Mai Chau developing community-based tourism
29/10/2006 (GMT+7)
Mai Chau valley in Hoa Binh province, about 130 kilometres from Hanoi capital city, is an attractive destination for Vietnam tourists. White Thai ethnic minority people in Mai Chau make tourism in their stilt houses, particularly in Pom Coong and Lat villages.
Pom Coong has 64 stilt houses to serve tourists. Each tourist pays only VND 50,000 a night. No-one claims higher price. Nothing has changed for the past ten years. Each time when there are a lot of tourists coming, they share tourists with one another,” said Mr Phuc.
At the foot of the stilt house, Thai girls busy themselves with weaving costumes and towels by looms. Souvenirs including woven towels, dresses, wallets and shirts are being sold there.
Tourists to Mai Chau can buy special ruou can (wine drunk out of a jar through pipes). Each bottle costs VND 30,000.
Coming to the Lat village that consists of 25 stilt houses to serve tourists, we were told by old Ha Van Doi that he had made crossbows to hunt animals and birds in the past and now he makes them to sell to tourists.
Each month, Mr Doi makes three sets of crossbows, earning more than VND 300,000. Tourists to the village have a chance to enjoy bamboo-tube rice (mountain tribes use bamboo-tubes as a cooking vessel, after the rice is cooked; the bamboo-tube is broken open to remove the contents). A tube costs VND 2,000.
By night, girls from the Pom Coong village impress tourists with xoe tradition dances. Tourists are enjoying the dances and eating roasted pork, chicken and fish and drinking can wine.
(Source: Nhan Dan)
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