Fairytale village in the windy capital

Nestled among lush green palm hills, Thai Hai village appears like a fairy tale village that fully preserves the beauty of Tay ethnic culture. With ancient wooden stilt houses, a peaceful pace of life and a place where more than 150 people live together like a big family, Thai Hai is affectionately called by the villagers as "a village of rice from the same pot, money from the same pocket".

Nestled among lush green palm hills, Thai Hai village appears like a fairy tale village that fully preserves the beauty of Tay ethnic culture. With ancient wooden stilt houses, a peaceful pace of life and a place where more than 150 people live together like a big family, Thai Hai is affectionately called by the villagers as "a village of rice from the same pot, money from the same pocket".

Thai Hai village, also known as “Thai Hai Ethnic Ecological Stilt House Village Conservation Area”, in My Hao hamlet, Thinh Duc commune, Thai Nguyen city, Thai Nguyen province, consists of more than 30 stilt houses moved from the revolutionary land of ATK Dinh Hoa. All bear the traditional architectural imprint of the Tay ethnic people, mainly built of wood, roofed with palm leaves or straw, creating a rustic and cozy space. (Photo: Phuong Thao)

There are stilt houses that are up to 100 years old. (Photo: Phuong Thao)

Before entering the village, everyone stops by the village well to wash their hands and feet. According to Ms. Ha Thi Hang, a villager, “This well has been around since the village was founded. The village chief brought water to it with the hope that it would help the village and its descendants to have peace when they go far away, to help them get rid of bad and unwholesome things, and bring peace and good things to the village.” (Photo: A Anh)

Right next to the well is a village gong used to ring bells to signal the arrival of "golden and silver guests" to the house. (Photo: A Anh)

A small path leads to the stilt house of the villagers. Each stilt house has its own role: medicine house, tea house, rice cake house... (Photo: A Anh)

Around each stilt house, many medicinal plants are planted. When the Tay people take away any medicinal plant, they will replant three to preserve and protect the medicinal roots. Three plants are returned to the three Muong, one is returned to the Muong Troi (representing the gods), one is returned to the mother earth (where these plants are nurtured) and one is left to the Muong Nguoi, for future generations. (Photo: Thanh Binh)

The Tay people believe that nature, flowers, leaves, and plants all have souls. To pick medicinal leaves and make medicine, one must have the aptitude and the destiny to do so. Before picking medicinal leaves, they confide in the tree spirit, determine the direction, and follow taboos. (Photo: A Anh)

Up to now, Thai Hai village has had almost all the traditional Vietnamese medicinal herbs without having to go to the forest to collect them like before. (Photo: Phuong Thao)

Every day, villagers go to the herbal medicine shop to get herbs, teas, and medicines to improve their health. (Photo: Le Nhan)

The Tay people believe that if humans have a house, bees must also have a house, and a beehive alone is not enough to form a community. Therefore, during a visit to the village, the French “Bee King” Michel Feintrenie and the people designed a special house for bees and named it “French-Tay Bee House” with a hexagonal symbol, representing both a beehive and reminiscent of France. (Photo: Phuong Thao)

Currently, the French-Tay bee house has 30 beehives, located on the top of the highest hill in the village, considered a place where the spiritual energy of heaven and earth converges. (Photo: Phuong Thao)

For a long time, the villagers have been accustomed to a self-sufficient lifestyle. On an area of 25 hectares, the land is divided into specialized areas for cultivation, livestock breeding and food production. (Photo: Phuong Thao)

70% of the village's daily food needs are self-sufficient with vegetables, fruit trees, pigs, chickens, fish, etc. (Photo: Phuong Thao)

The cuisine in the village is extremely diverse and imbued with Tay culture such as five-color sticky rice, roasted jungle fowl, Chinese sausage, banana flower salad, purple sticky rice, wine hotpot... (Source: Thai Hai Village)

Every day, villagers dry and package green tea leaves to serve the needs of the village as well as tourists. (Photo: Phuong Thao)

Traditional weaving is one of the characteristics of the village. These woven bamboo and rattan baskets will be used to store household items, as well as to make gift baskets for tourists... (Photo: Thai Hai Village)

What cannot be produced by themselves, such as fabrics, will be ordered. However, women are still the ones who sew traditional costumes for their families. (Photo: Phuong Thao)

According to Ms. Le Thi Nga - Deputy Head of Thai Hai Village, there is no gap between rich and poor in the village and no one has to worry about food and money. Important events such as funerals, weddings or education of children in the village are all taken care of by the village chief using the common fund. (Photo: Le Nhan)

Everyone joined hands and united to build Thai Hai village and spread the village's culture more widely to visitors. (Photo: Phuong Thao)

Educating children in the village about preserving Tay ethnic culture is highly valued. Therefore, the village has established a kindergarten right in the community. (Photo: A Anh)

In addition to the curriculum according to the standards of the Ministry of Education, students also learn about the Tay ethnic culture, from language, then singing, tinh lute, to typical customs and practices. (Photo: Thai Hai Village)

Many visitors here are skeptical and wonder how more than 150 people have maintained this lifestyle for so many years. (Photo: Phuong Thao)

To unite people and resolve conflicts, the village has maintained a special cultural feature: the Village Fire Festival, also known as the Fire Bathing Ceremony, which takes place regularly every week. Under the flickering firelight, people confide in the fire god about the bad luck and misfortunes of the past week, praying that they will be resolved and carried far away to Muong Troi. At the same time, they send their wishes for a peaceful, happy and good new week. (Photo: Thai Hai Village)

Thanks to its constant efforts and commitment to traditional culture, by 2019, Thai Hai had become a well-known name, receiving the ASEAN Award for Community Tourism and Sustainable Tourism 2016-2019 for 4 consecutive years. (Photo: A Anh)

“Con House” displays 2022 colorful cones, representing the five-color culture of the Tay people. Con House was built after Thai Hai village was voted by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) as one of the 32 best villages in the world in 2022. (Photo: Le Nhan)

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/ban-lang-co-tich-giua-thu-do-gio-ngan-308797.html