditional handicraft villages like Chu Dau Pottery, Chau Khe Gold, Dong Dao Carving, Ke Sat Dry Pancake and Hai Duong Green Bean Cake. Folk songs like ca tru, cheo, xam are commonly here. In addition of these, tourists also take interest in Chi Lang Nam Stork Village, home of thousands of white, black, fiery stocks, herons and egrets.
Several festivals are taken place in Hai Duong such as Con Son Festival – the spring festival ( 18th – 22nd day of the 1st lunar month) is honoured Huyen Quang (Ly Dao Tai), one of the three founders of Truc Lam Buddhist sect and the autumn festival ( 16th – 20th day of the 8th lunar month) is honored Nguyen Trai, a great 15th century Vietnamese scholar also involved in military and politics; Kiep Bac Festival ( 18th – 20th day of the 8th lunar month) is the anniversary of the death of Tran Hung Dao, a distinguished general of the Tran Dynasty.