VietExplorer2025

In 2018, Non Nuoc Cao Bang geopark received recognition as a Global Geopark. Since then, the province in the northern mountains has been actively involved in the activities of the global geopark network and international collaboration. Cao Bang has invested in and launched four tourist routes to the geopark, while preserving and promoting the geological heritage values and indigenous culture, as well as protecting the environment following the criteria and recommendations of UNESCO experts. During the 7th session of the UNESCO Global Geoparks Council in December 2022, the certificate for the Non Nuoc Cao Bang Global Geopark title, following its first re-verification, was approved. During the ceremony held on September 30, Tran Lan Huong, head of the Natural Sciences Department at the UNESCO Office in Vietnam, presented the certificate to Cao Bang province on behalf of UNESCO. In addition, the Cao Bang Culture, Sports, and Tourism Week, which lasts until October 3, i...

Yến badminton is believed to have originated from a story about a boy from Heaven who fell in love with a girl while on a trip to Earth. They would often play yến badminton together. In this game, players toss the yến shuttlecock and hit it back and forth with wooden rackets. It is purely an exercise and does not involve competition, rules, winners, or losers. Yến badminton is particularly popular among ethnic groups, especially the Mong in Quan Ba district, Ha Giang province. “The Mong in Ha Giang province have many folk games, such as spinning tops, stick pushing, and tug-of-war, but their favorite is yến badminton, and anyone can play it,” says Vang Ngoc Xuan of Thanh Van commune. The lightweight yet sturdy rackets, made of pine wood, produce a joyful sound when hitting the shuttlecock. Playing yến badminton helps improve strength, speed, and coordination. People play yến badminton at the Mong Culture Festival. Vuong Thi Sim, also from Thanh Van commune, shares her...

Even though it was the first day of the week, crowded international tourist groups have already started walking around famous destinations such as Ben Thanh market, Independence Palace, and the Museum of War Remnants. Photo: thanhnien.vn There are many groups of tourists who choose to travel by double-decker bus to visit the city. In total, there are 10 stops for visitors to explore places such as the City Post Office, Ho Chi Minh Museum, War Remnants Museum, Bui Vien West Street, Ben Thanh Market, and the Independence Palace. The image of tourists in front of Ben Thanh market, which was normal in the years before the pandemic, was extremely rare in 2020 and 2021. Therefore, their return is a joy not only in the tourism industry but of the whole economy of Ho Chi Minh City Photo: thanhnien.vn The presence of international tourists makes Ben Thanh market very lively. Luong Thi Thanh (46 years old) selling clothes at Ben Thanh market for more than 10 years, shar...

Hoang Van Lap, 16, a resident of Bao Lam district in Cao Bang province, prepares to undergo his maturity ritual. Each family member receives enthusiastic support from other villagers ahead of the ritual. San Chi ethnic people live typically reside in Bao Lam and Bao Lac districts of Cao Bang province. They often hold maturity rituals in February and September according to the lunar calendar. The ritual lasts for three days and it helps to educate sons of the San Chi ethnic group about the various cultural values of their ancestors, thereby showing their gratitude to the ancestors and the gods. Before the start of the ceremony attendees must follow certain rules, including not to kill animals and doing good deeds. The ceremony also provides an opportunity to gather villagers and consolidate the neighbourhood, showcasing solidarity within the local community. This ritual has been well preserved for several generation...

The emergence of a cold spell has forced residents of Hanoi to put on an extra layer of clothing as part of efforts to stay warm amid the arrival of chilly weather conditions. A motorbike driver wraps up in a scarf amid the cold weather. Children wear jackets and facemasks to fight off the cold. Some people choose to travel by bus in order to avoid the cold amid traffic jams on the first day of the new week. The cold front is the first to strike the nation this winter and is forecast to last for several days. The post Hanoi welcomes first cold period as winter emerges appeared first on Vietexplorer.com . View more from VietExplorer: Quang Ninh Museum given highest ranking COVID-19 vaccine passport officially introduced Christmas dining options in Hanoi Red-leaf forest: a winter fairyland in Cao Bang The beauty of water-rising season in Hau Giang Nutritious chicken soup warms up people in winter Vietnam...

From the center of Si Ma Cai district, tourists travel about 3 km to Nan San commune to contemplate the picturesque scenes of terraced fields in a lush valley and the ancient earthen houses of the Nung people, which have stood for several dozen years to a hundred years.  Then Xuan Van, a local, says that before building a new house, the Nung people must choose a place that support production and living conditions.  “According to the Nung’s custom, the direction of the main door must suit the age of the house’s owner. We choose an appropriate day and hour to break the ground. At a chosen time, we put a mould used to make earthen walls on the land and butcher a chicken and a pig to inform the land spirits of our construction. I say: ‘Today is a good day. My surname is Then. I will break the ground to build a house. I pray the land...

When the rainy season comes and water fills the streams and the trees bud, the Ma hold a ceremony to thank the Forest Genie. Nguyen Huy Cao of the Center for Culture, Communications, and Sports of Cat Tien district says the Thanksgiving ritual has been performed since the ancestors of the Ma settled here. The offering of a sacrificial animal and the playing of gongs continue today. The Thanksgiving ritual can be performed by a family or by the community. A community Thanksgiving is held when the village has suffered a severe flood or drought or when someone has died while working in the forest. “The scale of the ceremony depends on the financial situation. For a community ceremony, people may prepare a buffalo. A rich family may also prepare a buffalo, while a family of 2 or 3 generations may prepare a pig or a goat. The sacrificial animal can be any four-legged animal or even a chicken,” explains Cao. Meanwhile, according to Dieu Cac Khu of Ngo hamlet, Cat Tien township, the ...

The Chut have five branches – Sach, May, Ruc, A Rem, and Ma Lieng, who all belong to the Viet-Muong linguistic group. They are one of 16 ethnic groups with a small population in Vietnam. Dr. Kim Ngoc, who has studied the Chut, says from 1905 to 1911, French scholars and missionaries wrote the first articles about people living sporadically scattered in the mountains near the Gianh River who were called the Tac Cui, Cha Cui, or U Mo people. In 1959, Vietnamese border guards discovered a group of people wearing loincloths and clothes made of tree bark living a nomadic life and sheltering in caves. According to Dr. Kim Ngoc, the earliest French studies mentioned the Ruc and A Rem people. The ancient encyclopedia of Vietnam “Phu Bien Tap Luc” and the geography book of the central coast “O Chau Can Luc” mentioned the Sach people. Sach means a hamlet or village in a small valley. The feudal regimes called the people living there the Sach. The nomadic people living in the forests that...

Pa Di is a branch of the Tay ethnic group in the northern province of Lao Cai. There are about 2,000 Pa Di people living mainly in the high mountain communes of Muong Khuong district. Clothes worn by Pa Di women are different from other ethnic groups with their colorful patterns that are closely associated with their habitat of forests and mountains. A prominent accessory worn by the Pa Di is the woman’s hat. It’s said that in the past, Pa Di family members used to live together in a big house. But once the family got bigger and bigger, they had to separate to live in different houses. In order to remember their roots, clan, and parents, Pa Di people wore a hat, representing the house’s roof.  Po Xin Phuc of Muong Khuong district, said, “The hat represents the roof of a cozy house. It’s a unique feature of our group.”  The hat is woven from flax by Pa Di women. They coat fabric with bees...