Cantho, Vietnam one of the largest cities of the country, is practically considered the ‘capital’ of Mekong Delta. Being the gateway to the paradise of Mekong Delta, Vietnam, practically no other urban city in Vietnam can match Can Tho in terms of its spectacular landscape. Bustling with life and color, Cantho is like a painter’s stroke on the canvas of Vietnam. You must visit this place, one of the most frequented of the Vietnam popular destinations and that too with lots of time in hand.

The city of Cantho, Vietnam is located exactly on the Southern Bank of Hau Giang, a tributary of the Mekong River. It is immediately behind Danang and is about 160 kilometers away from the Ho Chi Minh City. Cantho’s busy city life can be credited to the fact that this province produces some of the largest amount of rice, vegetables, fruits in the whole country. They also have a flourishing fish production unit. Its sea port, being able to house some large ships from foreign countries is also a centre of lot of activity.

In spite of being a prime urban area, Cantho’s picturesque location in the midst of meandering rivers, is what makes it a haven for tourism. Canal tours, the floating markets, the nearby villages, parks and other prominent attractions, the city offers plenty.

Geographic location

Can Tho City sites in the hub of Mekong River Delta with natural area of 1,390 sq.km beside the western bank of Hau river. It is 75 km far away from South China Sea and 1,877 km from Hanoi Capital; 169 km from Ho Chi Minh City in the north (in land road). It borders the provinces of An Giang and Dong Thap in the north, Hau Giang in the south, Kien Giang in the west, Vinh Long and Dong Thap in the east.

Terrain and waterways

The city is in region accumulated by alluvia from Mekong river for years with plain terrain features. It has interlacing system of rivers and ditches. In which: Hau river is the largest one lengthening 65 km through the city with total water current pouring 200 billion cu.m per year into the sea (taking up 41% total output of Mekong river) and average water discharge in Can Tho attaining 14,800 cu.m per second. Total volume of alluvia raising annually is about 35 million cu.m per year (occupying half of one in Mekong river).

Cai Lon river spreads 20 km in local bound with estuary widening 600 - 700 m and it its depth of 10 - 12 m that perform well its duty of drainage. Can Tho river is 16 km of length leading to Hau river in Ninh Kieu wharf. It is a freshwater river all the year round that not only provides water in dry season and drain in rainy season but also utilizes in transport. Additionally, the city has dense network of small ditches supplying freshwater all the year round and facilitating local farmers in irrigation affairs and land reclamation.

Climate

The city is tropical monsoon climate with two separate seasons of rainy lasting from May to November and dry one from December to April in next year. Average temperature is 270C and rainfall records 1,500 - 1,800 mm per year. Total sunny hours are about 2,300 - 2,500 hours per year and average humility stands at 83%.

Natural resource

Land and mineral natural resources: own fertile land resource especially area raised yearly the level by alluvia that is suitable for cultivating food crops, cash-crops, short-term industrial crop, tropical specialty fruit bearing trees. Accordingly, the city has full conditions to develop comprehensive agriculture. To be a newly formed plain, Can Tho has not abundant mineral natural resources but clay (material made brick and tile), plastic clay, peat, and river sand. Clay is grey but not rich that mainly focuses on underlying earth-surface lay of 1 -2 m and distributes broad. Besides, plastic clay locates 1 - 2 m from the ground surface and 5 - 6 m of thick which is fine and contains many minerals, used in handicrafts. The city possesses large reserve of peat with many small mines; its seam is more than one meters of thick and 15 - 30 m of width, 30 km of length with reserve totaling 30,000 - 150,000 tones.

Animal and plant resources: floristic composition in Can Tho gather in freshwater alluvia area including grass, seaweed, linden tree, fig, nipa, pennywort, amaranth, purslain, water-fern, morass-weed, custard-apple-tree, and so on. In alum earth, there are major cajeput, water-date palm, water-rattan, lygodium, custard-apple-tree, cork, lotus, water-lily, etc. With regard to fauna, animals on land consist of aquaticus, teal, common snipe, python, snake, tortoise, and so on. Water living animals are murrel, anabas, striped gourami, catfish, goby, carp, hypophthalmichthys