Visiting ethnic minority groups in Quang Nam

      Natalie Shan seems to be lost in admiring Cotu girls gathering around a loom to make brocade, and elderly people and lads carefully sharpening rattans and knitting a papoose in Bho Hoong Tourist Village in central Quang Nam Province's Dong Giang District.
The Germany vacationer in her trip to the province is much rewarded, as besides the well-known destinations in the province like the World Heritage Site of Hoi An Ancient Town, she is also able to watch first-hand how the Cotu ethnic people there earn their living.
Natalie Shan is among a group of international tourists joining a tour arranged by Le Nguyen Travel Company to Bho Hoong Tourist Village, which has just been included in the list of tourism venues as a joint effort between the travel firm and the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
It takes tourists from Hoi An City around 30 minutes to reach Bho Hoong, a small tribal village with a population of only 600. The village attracts travelers from far and wide with some special communal houses on stilts called moong or guoi where they will join in exciting activities like learning the Cotu language and gong dance performance.
Hospitable villagers will invite guests to dinners with rice cooked in bamboo tubes, wild vegetables, Can wine, and many friendly fire camps at night. Besides, young people will love trips for picking up tea leaves at Quyet Thang plantation, climbing up the 100-meter Grang falls, or walking along the legendary Truong Son Highway.
International tourists find it interesting to observe daily life of ethnic minority groups throughout the country. Therefore, Bho Hoong is an ideal place for promoting traditional craft villages in Vietnam to foreigners as almost all Cotu residents there are earning their living by making handicrafts.
"The more travelers come, the more we are happy to introduce them to our traditional cultures," says Dinh Cong, a 90-year-old villager of Bho Hoong. Despite an elderly person, he always hopes Bho Hoong to become a popular tourist attraction with peculiar cultural traits of the tribesmen.
Provincial authorities have recognized Bho Hoong Village as a new destination besides Hoi An Ancient Town and My Son complex of old towers. They also plan to build some museums featuring all cultural aspects and traditional craft villages of highland ethnic groups. One day, foreign travelers will soon explore more about Quang Nam, a central land rich in traditions and spiritual values.