Van Ho (Son La): Community-based tourism promoted in ethnic minority-inhabited hamlet

 
The art team of the Mong ethnic group in Chieng Di 1 hamlet, Van Ho district

Located along National Highway 6 and adjacent to Moc Chau district, Chieng Di 1 hamlet is home to 174 households belonging to both Mong and Dao ethnic groups. Local residents have preserved many of their traditional cultural identities such as costumes, cuisine, folk games, folk arts, the “khen” (panpipe) – a musical instrument, and various crafts like papermaking, knife forging, weaving, and batik printing using beeswax, among others. The hamlet also has distinctive agricultural products, including “Rau” upland rice, “Man” taro, peaches, plums, and “Rau cai meo” – a kind of Brassica juncea, which serve community-based tourism.

The community-based tourism management board of Chieng Di 1 hamlet has been established, gathering households providing tourism services in the hamlet. Van Ho district has created conditions for the board to take field trips to community-based tourism models in other localities, and learn from their experience in doing business, preserving traditional culture, ensuring environmental hygiene, protecting natural resources, and improving tourism skills.

Chieng Di 1 hamlet has established and maintained a brocade group and another making bamboo souvenirs, offering products to tourists and increasing income for local residents. Currently, 10 households in the hamlet have offered resort, homestay, and restaurant services.

Every Saturday evening, residents of Chieng Di 1 hamlet gather in a market fair where locally-made handicrafts, brocade products, and farm produce are put for sale. Visitors to the market can also experience the process of pounding “banh day” (white, flat, round glutinous rice cake) of the Mong people, immerse themselves in the bell dance of the Dao people and “tha khenh”, a traditional dance of the Mong people. They also can try various traditional dishes there.

To spur community tourism, last year, Van Ho district invested in a lighting system in Chieng Di 1 hamlet, stretching 2.5 kilometres, facilitating night activities of both locals and visitors. Notably, a community project called “Art_Stay hamlet, a must-do when going to mountain,” initiated by a group led by pianist Pho An My and painters in 2002. This project has encouraged locals to rebuild their traditional houses, aiming to preserve the beauty of ethnic minority groups, preventing it from cementation.

Besides, the group has transformed concrete walls into vibrant, colourful murals that depict the life and culture of Mong and Dao ethnic groups. This not only creates a harmony with the nature and maintain the landscapes but also forms highlights for the locality.

In late May 2023, Chieng Di 1 hamlet was officially recognised by the provincial People’s Committee as a provincial-level tourist destination, which has laid an important foundation for the local tourism sector to develop sustainably in tandem with landscape preservation and traditional culture promotion, contributing to raising locals’ income.

Viet Anh
Son La electronic newspaper – en.baosonla.org.vn