Trip to Mai Chau, Hoa Binh, Vietnam - 2008

I and the rest of the foreign students went on a day trip to visit a Thai minority tribe in Mai Chau valley. Mai Chau is located in Hoa Binh Province, a four-hour journey west of Ha Noi, about 130 km away.

We set off at about 7.30 in the morning in a 12-seater van. The journey took us in a south-western direction across Ha Tay Province before entering Hao Binh. The most striking sight in Hoa Binh is the large land allocated towards the cultivation of sugar cane. Another sight which caught my attention was the numerous stalls along the route selling the locally brewed wine Ruou Can (pronounced as z-out kern).

As we climbed the last ridge at the end of the four-hour trip, the driver stopped at the top of Cun Mountain for all to take photograph of Mai Chau located in the valley below us. Therefore, we proceed to Lac Village (Lang Lac in Vietnamese), the abode of the Thai minority. Contrary to what we thought, the villagers are able to speak only a smittering of Thai. This is a small village of not more than 50 houses, mostly stilt houses. Before lunch at noon, we went round the village to look at the handicrafts on offer and also take photographs of the padi fields and the surrounding area.

Lunch was served communal style with all of us sitting on the bamboo covered floor of the stilt house. We were served rice cooked in bamboo, steamed fresh water fish, grilled boar meat, chicken, buffulo meat and vegetables. The main spices used for the dishes are ginger and lemon grass. At the same time, we also arranged for one hour cultural dance show performed by the villagers to accompany our lunch. The meal for the 11 of us including the entertainment totaled about $20.

During our conversation with the female owner, a night’s stay at the stilt costs only S$5. A note of caution, it can get really cold during winter. Fortunately for us, the weather was sunny which is a changed from the chill in Ha Noi. Following lunch, some of us continued on our exploration of the village while the rest decided to take a rest in the stilt house. Shortly after 3pm, we departed the village for our trip back to Ha Noi.