Rare scene inside the village in Mang Den

The quiet life of the Xo Dang people

Photographer Do Do (living in Mang Den commune, Quang Ngai ) had the opportunity to go to Kon Tu Ma village, witnessing the daily life of the Xo Dang ethnic people. The village is located next to the Dak S'Nghe river, surrounded by fields and forests. Here, wooden stilt houses that are dozens to hundreds of years old are home to many generations with architecture similar to rice barns. Their day is quite quiet, women take care of their children, clean the house, and weave. Men take care of the fields, raise poultry and make their own tools from natural materials. All villagers, especially children and the elderly, still bathe in medicinal leaves to clean their bodies. The elderly often sit on the porch, tending to cigarettes made from medicinal leaves grown in the village and lime. In the evening, a charcoal stove in the middle of the house burns to cook rice and roast corn. "The villagers say they don't know how to be sad, because there's nothing to be sad about. The ethnic communities here have maintained many traditional customs and practices for generations. Even the granaries used to preserve rice grains are considered a symbol of abundance and gratitude to ancestors," he shared.

Women who keep the village

Women in Kon Tu Ma village still practice homebirth (giving birth at home) according to the traditional method that has been passed down through many generations. The previous generation of Xo Dang believed that giving birth at home would keep the family warm, help the mother and baby recover quickly, and women were often cared for by their biological mothers, midwives, or older women in the village. In addition to taking care of children, they are also the ones who keep the fire in the family, manage the kitchen, are good at farming, growing rice, and weaving brocade. Currently, the Xo Dang and some ethnic communities here have joined hands to do community tourism with the homestay model, creating conditions for tourists to immerse themselves in the local lifestyle and culture. When staying overnight, the women will take tourists wading in streams to catch fish, weaving brocade, knitting... During the day, they will cook meals from sticky rice, pork, free-range chicken, stream fish, and many kinds of wild vegetables. "Women here are simple, gentle, attached to the community and like to participate in traditional festivals. They are friendly with tourists, especially when people stop by to see brocade weaving or ask about the village," Do Do said.