Phu Tu (Father – Son) Island is a tourist attraction of National scenic area Hon Chong; it was recognized by the Ministry of Culture and Information – now the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on January 21, 1989.
Location
Phu Tu Island covers nearly 173 ha. From the city of Rach Gia, tourists can go straight along the national highway 80 toward the town of Ha Tien, turn left at the Ba Hon fork then going over 15 km to Hon Chong. The traffic condition is convenient and smooth, the locals are gentle and hospitality, service prices are reasonable. Annual Phu Tu island tourist site welcomed hundred thousands of visitors to this tourist attraction. Prominent attractions are Hang Pagoda and Phu Tu Island.
Characteristics of Phu Tu island
From Hang Pagoda, looking over the sea a few hundred meters, we will see Phu Tu island. Khmer call Phnum – dong – tong: Phnum means mountains, dong – tong means flag pole, meaning the mountain shaped like a flag pole.
In the legend, when French had just come to Vietnam, every time they wanted to visit Hang Pagoda, Phu Tu Island “drift” out to block the entrance gate. Then, they used the cannon shot on the right side of the mountain. Currently, the mountain also keeps the mark on the right side.
Phu Tu island was formed by a high rock block and a lower rock block, the high rock block is about 30 m high called Phu (Father) mountain, the lower rock block is about 25 m high and slightly lean to the east called Tu (Son) mountain.
From this place, if you look toward the south – west, you will see Ba Lua Islands with 46 large and small islands, they are very beautiful considered as a miniature of Ha Long Bay and named Ha Long Bay of the South. Some islands have the thrilling legends.
In Kien Giang, there are hundreds of large and small islands, including Phu Quoc Island. Phu Tu Island are said to be the most dominant and sensual island by almost tourists. With its special shape, Phu Tu Island was a symbol of tourism in Kien Giang in the past.
The legend of Phu Tu Island
The legend told that, in the past, when seawater has not gotten low – level yet, at Hang pagoda, the sea level was higher than now; there was a sea monster in the cave used to disturb the residents. It was unable to see villagers who were miserable to deaths annual, the father and son from Ta Lon Mountain come to kill the sea monster, the people was rejoice and support. The father and son of hermit dabbed a drug which made their skin as hard as rock, then they brought a hook into the cave to catch the sea monster.
The son threw the hook into the mouth of the sea monster, and then he gave the cord to the father and the villagers pulling the sea monster up to the shore. But the monster took the hook off and put the hook into the rock, the father and the villagers could not pull the cord up, the son dived into the cave to look. The monster was hiding nearby, it came and bitten a side of the son’s head, he swam out of the water to call his father.
The father saw the son injured, he was hurry to go down the water, and he tried to help his son. But it was the time which ran out of the drug which made their skin hard as the rock, the father and son became the rock standing forever before the gate of the cave. The kappa was also injured during the melee, it jumped to Da Lua Island to heal, but it also turned into the rock.
Because of its shape like a kind of animal “Nghe”, so now people call the island “Da Lua Con Nghe”. Despite petrified but it still moved for about 100 meters, when the tides up it was at another location, when the tides down it returned to its original position, so fishermen were astonished and troubled by difficult determination of direction when the island still move. They dived and saw the bottom of the rock did not attached to the land; they used ropes to keep it but the rock still move.
The story goes that when the French patrol boat passing the large rock here, they saw the big rock moving, it made them so shocked so they shot the canon wildly to the rock, rocks cracked in a half around a few meters, the head of “Nghe” animal broken and from that on the rock could not move anymore. From that on, the local people called the island “Da Lua Con Nghe”.
