Waiting for "The Fragrance of Tea and the Scent of Rosemary"

"Tam Ky - The 2024 Sưa Flower Season" promises to bring a memorable festival season for tourists. Photo: XP

Dalbergia tonkinensis becomes a "Heritage Tree".

As scheduled, after seven seasons of crape myrtle blossoms associated with the unique festival of this characteristic flower of the river confluence region, the "Tam Ky - Crape Myrtle Blossom Season 2024" festival, with the theme "The Colors of Crape Myrtle in Huong Tra", will open on the evening of April 5th.

Coinciding with this year's festival, a cluster of nine Dalbergia tonkinensis trees, aged between 100 and 150 years, located in Huong Tra ecological village, has been recognized as Vietnamese Heritage Trees by the Vietnam Association for the Protection of Nature and Environment. The announcement and acceptance ceremony for the recognition of these trees will be held on the morning of April 5th at Vuon Cua, as part of the festival program.

It is an honor and a source of pride for Tam Ky in general, and for generations of people in Huong Tra in particular, to have planted, cared for, and protected this ancient and rare cluster of Dalbergia tonkinensis trees in the locality.

The centuries-old Dalbergia tonkinensis trees along the Tam Ky River have now become ambassadors of culture, education , history, society, ecology, and tourism for the former Ha Dong region.

First organized in 2017, "Tam Ky - The Season of Sưa Flowers" has been continuously held and has become a major annual cultural, tourism, and sports festival not only for the provincial capital but also for the entire province.

The cluster of nine ancient Dalbergia tonkinensis trees in Huong Tra has been recognized as a Vietnamese Heritage Tree. Photo: XP

Through more than 20 activities spread over nearly 10 days during the blooming season of the crape myrtle flowers, this year's festival will continue to introduce and promote the image of Tam Ky's land and people, serving the needs of people from within and outside the province who want to visit , experience, and immerse themselves in nature.

Therefore, this is linked to the formation of the Huong Tra eco-tourism village, aiming to build the brand "Tam Ky - City of Golden Sưa Flowers," contributing to promoting the city's tourism activities and becoming a destination within Quang Nam province.

The main venue for the festival remains Huong Tra Eco-village, featuring essential attractions for many visitors to "Tam Ky - The Season of Sưa Flowers," such as admiring and taking photos with ancient Sưa trees, immersing themselves in the traditional Ao Dai festival, and experiencing local cultural, sporting, and traditional craft activities. This year, the organizers have also "refreshed" and diversified activities to attract more tourists.

According to Mr. Vo Thanh Cung, Head of the Culture and Information Department of Tam Ky City, activities included for the first time in the festival program, such as a writing contest about the crape myrtle flower and the festival, the "Green Tea Fragrance - Friendly and Hospitable" contest, the "Miss Vietnam Modern Era Season 2" contest, and the art competition "Tam Ky Children with Nature Conservation and Biodiversity," all promise a memorable festival season for visitors.

Join the club

As the venue for the "Tam Ky - Sưa Flower Season" festival, Hoa Huong ward not only coordinates with city agencies and departments in organizing the event but also actively participates in various local activities.

The lush green space of Vườn Cừa is an ideal destination for many people to have fun and take photos. Photo: XP

According to Mr. Ho Minh Son, Chairman of the People's Committee of the ward, in preparation for the festival, the locality organized a campaign to clean up the environment, ensuring that village roads and alleys are clean and beautiful, in conjunction with the "Clean House - Beautiful Garden - Trash-Free Road" movement, and decorating tourist attractions such as Huong Tra village communal house and Giay tomb.

The ward also encourages the participation of residents, especially households along Huong Tra street, in decorating their gates to be green, clean, and beautiful, and creating eco-friendly toilets to support the "Huong Tra Green - Friendly, Hospitable" contest.

The Huong Tra Village Festival is one of the notable highlights of this year's festival season. The opening ceremony will be the Spring Sacrifice at the Huong Tra Village communal house – a provincial-level historical and cultural relic – held on the morning of April 5th.

This ceremony aims to evoke pride and show respect to the ancestors who contributed to the founding of Huong Tra village; thereby, contributing to the restoration of the spiritual culture of the local people. The festival includes a number of traditional sports and folk games, creating a lively playground for local people and serving tourists who come to visit and learn.

In addition, to promote the image of Huong Tra eco-tourism village, many activities will be organized for visitors to participate in and experience, such as the "Discover Huong Tra" Olympic Run, traditional crafts like making banh tet, banh chung, banh trang, banh xeo, and Hong Lu blacksmithing.

Tam Ky is busy with the final preparations for the festival, eagerly awaiting the blossoming of the "Huong Tra Rose Blossom" in 2024.

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