Visitors to the northern mountainous province of Ha Giang are not onlyenchanted by its imposing natural scenery but also by the uniquemarkets, or the kermis, held in the Dong Van Karst Plateau.
A kermis here is more than a place to exchange goods, it is also afestival, a chance for the locals, particularly ethnic minorities wholive in remote and isolated areas, to meet. Many market days take placeon Saturday or Sunday. Others, meanwhile, fall on Dragon, Dog, Horse andRat Days.
According to Vice Chairwoman of the DongVan district People’s Committee Ly Trung Kien, a Mong ethnic woman whowas born and grew up on the plateau, the kermis is an indispensablecultural feature of the local ethnic minority people.
“People here can lack warm clothes and money but they cannot be absent at each market day,” she said.
The plateau kermises in Ha Giang bear their own unique cultural spaceand feature the distinctive characteristics of the 17 ethnic groupsliving there.
On market days, when the sun is notyet rising, people living halfway up the mountain or hill go down to themarket. The Mong, Lo Lo, Bo Y and Nung ethnic girls from remotevillages dressed in colourful brocade costumes create a jubilantatmosphere for the market day.
Plateau people bring bulls, horses, pigs, chicken and other livestock that embodies their hard work to the market.
Coming to the Ha Giang plateau fair, tourists are not only impressedat the colourful clothes and jewelry worn by ethnic minority girls andboys but also their sincerity, friendliness and charming smiles.
Ethnic minority people go to the market for not only commodityexchanges but also to chat with each other after hardworking days. Foryoung men and women, the kermis offers a chance for them to meet andseek partners. After market days, many of them get married and livehappily on the stone plateau.
Visiting the plateaukermis, tourists have a chance to study the unique customs and habits ofethnic minority people and can also enjoy popular dishes of locals,especially “thang co” – a stew made from horse meat, intestines, liverand kidney, better served with some corn wine.
Topromote the potential of the Dong Van Karst Plateau as a Global Geopark,Director of the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and TourismHoang Van Kien said that between 2013-2020, the province will deploy aproject to preserve the kermis cultural space with the aim of creatingattractive tourism products through experience tours of the plateaufairs.
At present, the department is collaboratingwith the local authorities to build kermis tourism programmes andintroducing them to travel agencies while raising locals’ awareness ofkeeping environmental hygiene at the markets and developing the valuesof local specialties, he added.-VNA
A kermis here is more than a place to exchange goods, it is also afestival, a chance for the locals, particularly ethnic minorities wholive in remote and isolated areas, to meet. Many market days take placeon Saturday or Sunday. Others, meanwhile, fall on Dragon, Dog, Horse andRat Days.
According to Vice Chairwoman of the DongVan district People’s Committee Ly Trung Kien, a Mong ethnic woman whowas born and grew up on the plateau, the kermis is an indispensablecultural feature of the local ethnic minority people.
“People here can lack warm clothes and money but they cannot be absent at each market day,” she said.
The plateau kermises in Ha Giang bear their own unique cultural spaceand feature the distinctive characteristics of the 17 ethnic groupsliving there.
On market days, when the sun is notyet rising, people living halfway up the mountain or hill go down to themarket. The Mong, Lo Lo, Bo Y and Nung ethnic girls from remotevillages dressed in colourful brocade costumes create a jubilantatmosphere for the market day.
Plateau people bring bulls, horses, pigs, chicken and other livestock that embodies their hard work to the market.
Coming to the Ha Giang plateau fair, tourists are not only impressedat the colourful clothes and jewelry worn by ethnic minority girls andboys but also their sincerity, friendliness and charming smiles.
Ethnic minority people go to the market for not only commodityexchanges but also to chat with each other after hardworking days. Foryoung men and women, the kermis offers a chance for them to meet andseek partners. After market days, many of them get married and livehappily on the stone plateau.
Visiting the plateaukermis, tourists have a chance to study the unique customs and habits ofethnic minority people and can also enjoy popular dishes of locals,especially “thang co” – a stew made from horse meat, intestines, liverand kidney, better served with some corn wine.
Topromote the potential of the Dong Van Karst Plateau as a Global Geopark,Director of the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and TourismHoang Van Kien said that between 2013-2020, the province will deploy aproject to preserve the kermis cultural space with the aim of creatingattractive tourism products through experience tours of the plateaufairs.
At present, the department is collaboratingwith the local authorities to build kermis tourism programmes andintroducing them to travel agencies while raising locals’ awareness ofkeeping environmental hygiene at the markets and developing the valuesof local specialties, he added.-VNA
