Situated in the centre of the
UNESCO-declared World Heritage area,
the Sung Sot or Surprise Grotto is
on Bo Hon Island, and is one of the
finest and widest grottoes of Ha
Long Bay. Ascending to the grotto,
the way is covered by trees and
foliage, and consists of great paved
stone blocks.
Sung Sot Cave is on the same island
with Trinh Nu cave. The path to Sung
Sot is quite steep and is lined with
shady trees. The cave has 2
chambers. The outer chamber is
square and is often referred to as
the waiting room. The cave's ceiling
is approximately 30 m high. The
walls are almost perfectly smooth as
if it was built by man. The walls
generate a variety of colors that
blend with the setting of the area.
The path to the inner chamber is
approximately 3m wide. The inner
chamber is known as the serene
castle. The formations in the
chamber take the form of sentries
conversing with one another, animals
in varying poses etc. In the middle
of the chamber stands a formation
which resembles a general surveying
his troops.
There is a side entrance which is
approximately 6m in height. The
light reflected from the moving
water outside causes the formations
inside the chamber to seemingly come
alive. According to the locals, this
was the reason the cave was named
Sung Sot, from the awe-stricken
reaction of the visitors to the
cave.
Inside, it is partitioned into two
chambers; the first one being
similar to a wide theatre hall. Many
stalactites hang from the high
ceiling, with numerous possible
forms and shapes.
A narrow passage leads to the second
rooms, where a flow of light meets
visitors. The chamber is so immense
it could contain thousands of people
at one time.
At the deepest point of the grotto,
a "royal garden" appears with a
clear pond and a seemingly
fascinating landscape of mountains.
Many birds and plants (benjamin
figs, cycads and centenary banyan
trees) live here. On nice days
groups of monkeys might arrive in
search of fruit.
It is situated in the central
tourism centre of the bay, as well
as Ti Tup Beach, Bo Nau Grotto, Me
Cung Grotto and Luun Grotto. French
named it "grotte des surprises"
(grotto of surprise).
From the wharf, you climb 50 steep
stone stairs to the mouth of the
grotto, which lies 25 m above the
sea level. Going down some 10 stone
stairs, you reach the mouth of a
grotto. The grotto covers some
10,000 m2. Inside the grotto there
have thousands of stalactites and
stalagmites along the 500-meter
paved passage. Light posts line the
passage and serve as signposts and
ornaments. The lighting system with
elegant styles adds more charm to
the beauty of the grotto.
Up in the 30-meter roof of the
grotto, one can figure out small,
soft and even concave spots, which
look like patterns in the ceiling of
a theater. A huge piece of stone
stands up to the ceiling by the
grotto's mouth. This evidences one
of the typical karst-style grottoes
with high scientific values.
At the side of the entrance, the
rock seems to form the shape of a
horse with a long sword. Legend has
it, that after having defeated the
An aggressors, Thanh Giong (the
Saint Giong) helped the population
to chase away evil spirits and
demons. After this feat, Saint Giong
flew to heaven, leaving a stone
horse and sword to continue to keep
the demons away.
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