Vietnam central province beckons tourists

Khe Ga (chicken) lighthouse

Binh Thuan province on Vietnam’s central coast is known not only for its beautiful landscapes but also for artifacts and works that find a place in the Vietnam Guinness Records. 
Old Buddhist scriptures

The Phat Quang pagoda, built in the early 18th century in the provincial capital of Phan Thiet, has a collection of 300-year-old Buddhist scriptures engraved in wood, recognized as the oldest in Vietnam.

It consists of 118 wooden planks, each measuring 68 x 26 x 2.6 centimeters.

On both surfaces of the planks are mirror images of the Buddha’s sacred words written in Chinese script.

They were discovered in a cellar in 1987 when monks were cleaning the pagoda.

Three monks, Thiet Sat Bao Huong, Minh Dung Phap Thong, and Thiet Hue Khanh Tai, together with some followers etched the planks over 28 years from 1704.

Phat Quang also has other valuable cultural artifacts, including a grand bell cast in 1750 during the reign of King Le Than Tong, and a 3,500-year-old stone axe a farmer found in the southern Dong Nai province.

Then there are several terracotta warriors – whose age is yet to be determined – in Shaolin martial arts poses.

Tallest lighthouse

The Khe Ga (chicken) lighthouse is located on an islet some 30 kilometers southeast of Phan Thiet and recognized as the tallest in Vietnam.

Work on the 65-meter lighthouse, designed by French architect Chnavat, began in February 1897 and took over a year.

On the top of the octagonal granite tower is located a 2000 watt light that can be seen from 22 miles away.

Khe Ga lies about 500 meters from the mainland and is easy to access during low tide.

Largest reclining Buddha

The Linh Son Truong Tho pagoda on the Ta Cu Mountain, some 30 kilometers southeast of Phan Thiet, is known for a statue of the reclining Buddha measuring 49 meters long and 18 meters tall, said to be the largest in Vietnam.

The statue, also called “Buddha in Nirvana”, was built in 1962 by an engineer called Truong Dinh Y.

In the past it used to take several hours to reach the pagoda by road. Nowadays cable cars ascend the 500 meter mountain in just 10 minutes. The statue is a kilometer from that point.

Binh Thuan has also holds many other records. For instance, Phan Thiet, its capital, is called the “kingdom of resorts” since it has some 70 beach resorts, the most in Vietnam.

Reported by Ha Dinh Nguyen – Translated by Thu Thuy