Compass Travel Vietnam
The famous ancient village of Hanoi, everyone wants to visit once because the scenery is so peaceful
Hanoi – a prosperous and busy land, the flow of people “races” according to the development of society and the cycle of life. But not far from the city center, there is an ancient village that is extremely peaceful and unbelievably quiet. It is Duong Lam ancient village (in Son Tay town) or also known as the “forgotten ancient town” – which still retains the basic features of an old village: communal house, banyan tree, water wharf, etc. temple….
Mr. Ba (31 years old) born and raised in Duong Lam ancient village said: “Although tourists call it an ancient village, in fact, Duong Lam from the past consisted of 9 villages belonging to Cam Gia Thinh canton, Phuc Tho district, Son Tay town. In which, 5 villages of Mong Phu, Cam Thinh, Doai Giap, Cam Lam and Dong Sang are adjacent to each other. All are linked into a unified whole with customs, practices and beliefs that have not changed for thousands of years.
A corner of Duong Lam ancient village. (Photo: Nina May)
According to Mr. Ba, his hometown has always carried the nostalgia and traditions of the old village. The village has not changed anything, from architecture, festivals, etc. to people’s way of life even though society is developing rapidly outside.
“The people of my hometown are sincere, honest and extremely hospitable. As long as someone comes from afar, the villagers don’t need to know who they are? come from?… but still warmly welcome and introduce each ancient feature of the village. Even the villagers brought specialties such as gai cake, peanut candy, sausage candy, and tea to invite rewards,” the man said.
Referring to the fact that the people of Duong Lam ancient village mainly live locally, Mr. Ba laughed: “Someone escaped, went out to do business and build a career. But many people, when going out, feel that life is suffocating and crowded, so they decide to return home to live a peaceful life. For example, I, for nearly a decade, have been out of the city and realized that there is no place like my hometown. Therefore, I gave up everything to return to my hometown, raising sugarcane chicken – a famous specialty of the village. There are also people who return to the village to maintain the profession of making tea, sweets, etc. Some people promote and develop tourism in the village.”
A familiar scene is when arriving in Duong Lam ancient village.
Although people go far away to work, every festival season, they return to visit their hometown and relatives. Usually, the traditional festival of Mong Phu village takes place from the 4th to the 10th, which is considered the most sacred festival of the year. The festival of Thanh Hoang village is held in the oldest communal house with palanquin processions, pig offerings, and chicken offerings. After that, people in the village will participate in folk games such as human chess, Chinese chess, cock fighting, blindfolded catching ducks, etc., creating a joyful and bustling festival atmosphere.
6 days later, the festival of Dong Sang village was held, praying for national peace and good harvest with many attractive activities such as lion dance, water procession, and sacrifices. The water procession starts from the village communal house to the banks of the Red River with dragons, unicorns, horses, flags, etc., lasting for nearly a day.
Usually, the traditional festival of Mong Phu village takes place from the 4th to the 10th, which is considered the most sacred festival of the year.
Not only traditional festivals, Duong Lam ancient village also has many ancient architectural works such as the Mong Phu village gate built in 1833 with arch architecture and laterite layer next to a 300-year-old banyan tree. a really peaceful and ancient landscape. “Mong Phu village is known as a laterite village because everywhere you go, you will see houses made of this stone. And when walking through the village gate, everyone will be overwhelmed with the strangely peaceful scenery with ancient houses with a lifespan of up to hundreds of years, “said Mr. Ba.
The famous old houses in Duong Lam ancient village must be mentioned are Mrs. Dien, Mr. Hung. Specifically, the 200-year-old house of Mrs. Dien has ancient Northern architecture, including: 3 compartments, the altar is placed in the middle towards the door, outside the yard is a flower garden and old wine jars. The old house of Mr. Hung was built in 1649 with 12 lives. The house has an ancient gate built with soil, stone, grass residue, and mud to create a binder. The house is structured in the style of 5 compartments, 2 floors, 3 middle compartments are a place to worship ancestors, next to the arrangement is a set of sofas used to receive guests, 2 adjacent compartments are used as bedrooms, a door system in the street. the middle of the house.
The old houses in Duong Lam were built of laterite.
“The old houses here are still preserved almost intact the quintessence of Vietnamese architectural art. In particular, tourists who come to visit are warmly welcomed by the host, invited to drink tea, eat candy and chat as if they have known each other for a long time, “said Ba.
In the ancient village, there is a communal house named Dinh Mong Phu built 380 years ago, 1800m2 wide, bearing bold Vietnamese – Muong architecture, simulating the architecture of a stilt house with wooden floors off the ground. Inside the communal house, there are many prominent parallel sentences hanging. In addition, coming to Duong Lam village, we can’t help but mention the Mong Phu church – outstanding among hundreds of ancient roofs looking down from above.
Peaceful scene in Duong Lam.
“There is a feature in Duong Lam ancient village that no other ancient village in the North has, that is, going around the streets and alleys, you will encounter many waterfronts along the road. This is the place to welcome tourists to stop when they are tired. People are free to choose the specialties of the village to enjoy at very affordable prices,” said Mr. Ba.
The man continued proudly: “Every year from May to June – when the rice fields are fully ripe, my hometown on the day of the season is also the time when tourists flock here the most. They will experience the scenery of the road covered with rice and dry straw, creating a peaceful and peaceful village scene that is rarely found anywhere else.
“In the past, his father only made round drums and wooden tangs, now workers have created many new types of drums to meet both people and small products to…
Photo: Internet (vinlove.net)
The famous ancient village of Hanoi, everyone wants to visit once because the scenery is so peaceful
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