As we went up the mountain in the bitter cold of the end of the year, the sluggish trucks loaded with goods also quietly went downhill. And, on them, we encountered not only chickens, pigs, sticky rice, dong leaves... but also peach branches leaving the mountain carrying a bit of the border's fragrance to the lowlands. These days, the people of Sin Chai village, Trung Chai commune, Sa Pa town, Lao Cai province are busy preparing to celebrate the traditional New Year of the nation. The joy of the people was doubled when Sin Chai village was connected to the national grid. On the morning of January 8, at the Government Headquarters, General Secretary To Lam attended and directed the National Online Conference to summarize the work in 2024 and deploy the tasks in 2025 of the Government and local authorities organized by the Government. Implementing the peak period of attacking and suppressing crimes to ensure security and order before, during and after the Lunar New Year 2025, the entire Quang Ninh province has been mobilizing maximum forces, simultaneously launching campaigns to suppress all types of crimes. In particular, focusing on drastically implementing solutions to prevent and combat violations of the law on firecrackers during Tet. Phuoc Chien is a safe zone commune (ATK) in Thuan Bac district, Ninh Thuan province. Over the past years, the Party Committee and local authorities have mobilized many support resources, especially from the National Target Programs to build new rural areas and improve the lives of ethnic minorities. The Ministry of Health requires early detection of epidemics at border gates, ensuring medical examination and treatment, strengthening food safety inspection, not allowing drug shortages, pushing up drug prices... on the occasion of Tet At Ty 2025. The police of Krong Ana district, Dak Lak province informed that in a short time, the unit discovered and prevented many groups of students from illegally manufacturing firecrackers, confiscating 8,285 kg of chemicals and many items to manufacture firecrackers. Information from the Organizing Committee of Lang Chanh District Party Committee, Thanh Hoa province said: Up to this point, Lang Chanh district has had 1 Standing Committee of the District Party Committee, 3 District Party Committee members and many other cadres voluntarily apply for early retirement, to implement the streamlining of the Party apparatus that is being implemented. Summary news of the Ethnic and Development Newspaper. This afternoon's news on January 7, 2025, has the following notable information: The art of lions, lions, and dragons becomes a national intangible cultural heritage. Going to the highland market. The person who preserves the cultural soul of the San Diu ethnic group. Along with other current news in the ethnic minority and mountainous areas. Regarding the serious work accident that killed 5 people at Dak Mi 1 Hydropower Plant, Dak Choong Commune, Dak Glei District (Kon Tum), on January 6, the Ministry of Construction issued Document No. 77/BXD-GD to the People's Committee of Kon Tum province regarding the appraisal of the cause of the construction incident. Adding magnesium-rich foods to the diet in winter helps prevent and combat conditions related to cold weather... On January 8, the Ho Chi Minh City Trade Promotion Center - US-Vietnam Business Council - Vietnam Innovation Institute organized a workshop on New US Policy and its trade and investment impacts. The workshop attracted the direct and online participation of many domestic enterprises, manufacturers and exporters. On January 8, Lieutenant Colonel Pham Thanh Trun - Head of the My Quy Tay Border Guard Station, Long An Border Guard (BĐBP), said: Implementing the peak plan to fight against crime, drugs, smuggling, trade fraud and counterfeit goods, ensuring security and order in the border area before, during and after the Lunar New Year 2025, the unit has coordinated with functional forces to detect and arrest a subject illegally transporting drugs from Cambodia across the border into Vietnam. The coming of age ceremony is an important ritual marking the development in the life of young Cham Muslim Bani girls. This is the time when they are officially recognized by the community as Bani Muslims. The coming of age ceremony for young girls is called Karoh, performed by the monk and dignitaries of the Ba Ni mosque in Luong Tri village.
"Forest blessings" to the city
On the 15th of December, when heavy drizzles bring a cold that cuts into the skin, it is also the time when people in the highlands gather together to pick wild fruits. These are dong leaves, giang rolls... used to wrap cakes; naturally harvested from the forest; to add a little flavor to the Tet holiday for everyone, every family.
Although it is only harvested once a year, it is still bringing in a significant income. The price of dong leaves purchased by traders depends on each year. For example, this year, traders buy from people from 300 - 400 VND/leaf. Each person can earn 300 - 400 thousand VND/day from picking dong leaves. As for giang tubes, the selling price is 1,000 VND/tube, each day a person can collect 250 - 300 giang tubes, also earning from 250,000 - 300,000 VND.
And peach trees, the peach-rich regions such as Que Phong, Ky Son… are also bustling to cut branches, dig up roots… and transport them to the lowlands. In the border region of Nghe An, peach fields have begun to dye the villages red, adding warmth to the spring picture of Tet. Peach trees in Ky Son, Que Phong… have for many years been an indispensable Tet decoration item for many families in the lowlands, although the price is not easy to bear.
