Con Dao, Vietnam
Con Dao until relatively recently was called “Con Son” and had a somewhat bad reputation among the political prisoners of friendly Vietnam. The archipelago itself has become known to mankind since the end of the 13th century, and the famous traveler Marco Polo gave the first full description of the islands. However, already in the 18th century, history made its own adjustments, and civilized mankind began to actively use the archipelago in order to strengthen its bloody regime in this region of the globe. So, the development of virgin lands began with the construction of a harmless port for the ships of the East India Company, and continued with the construction of one of the most terrible prisons for keeping political prisoners and others who disagreed with the fact that the French colonialists, and later the American military, carried out their tough external politics.
One of the main attractions of this prison can rightfully be considered the savage conditions of detention of “guilty” citizens. Now they are being shown to not yet very numerous tourists for little money, and in those distant times, “guests” were placed in shallow earthen pits and carefully covered with a reinforced concrete lid on top.
How to get there
The airport in the Con Dao archipelago was recently renovated, and now receives daily flights from Ho Chi Minh City by Vasco (Vietnam Air Services Company), the cost of the flight is low.
According to Clothesbliss, the miniature airport is located just 15 km from the capital of the main island, all hotels, as a rule, send a free transfer for their guests.
Othely Con dao
Today, the archipelago has certainly become friendlier both to its citizens and to those who spend their holidays here. As part of the development program over the years, Condao has acquired several hotels, the most notable of which can be considered a bungalow complex built by the international chain Six Senses. Since these apartments are luxury class on Condao, the upper limit of the cost of living is not known for certain, and the most “budget” price variant, even by the standards of Russian reality, looks quite acceptable, being between 30 and 50 USD.
Beaches
On Con Dao, there are, according to the latest data, two dozen beaches, one of which is the most popular due to the presence of white sand on the surface – Ong Dung. It is also worth noting that from April to November, turtles lay their eggs in the sands of the island, and after a while, small, slow, baby turtles, ready for a long and happy life, begin to appear from them. However, in order to see this magical spectacle of the appearance of a new creature in the light of day, tourists will need to be patient, give up tobacco and alcohol, and also observe perfect silence, since extraneous sounds and smells do not have the most positive effect on the turtle population.
Entertainment and attractions Con Dao
The city of Con Dao, whose name the entire island bore not so long ago, is famous for the prison, which was written about above, as well as rare buildings in the style of French colonialism. So, fans of rigid statehood, the slave trade and the dashing 1890s will find quite a lot of interesting things in this amazing place.
National park
More peaceful fellow citizens can go to explore the wild. According to the observations of experienced experts, it is best to do this accompanied by a specially trained person. The fact is that today the Con Dao area is occupied by two-thirds of the national park of the same name, and the nature of most of the island has remained untouched (neither by the notorious colonialists, nor by forced Vietnamese industrialization). In this connection, the landscape is mainly dominated by a tropical forest, which is also a jungle, in which modern children of asphalt can easily find their last refuge if they do not turn to a guide from among the local population for help.
Fishing and diving
Especially for those who are sure in advance of their inability to admire the flora and the rudiments of European architecture in the Vietnamese province, there is a great option to entertain yourself with fishing and diving.
The local population assures tourists with an oath that there is always a bite in the area of the archipelago, and the assortment of seafood is richer than in other parts of the world. However, according to the testimonies of experienced fishermen, a shark is really caught here, in the area of Nyat beach, there is also a place to be a squid. For those who are not alien to extreme sports in the literal and figurative sense of the word, there is an opportunity to hunt the dugong, which is also a sea cow. But in this case, it would be useful to familiarize yourself with two nuances at once: firstly, they can be sent to live in prison for poaching, and secondly, a sea cow can stand up for itself and significantly cripple a tourist from a capitalist country.
