These days, tourist attractions in Mai Chau district, especially those highlighted by the charming and romantic white Ban (Bauhinia) flower blossoms, are attracting a large number of visitors from across the country. Visiting these sites, tourists can immerse themselves in the pristine and majestic beauty of nature.
Ban flower trees along roads in Mai Chau
district are starting to bloom, attracting many people to take photos.
March is the peak bloom time of Ban flowers. The
northwestern region is dyed white with a spectrum of flowers, resembling a
landscape painting. On mountain peaks, slopes, and rocky cliffs, everywhere is
a pristine white colour dotted with romantic purple spots. Looking closer,
full-bloom Ban flowers are like flying butterflies. Some flowers have a purple
petal among white ones, some have a light pink petal. The Ban leaves are shaped
like horseshoe, but many Thai girls like to think that they have the shape of
double hearts.
At close distances, you can see slender Ban
flowers resembling the hands of mountainous girls. When in full bloom, the
flower spreads wide like butterfly wings with beautiful pistils.
During March, nature enthusiasts often plan
journeys to the northwestern region to admire the beauty of the flower and at
the same time enjoy the fresh, invigorating atmosphere of the spring weather,
and to capture memorable moments.
The Ban flower is closely associated with the
cultural and spiritual life of ethnic communities in the Northwestern region,
especially the Thai ethnic group. It symbolises love and faithfulness through
the love story of a beautiful girl named Ban and a smart man named Khum. The
story has it that Ban and Khum were in love with each other. Unfortunately,
Ban’s parents did not accept their love because Khum was poor. Failing to
persuade her parents, the girl left her home on a Spring morning to look for
her lover. She went and went deep into the forest, and finally collapsed and
died. In the spot where she died, trees grew with thousands of flowers, the
petals of which look like the girl’s beautiful hands. Khum came to the place
but all he could find was Ban’s head scarf. He desperately called her name
until he died and became a bird named Loc Khum. Since then, when spring comes,
white Ban flowers blossom across the forest, while Loc Khum birds keep on
singing like the voice of the man calling his lover throughout the Ban flower
season.
There is another story about the flower, which
says the flowers have their origin in the white cloth that local people tied on
trees in mourning of local insurgents who died while fighting against evil and
oppressing forces.
The flower is also a symbol of pride in the
treasure trove of folklore literature of the ethnic minorities in the
Northwestern region, as it represents the purity and innocence of women. It is
also a symbol of happiness, love, and prosperity, as well as the filial piety
of children towards their parents and reverence for spiritual deities.
Hoa Binh province’s rich natural and cultural resources position it as a prime location for developing community-based tourism (CBT). In recent years, support from central and provincial policies, as well as assistance from non-governmental organisations, have encouraged local ethnic minority and mountainous communities to actively engage in the sector.
Van Son Commune, Tan Lạc district, Hoa Binh province also known as "Cloud Valley," boasts a cool climate, stunning natural landscapes, and majestic scenery. Visitors who have been to this place should make a stop at Chien Hamlet to experience a lot of fascinating things and feel the friendly, warmth of the Muong ethnic people.
Thanks to the effective exploitation of natural landscape and the cultural diversity of ethnic minorities, Hoa Binh province has become an attractive destination for tourists seeking experiences and exploration.
The Department of Cultural Heritage has just coordinated with the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Hoa Binh province to organize a training on implementing the model of the cultural heritage connected in the cultural tourism journey in Cao Phong and Lac Son districts.
The Sung village in Cao Son commune, Da Bac district, is endowed with pristine natural landscape, and Dao Tien ethnic minority community in the village preserves rich cultural heritage, including traditional housing, clothing, language, scripts, customs, and daily life practices. Since the community-based tourism model was introduced in the locality, these traditional cultural values have been further preserved and promoted.
