Find drunkenness under the golden sun

Not long ago, people only knew Pu Luong as a nature reserve that was not as famous as Cuc Phuong or Ba Be. Yet now this destination has been bustling with tourists . Amidst the primeval forests, where the Ma River is sometimes calm and gentle, sometimes roaring and rolling, Pu Luong is separated from modern life outside with peaceful scenery from terraced fields, water wheels, and stilt houses with smoke from straw stoves. Although the trend of building hotels, resorts, and opening homestays has spread to remote villages, Pu Luong still retains the character of a hundred years ago. The indigenous Thai community has its own way of life, preserving the traditions of farming, animal husbandry as well as living habits typical of the mountainous region. This is what makes Pu Luong different from other booming tourist destinations like Sa Pa, Bac Ha or Phu Quoc. In June and September, two golden rice crops attract domestic and foreign photographers. Not as majestic as Mu Cang Chai ( Yen Bai ), the terraced fields here are small and pretty, scattered along the hillsides, surrounding villages, nestled under the canopy of the forest, each place suddenly appearing after each winding road. Quite strange to tourists is the cluster of bamboo water wheels in Ban Cong commune that creaks all day and night, bringing stream water from the lower part of the river to the higher part of the fields. This is also a valuable backdrop for photographers if they accidentally invite young girls in traditional ethnic costumes to play around the wheel of the mountain forest. Returning to the terraced fields of Pu Luong, people enjoy the golden season here because of the beauty and dreaminess of the rice clusters glowing yellow under the sun. Locals still say that the rice in June is more beautiful than the rice in September, but for people from the lowlands who come here, Pu Luong is beautiful in any season, especially when walking or cycling on the roads connecting one village to another. The most ideal way to enjoy it is probably after hours of diligently watching the rice fields and hunting the clouds, we can return to the stilt house, leisurely inhale deeply into our chest the scent of new rice wafting from the wood stove and then invite each other to enjoy dishes with the rich flavor of the mountains and forests. New rice is eaten with steamed rock snails with ginger and onion, catfish cooked with sour bamboo shoots, green dam fish wrapped in banana leaves, grilled on the outside, with the fragrant smell of spices including lemongrass, pickled shallots, mac khen seeds, and doi seeds stuffed in the fish's belly... Drivers and tour guides often praise Co Lung duck as a local specialty, those who love unusual flavors highly appreciate the dish "Khau nhuc" which is braised pork in the border region style, but the most simple and familiar is definitely the flavor of the new rice dish, whether it is sticky rice or regular rice, it still exudes the smell of the homeland, the smell of fairy tales when cooked on a red fire.

Heritage Magazine