The beauty of Lai Dong highland market

Each region has its own unique cultural features, creating a distinct identity for the community. In Lai Dong commune, this beauty is clearly expressed through the highland markets imbued with national identity, where not only trading activities take place but also a cultural space for the community that has been closely connected for generations.

Lai Dong commune today was merged from Kiet Son, Dong Son, Tan Son and Lai Dong communes. The people in the commune are mainly ethnic minorities. Lai Dong market is considered the central market of the area, with two main sessions held each week on Monday and Friday.

From early morning, when the mist still covered the mountains, groups of people from distant villages went down to the market, bringing with them products from the mountains, forests, and fields to exchange and trade.

Lai Dong market is held every Monday and Friday.

Each market is not only a place to buy and sell goods but also a place where people exchange stories about crops, family, connect neighbors, and contribute to community unity.

The special feature of Lai Dong market is the abundance and diversity of goods, most of which are local products. Right from the market gate, buyers can easily see women selling bundles of green wild vegetables and fragrant batches of sticky rice and corn.

Traditional agricultural products are sold at the market.

Ms. Dang Thi Binh - a resident of Ben Than, about 10km from the market - shared that, every market session, she wakes up early in the morning, steams corn, and divides it into small bags for 10,000 VND. "Each session, I sell about 30 to 40 bags. The corn here is fragrant, sticky, and loved by many people. Sometimes it's sold out before the end of the morning," Ms. Binh said happily.

Fever reducer, wild fern picked from the mountain and sold at the market

Not only corn, the market is also famous for its colorful brocade stalls and precious medicinal plants from the forest. The Dao and Muong ethnic people bring to the market folk remedies such as medicine for stomachache, stomachache, bone and joint pain, liver cooling medicine, blood tonic, fever reducer... Ms. Lan - a Dao person in Day hamlet, Thu Cuc commune - does not know how to ride a motorbike, so her husband takes her to the market every day. She brings bundles of wild vegetables and packages of traditional medicine picked on high mountains. "Each bundle of vegetables sells for 15,000 VND. I pick them from far away, each market session I have to pick from 40 to 50 bundles to have enough to sell," she shared.

The simple but colorful stalls of highland life both reflect the natural production life of the people and bring to the market a warm, intimate atmosphere imbued with local identity.

Mr. Thuong - a trader from Nghe An , currently living in Thanh Ba commune - said he knows very well the market schedule in the area: Xuan Dai market is held on Saturdays, Lai Dong on Mondays and Fridays, Tan Phu on Fridays and Sundays and Thu Ngac market on the 1st, 4th and 7th of the lunar calendar... He goes to all the markets to trade, mainly onions, garlic, rice cakes, molasses and simple household goods. He commented: "On market days, the market is much more crowded than usual. People here are honest, rustic, and rarely bargain. Every week there is a market session, they are eager to go to the market to shop."

Previously, Mr. Thuong mainly sold wild orchids. But when wild orchids were no longer as popular as before, he switched to other essential products. For him, the markets were not only a place to trade but also a place of attachment and familiarity as a part of daily life.

According to comrade Nguyen Thi Ngoc - Deputy Head of the Department of Culture and Society of Lai Dong commune - the market plays a very important role in the economic and social life of local people. "Lai Dong market is an important wholesale market, focusing on trading and purchasing agricultural products and specialties of the people. This is also a place to help highland agricultural products have outlets, contributing to increasing people's income and developing household economy".

The market is not only a place for trading but also contributes to preserving the unique traditional cultural features of each locality.

Besides its economic value, the market also has a profound cultural significance. It preserves and spreads the traditional beauty of the ethnic minority community here: from brocade costumes, rustic dishes, voices, laughter, to simple and sincere behavior. In the context of modern development, markets like this become more and more precious, a spiritual support, a space to preserve community culture.

Nowadays, many mountainous localities are gradually developing community tourism and eco-tourism associated with preserving cultural identity. Lai Dong market can completely become an attractive destination for tourists from near and far. No need for elaborate decoration, just the most rustic and simple things - local products, friendly smiles, small stalls full of mountain and forest colors - are enough to create an unforgettable unique feature.

To do that, local authorities need to have appropriate solutions to preserve and promote the value of traditional markets: Planning and upgrading market infrastructure; organizing neat and convenient trading spaces; encouraging people to preserve cultural identity in trading activities; and at the same time connecting with tours and eco-tourism routes of the province.

With the attention of the government and the awareness of the people, we believe that the Lai Dong highland markets will not only continue to play a role in trading goods and developing the economy, but also become a bright spot on the cultural and tourism map of Phu Tho province.

Vinh Ha

Source: https://baophutho.vn/net-dep-cho-phien-vung-cao-lai-dong-241382.htm