Recorded in the sacred land of Con Dao at the end of the year

The road from Con Dao airport to the town was lit up with spring light by rows of cherry blossoms blooming bright red. Taxi driver Hoang Manh Tuan enthusiastically said in Nghe An accent: "Are you guys here for the first time?", after that greeting we felt like old friends meeting again and so the stories of fellow countrymen and stories of life in Con Dao just flowed out all along the way.

Mr. Tuan volunteered to stay on the island for Tet this year even though he had just come to work on the island this year. The longing for his home and two children in Vinh City always made his eyes water every time the sun set. He said that staying here to celebrate Tet with the islanders was also his way of experiencing more of the slow, peaceful life here, and also to feel more of the kindness that he received from the islanders as well as visitors from near and far when setting foot on this sacred land.

The people of this island district consider the stories of multiplying those kind deeds as a matter of course, as something that needs to be cultivated every day because it is the most meaningful gratitude to the heroic martyrs who are lying under the peaceful waves, under every inch of this lush green land. That is, each person is always a tour guide for tourists, always willing whenever tourists need help. The taxi driver said that on the island we always worship Ms. Sau, so we always think that she will know all our deeds or virtues, so no one dares to lie, no one dares to be two-faced.

A corner of the island district.

Con Dao currently has more than 4,000 inhabitants, most of whom know each other, yet people never pry into each other. It is not surprising to see in the cemetery, every time there is a ceremony, taxi drivers diligently rearranging the altar, or cleaning the shelves, taking care of the graves. For them, this is a regular job, a reason for them to be grateful, and to be at peace. Therefore, visitors who have just set foot here have a feeling of closeness, familiarity, relaxation and peace.

According to an official of Con Dao island district, from 1975 until now, many new waves of residents have come to Con Dao and have been welcomed, supported, and given favorable conditions by the government and those who came to the island before, so they can live well on the island. However, not everyone can adapt to the island for a long time, and they return to the mainland for many different reasons. “Those who remain here are like brothers and sisters, always ready to share with each other. According to police statistics, in 2019, the island only had 3 thefts. Even if a motorbike is left on the street for a whole week, no one will take it, and if someone forgets something somewhere, it will stay there, and it will even be delivered to the destination,” said Mr. Tuan, a taxi driver.

The last days of the year the island district is filled with flags and flowers.

Strangely, there are many people from Nghe An here, accounting for 30% of the population, mainly from Thanh Chuong district. Some people came here with nothing and now they have become the owners of a chain of restaurants and coffee shops. They just work hard to build and do business so that one day they will receive ripe, sweet fruits and volunteer to live the rest of their lives on the island. Like the owners of a coffee shop on the island who have been here for about 20 years, they came to the island and only thought that they would only stay here after many events, when the land and sky where they live are no longer stormy for them, then they will return. However, 5 years, 10 years, 20 years have passed, not a single year has passed that they want to leave the island, want to leave the place they call the second land where they were reborn, their second homeland.

The 2019 Con Dao population survey shows that residents here come from 60/64 provinces and cities nationwide. Con Dao life therefore has many unique and colorful cultural features. When Tet comes, in the pot of green banh chung there is also banh tet, a cultural feature of the Central region mixed with many other regions. Or the Tet tray here also has sour soup, braised fish mixed with jellied meat, the cultures of the North, Central and South mixed in a young family here, which is not uncommon.

Every time Tet comes, in addition to serving tourists from near and far who make pilgrimages to the island, the people here still reserve their own private spaces. “On New Year’s Eve, every village gathers at the cultural house to enjoy together around a pot of steaming banh chung and sing Vi Giam songs to each other. Many people know the old Giam songs by heart, and after singing, they miss their homeland so much, so they feel closer to each other, and the brotherhood on the island just grows over time,” said the owner of the Thanh Chuong coffee shop.

On the island, everyone is relatives and acquaintances; when an islander passes away, the whole island comes to visit and see them off. When someone unfortunately has an accident, they will immediately receive help from many others. Because the medical care here is not as good as on the mainland, many people who get sick or have traffic accidents, thanks to the spirit of mutual love of the people, have been promptly brought back to the mainland for treatment.

Medical and commercial activities in Con Dao have characteristics that any mainland region would like to have. Patients who come to see a doctor never encounter any kind of extortion or harassment. No matter who the patient is, doctors and nurses are always willing to treat them with the spirit of examining and treating them as if they were their own relatives. The business is even more strange, the seller never shouts the price out of the sky, they only determine the capital, the labor and then set a reasonable price, there is no such thing as ripping off strangers... Therefore, buyers do not have the habit of haggling...

There is a special thing in Con Dao that there are not many places of worship. In addition to worshiping their ancestors, people here often send their wishes to Lady Phi Yen, and the heroine Vo Thi Sau and the heroic martyrs who are resting at Hang Duong cemetery. The people of Con Dao always believe that, although the heroine Vo Thi Sau and the heroes have passed away, their souls continue to be here to watch over and bless the people of Con Dao to live in peace.

Nghe An Newspaper delegation offered incense in memory at Hang Duong Cemetery.

On holidays and Tet, the people of Con Dao come to burn incense in memory, and every year solemnly hold a memorial service for Sister Sau and other heroic martyrs... The spiritual culture in Con Dao is therefore not heavily influenced by the supernatural or superstitious, but is one of sincere gratitude and admiration.

Leaving Con Dao in the morning sunlight shining on each red cherry blossom branch, each tourist wishes the train would be later so that they could stay here longer. Today's peaceful Con Dao makes us feel more deeply the meaning of freedom and peace, exchanged for the blood and bones of generations of fathers and brothers who steadfastly fell down, determined to die for the Fatherland.