Located 30km from the Bac Ha town center in Lao Cai province, Ban Lien commune is home to Tay ethnic people, who still preserve the cultural values of the northwest region. It’s a destination on the Bac Ha white plateau well worth visiting.
Ban Lien commune preserves the cultural values of the northwest region. (Photo: toquoc.vn)
Ban Lien is naturally endowed with a charming landscape and a cool climate. That and the unique culture of the Tay people makes Ban Lien an attractive destination. The commune is widely known for its stilt houses roofed with palm leaves and covered with green moss, for tea hills hidden under palm trees more than 10 meters high, and fertile terraced fields beside the commune road. The villagers still retain their traditional culture of ancient times.
According to Bui Van Vinh, Head of the Culture and Information Section of Bac Ha district, tourists come to Ban Lien to learn about the ancient Tay people. He told that anyone who wants to understand the Tay ethnic group should come to Ban Lien, where locals wear their traditional costumes in daily life. “Visitors will enjoy the rustic, primitive, and indigenous identity of Bac Ha’s ethnic minority,” said Vinh.
Traditional stilt houses roofed with palm leaves of the Tay ethnic people in Ban Lien commune (Photo: Giang Seo Pua/VOV4)
Each villager is conscious of the importance of preserving their culture. Vang A Su, Deputy Chairman of the commune People's Committee, said, “The Tay people, regardless of their age, continue to wear their traditional clothing every day in Ban Lien and continue to speak the Tay language, which they take great pride in.”
Each of the four seasons has its own beauty and charm. In spring, Ban Lien is brilliant with the bright colors of peach blossoms and bustling with the Long Tong (Going to the Field) Festival of the Tay people.
In summer, tourists come to watch the mottled colors of terraced fields during the flood season. In autumn, the commune basks in the bright yellow of the ripe rice fields which stretch up to the top of the terraced hills. In winter, the area feels quieter with misty clouds covering the hills.
Palm-leaf-thatched stilt houses standing beside terraced fields create a scenic picture, said Dang Hung Cuong, Chairman of the Ban Lien People's Committee. “Ban Lien’s people are very hospitable. The eco-tourism commune has preserved the wildness of its natural landscape. With 3,000 hectares of forest covering 52% of its area, Ban Lien is one of the most heavily forested communes in Bac Ha. And its terraced fields are the most beautiful,” said Cuong.
Every Thursday, visitors are invited to a village fair, a venue for the traditional cultures of the Tay, Mong, and Dao ethnic people of Ban Lien and the neighboring communes of Nam Luc, Nam Khanh, and Coc Lau. Traditional products sold at the local market include Ban Lien-branded Tay tea.
A local resident named Lam Thi Nghi said, “The best time to pick tea is February or March, when it has many buds and good quality. It’s all done manually without any machines so we can only pick 10kg a day.”
The poetic beauty of mountains, forests, terraced fields, and stilt houses, and the friendliness and hospitality of the locals win the heart of every visitor to Ban Lien.