Undoubtedly, Nha Trang is renowned as the city of the sea and for its many pristine beaches, and a trip to the peak of Co Tien (Fairy) Mountain will help visitors understand why the central coastal city can magnetize many tourists.
We conquered the peak of Co Tien (Fairy) Mountain months ago. We started our trip from the center of the city in Khanh Hoa Province and went along Tran Phu Street. After crossing Pham Van Dong Bridge, we saw Co Tien Mountain ahead like a lying young woman with her hair stretching down and her face heading towards the east side.
Co Tien Mountain is also named after the main female character of a tragic tale. According to locals, a long time ago, an army was stationed in the existing area of the mountain. One day, the commander had to leave his young wife to join a battlefield far way and she was then ravished by bad men at home. To keep her faithfulness to her husband, she killed herself and later became the mountain with her face, her breast and knee becoming three peaks of the mountain. Local people then named that mountain “Co Tien” to commemorate the beautiful but short-lived woman.
Locals say the best times to trek up the mountain are before sunrise and sunset. Sport-persons can conquer the mountain peak in less than one and a half hour but amateurs need more time to complete their journey up to the 400-meter height.
As we wanted to view Nha Trang City at night, we started to climb the mountain at around 4-5 p.m. when scorching sunlight softened. Scenery along the way is gorgeous. When we felt tired, we found somewhere at the mountain side to rest for a while and at the same time enjoy cool breeze, gentle scents of wild flowers and grass, serenity and a stunning landscape of the red sun about to sun goes down to the sea.
We continued our trekking and the more we approached the peak, the more our tiredness faded away as a panoramic view of Nha Trang was splendid. Illuminated by thousands of sparkling lights, the city looked like a giant flaming phoenix preparing to spread its wings to fly to the sea as we could imagine. What a magnificent scene!
The experience of sitting on the top of the mountain and enjoying breezes from the sea and the imaginable phoenix was unforgettable and helped blow away our worries and tiredness.
