(TITC) - Located about 10km to the west of Hoa Binh City, Giang Mo Village (Binh Thanh Commune, Cao Phong District, Hoa Binh Province) is known as an attractive community-based tourism destination with specific cultural values of Muong ethnic group.
Highlight creating special attraction of the village is 100 stilt houses of Muong people in the valley. The stilt houses in Giang Mo back on the high land as hillsides, mountainsides to receive the air and include 3 floors, of which the top floor is used to hold foods and household items; the middle floor to live and rest; the bottom floor to hold work instruments and feed livestock, poultry. The size of the stilt house can be large or small but the position of main door, stairs, water trough and mortars must not be changed. The number of stair must be odd and the stairs must not be opposite with the main door. The water trough is located in the left side of the house.
Along with the traditional stilt houses, Muong people in Giang Mo have preserved many ancient production tools made of natural materials (wood, bamboo…) as water supply system, rice mortars, hunting crossbow…
Currently, Giang Mo has 45 households participating in community-based tourism. These households pay attention to environmental protection; build toilets, bathrooms to serve tourists. In 2010, the culture house of the village operated with the area of 500m2. At there, Muong cultural life is reconstituted lively through unique art, cultural activities of the villagers.
To Giang Mo, tourists will be enjoyed the typical dishes of Muong people (steamed rice, boiled pork, grilled stream fish…); learned about Muong culture through stories of homeowners, traditional crafts, brocade products (bag, scarf, shirt…), instrument kinds... If staying overnight, tourists have opportunity to enjoy unique dances in the sounds of drums, gongs, flutes, monochords… and folk songs performed by Muong women and men.
Community-based tourism development in Giang Mo not only creates more jobs and increases income for villagers but also contributes to conserving and promoting unique cultural values of Muong people as well as helping the young generation improve their awareness of Muong culture preservation.
Thu Giang