Côn Đảo, Island group in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, Vietnam
Côn Đảo is an island group in Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu Province, Vietnam, and consists of sixteen forested hills of volcanic origin in the South China Sea. The largest island holds a small town with paved streets, fishing boats at the harbor, and several villages along the coast.
A Dutch trading company founded a post on the main island in 1702 to supply ships between India and China. Later, France used the islands as a prison colony, which became a political detention site in the 20th century.
The market on the main island shows daily life through stalls with tropical fruit, crabs and squid from the waters offshore. Vendors prepare traditional rice soups and fried dough rolls that locals and visitors buy for breakfast.
Flights connect the island group daily with Ho Chi Minh City and Can Tho, while ferries depart several times a week from Vung Tau. Visitors staying on the main island can walk or rent motorbikes to explore roads along the shore.
Sea turtles lay their eggs on several protected beaches, where rangers patrol at night to monitor the nests. Offshore from the smaller islands live dugongs, rare marine mammals that graze on underwater seagrass meadows.
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