In addition to imperial palaces and mausoleums, tourists in Hue imperial citadel should not miss out the traditional jolt stick village of Thuy Xuan. The scene of glowing bunches of jolt sticks seems to harmonize so well with the old grave and culturally magnificent city.
Thuy Xuan jolt stick village
Thuy Xuan jolt stick village is over 7km Southwest from the downtown of Hue city, en route to Tu Duc mausoleum, the Belvedere hill, along Huyen Tran Cong Chua road in Thuy Xuan ward, Hue city.
Beyond its rich palette, thanks to its know-how to secure the signature aroma of the swirling smoke, Thuy Xuan has made itself an outstanding brand of Hue city for over a decade among the locals and visitors. It’s also the largest and best-known village of the citadel. Thuy Xuan incenses are deservedly the essence of this religious city, well rooted in its rich and entrenched religious life devoted to cults of the forefathers.
Thuy Xuan jolt sticks are characterized by their authentic incense core, which undergoes various processing steps with great skills and care. To make a decent bunch of jolt sticks, artisans pay great attention to the selection of incenses, to be mixed with cinnamon, cardamom, spruce buds, cloves and anises. Besides, additions also include milled wild pomelo peel powder, dried pomelo flowers, cinnamon or eucalyptus… The core of jolt sticks is necessarily of clipped dried hop fibers, which are dried over days to grow really dehydrated and crunchy. As a result, once burned, the jolt sticks are evenly burnt and have the ashes amusingly bunt without being broken.
The kaleidoscopic gleam of dried incenses.
Following the drying, the coloring is of equal importance in five-color palette (red, blue, yellow, green, purple). Visitors to this jolt stick village are delighted by the kaleidoscopic gleam of dried incenses.
Thuy Xuan jolt sticks meet not just local demands across the markets of Dong Ba, An Cuu, Ben Ngu or Tay Loc (Hue) but also exports to Laos or Thailand…
Besides, the tranquil shades of Thuy Xuan jolt stick village are well known and well presented in artworks by photographers, painters both from inside and outside the country, thus alluring even greater influx of visitors, and a new must-visit of Hue imperial citadel is now born.
Visitors to Thuy Xuan jolt stick village are entitled to some instructions of the making of handcrafted jolt sticks, take an insight in the craft village and local life. The poetic landscape, authentic emotions and genuine, hospitable and welcoming villagers are indeed the best essence of this culturally rich land.
Minh Thu