Hidden in Con Dao National Park, Our Lady Cave is the place where the French colonialists found and placed a statue of Our Lady to pray during the years of occupation of the island in the 19th century. In the past, this was a place where Catholic fishermen prayed every time they went out to sea.
Our Lady Cave is located in the primeval forest of the national park, so few tourists know about it. Coming to Con Dao, people mainly go on spiritual tourism to temples, pagodas and resorts, not many people choose to experience ecology in the national park.
The national park is located about 3 km from the town, from here visitors go straight to Vo Thi Sau street, Huynh Thuc Khang, when they see the signboard, turn right, enter the management room to buy a ticket for 60,000 VND. After that, visitors riding a motorbike for a few hundred meters will see a sign to go to Our Lady Cave, Bang Beach, Dat Tham Beach, leave the car and start the journey of climbing the stone steps.
The distance to reach Notre Dame Cave can be considered a short trekking, when visitors have to cross primeval forests and stone steps, many sections are a bit difficult to walk. However, the road is short, only about 400 meters, when looking at the signs and landmarks with the French words "Grotte de N.D.L." (Our Lady's Cave), going in the direction of the arrow is just coming.
In the calm air of the mountains and forests, visitors can easily see the light emanating from the cave. Outside the climbing tree that surrounds the cave entrance, inside there is an altar, placing a statue of Our Lady and Jesus on a cross, flowers and candles. Because the cave is shallow and small, when entering, Khai Trung noticed that the space was open and dry. If you light a candle, after visiting, you need to blow it out before leaving.
To visit the Cave of Our Lady, it is necessary to prepare good health, water and snacks, and comfortable clothing. If there is still enough power, visitors can explore other places in the national park, mainly pristine beaches such as Bang beach, Dat Tham beach, Ong Dung beach, Suoi Ron beach... or continue to climb the peaks, explore Dam Tre Bay. On the way to visit, visitors can meet many endemic animals of Con Dao such as long-tailed monkeys, black squirrels, etc.
According to VnE
Image: Nguyen Khai Trung