Sa Dec

Sa Dec used to be the capital of Dong Thap province, formerly inhabited by the ancient Phu Nam Kingdom and later the Chan Lap (Tchen La) civilization. In the 1700s, the area was exchanged with the Vietnamese for military aid. Since then many Vietnamese have settled in this area and effectively annexed this whole area. The Chan Lap were subsequently wiped out and assimilated by the Vietnamese and today the population consists mostly people of Chinese, Khmer, Cham and Thai origin.

Sa Dec has become less and less prosperous ever since Cao Lanh was named capital of the province to reward communist cadres from the area after the war ended. New constructions and developments are now occuring in Cao Lanh, the commercial hub of the region.

Chau Doc is the last town in Vietnam before entering Cambodia. The town is located on the right bank of Hau Giang, 5 km away from Sam mountain, the highest point on the Delta. This mountain gets the name from its shape of a king crab, which is "sam" in vietnamese. It is a sacred mountain for many locals since it is dotted with pagodas and temples. Chau Doc is very famous for "ma('m", a type of fermented fish used regularly as food ingredients or garnishes

Chau Doc
With a population of 85,000, Chau Doc is a bustling city with heavy trade of illegal goods crossing the cambodian border. From smugglers on bicycle carrying cartons of cigarettes on their back to boats loaded with VCR and TV sets to new cars originating from Thailand, it seems like anything is fair game in the wild west of Vietnam.

Travel news Travel news in Vietnam 01:34