HBO – An incense offering ceremony was recently held in Quen Ang pagoda, Tan Phong commune, Cao Phong district, the northern province of Hoa Binh to pray for bumper crops. Thousands of locals inside and outside the commune and visitors attended the event.
An art performance of Muong ethnic
group is performed at incense offering ceremony in Quen Ang pagoda.
The
event is held annually to pray for national peace and prosperity for the
nation, people’s happiness and bumper crops. This year’s event included ritual
and festive activities. The ritual began from the morning of the eighth day of
the first lunar month. The procession departed from Quen Ang pagoda for But (Buddha)
temple at the foot of Coi mountain in Trang Tren 3 hamlet to invite the Buddha
to attend the festival. The procession was led by a group of people holding
flags, followed by shamans, Buddhist followers and 12 unmarried girls.
Returning the pagoda, shamans took over worshiping ritual.
The
festive part heated up the event with volleyball matches. On February 11, or
the seventh day of the first lunar month, a Muong beauty contest took place
with the participation of eight contestants from eight hamlets. An amateur art
contest was also held in the day, attracting eight teams with each performing
two performances.
Quen
Ang pagoda in Tan Phong commune is associated with a legend on Coi mountain
flower garden, which used to be a revolutionary base located in the Cao Phong –
Thach Yen Revolutionary Base Complex. The complex was recognised as a national
cultural and historical relic site in 1996./.
In the first 9 months of 2024, Hoa Binh province continues to implement the expanded tourism development cooperation program plan of 8 Northwest provinces with Ho Chi Minh City; deploying digital transformation content in tourism and developing a smart tourism province. Hoa Binh province received about 3.6 million views, an increase of 7.9% over the same period. In which, international visitors are about 380 visitors, domestic visitors are estimated at 3 million 220 visitors.
Spanning thousands of hectares and winding gracefully along mountain slopes, hillsides, and riverbanks, the terraced rice fields of Lac Son District present a stunning and captivating beauty. This region, renowned for its remarkable terraced landscapes, is also the centre of Hoa Binh Culture known for numerous archaeological sites.
The life of Mong people in Hang Kia and Pa Co communes of Mai Chau district has improved much thanks to tourism development.
The man-made Hoa Binh Lake, with a water surface area of approximately 9,000 hectares and a capacity of 9.45 billion cubic meters, stretches over 200 kilometers from Hoa Binh to Son La provinces. With the goal of developing into a national tourism area, the Hoa Binh Lake tourism area is expected to not only become the largest tourism centre in the province but also one of the 12 key tourist destinations in the northern midland and mountainous region of Vietnam.
Da Bia hamlet, now Duc Phong, in Tien Phong commune, Da Bac district, was once almost isolated from the outside as the only way to the hamlet was to get a boat ride across the Hoa Binh reservoir. However, as its tourism potential has been unleashed, the hamlet has established itself as one of the most attractive destinations on the tourism map. It has even received the ASEAN Community-Based Tourism Awards in 2019.
In the first 9 months of 2024, Mai Chau district, Hoa Binh province welcomed over 684 thousand visitors to visit and relax. In which, over 516 thousand domestic visitors and more than 168 thousand international visitors. Total revenue from tourism is estimated at over 821 billion VND.