Mr. Xong Ba Lau - Buoc Mu village, Na Ngoi commune, Ky Son district (Nghe An) boasted: Our family has nearly 1,000 peach trees, every year selling branches during Tet also earns hundreds of millions of dong. That is why poverty is gradually fading away.
The peach trees of Mr. Lau and many other households in Ky Son are planted on the fields, around the stilt houses, living together with people in the busy life in the far-off border region. In addition to the silvery, moldy peach branches around the roots, carefully tied together on the trucks going downstream; there are also bags of sticky rice, ginger, turmeric, dried bamboo shoots, and even squash, pumpkin… also hurriedly crossing the mountains and forests to return to the city.
These products are the result of the hard work of old farmers in the mountainous regions. Then, at the end of the year, traders from many localities in the lowlands and the mountainous districts of Que Phong, Quy Chau, Con Cuong, Ky Son... come to buy "forest gifts" to supply the Tet market.
With many years of experience in "buying goods" both ways from Con Cuong to the lowland districts and vice versa, truck owner Hung Huong said: During Tet, we are very busy, goods go back and forth continuously during the day. Mainly, the necessities of the people are transported to the lowlands for sale. Prices are usually higher than usual, so people also have more income.
To the home-made "product"
Pigs, cows, buffaloes, etc. of the highland people are popular products during the Tet holiday. To meet the demand of the lowland people, people in the highland districts have processed them into products imbued with the cultural identity of the region.
Since the beginning of the 12th lunar month, villages in the Western region of Nghe An have been burning fire day and night to prepare specialties to supply the Tet market. Traditional dishes of the people such as beef, buffalo, sausage, wine, and fermented wine have now become specialties favored by people in the lowlands.
These dishes have also become a unique gift during Tet, so this is also the time when these specialties are consumed the most, many establishments do not have enough goods to supply customers.
Among them, beef jerky and buffalo jerky (a type of smoked meat) in Ky Son and Tuong Duong districts are highly appreciated by gourmets. The processing of this product is very elaborate, requiring the selection of firm, longitudinally grained, fresh and delicious meat, and only local buffalo and beef can fully meet these requirements.
After cutting the meat into strips and marinating it with spices such as ginger, galangal, dried chili, dried pepper and white salt, people will hang the meat on a wood stove and dry it with charcoal and kitchen smoke.
Processed from the best parts, through many stages, beef and buffalo meat have a rich flavor, favored by many people. Currently, the price of 1kg of beef ranges from 1-1.2 million VND. In addition, with the advantages of convenience, easy storage, transportation... it is a specialty that many people choose as a gift during Tet.
In addition, Chinese sausage is a traditional dish often prepared when the locals have festivals, especially on holidays and Tet. The local pigs are slaughtered, the lean meat is selected, washed, diced and marinated with traditional spices.
After being marinated, the meat is stuffed into the small intestine of a cleaned and dried pig, forming an outer shell. It is then dried in the sun and smoked to create a distinctive aroma. This is also a popular dish, ordered a lot by people in the lowlands during Tet.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Hien, owner of a sausage and beef jerky production facility in Thach Giam town, Tuong Duong district, said: Every Lunar New Year, our facility produces about more than 1 ton of sausage, and the same amount of beef jerky… but it usually runs out very early because the input materials are very carefully selected.
A drink with a rich flavor of the highlanders… is gradually becoming indispensable for people in the lowlands during every holiday and New Year. That is rice wine, fermented leaf wine. The wine-producing areas in Con Cuong… are the place to supply the famous rice wine, fermented leaf wine.
Making wine from leaves is a traditional occupation of the Thai people in Xieng village, Mon Son commune, Con Cuong district. Currently, in Xieng village, there are 3 wine-making groups with 41 households participating. The wine is mainly purchased by traders for restaurants and regular customers in Vinh city and Hanoi.
In recent years, the craft of making fermented wine from Ban Xieng leaves has developed strongly, and the consumption market has expanded. With an average capacity of about 200-300 liters of wine/day; an average of 6-7 thousand liters per month has brought income to craft village households, which is more than 28 million VND/year, the average income per worker is 18 million VND/person/year.
Tet is coming very soon. The trucks of goods flowing downstream are therefore more bustling and hurried. The border colors are becoming typical products, adding more sweetness to the Tet picture. But the greatest sweetness is that it is contributing to reducing poverty and hardship for the people in the mountainous areas...
Source: https://baodantoc.vn/huong-sac-bien-cuong-1736335879123.htm
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