admin(No.3, Vol.9, Jun-Jul 2019 Vietnam Heritage Magazine)
Photos by Nguyen Vu Hau 
Today’s Phu Tho Province
was the land chosen by Hung Kings, the first rulers of Vietnam, to be their
capital. Considered the cradle of the Viet people, this area still preserves
the temples of Hung Kings and many other historical relics such as pagodas and shrines.
A midland area lying
between mountains and lowland planes, the Phu Tho landscape is imposing,
commanding, and poetic at the same time. The lush rolling tea hills are a
perfect example of that.
Phu Tho is currently
one of the provinces with the largest tea plantation areas in the country. The
tea trees not only benefit thousands of households but also create enchanting
beauty for the land of Phu Tho.
The tea hill of Long
Coc, Tan Son District is one of the most typical, most beautiful tea hills of
Phu Tho. From this vantage point, one can see a countless number of green tea
hills teeming all around, each looking like a coiled dragon.
Mother Nature has blessed
this land with the soil and weather best suitable for growing tea, and tea has
been growing here for ages. The all-green beauty of these winding hills
inevitably fascinates all who have ever been to these 600ha tea plantations. Rows
of tea plants soften the form of the hills. The typical dark green color of tea
leaves, shining and lush, which remains the same all year round, makes it feel
so calm, so peaceful, yet so endearing.
It is best to view the
Long Coc tea hill early in the morning, when one can feel the harmony
between nature
and humans, when timid rays of the sun try to penetrate silky layers of the morning
mist. That’s when ladies and young girls start to come up these hills and their
hands begin the magic dance among the tea buds still heavy with dewdrops.
The scenic charm of
the tea hills, the happy hard-working life, full of positive optimism and the
tea culture of the people of Phu Tho makes it an interesting and attractive
destination for many genres of tourism.