Go to Muong Qua to enjoy folk games

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, we went up the forest to Mon Son - Muong Qua, where the poetic Giang River flows through the Pu Mat forest to witness the joyful atmosphere of Tet and welcome Spring. Through each Thai village, we heard the resounding sound of gongs, the melodious sound of panpipes and cheerful singing mixed with the sound of the wind and the flowing streams, creating a chorus welcoming the New Year.

For the people of Cang village, Mon Son commune (Con Cuong), the joyful days of Tet and welcoming Spring cannot be without the sound of gongs. Photo: Cong Khang

Stopping at Cang village, the villagers welcomed the visitors from the lowlands with a song recounting the joy of spring in the mountains and villages. The villagers gathered at the community cultural house, amidst the sounds of gongs, panpipes, flutes and the rhythm of the carved wooden boards, the elderly sang, the young danced on bamboo poles and danced on bamboo poles.

Outside, many people were excited about the game of throwing the ball. According to the Thai people's belief, whoever successfully throws the ball during Tet will have good luck all year round, so everyone wanted to try their luck. The children were excited about the game of throwing the towel, where small wooden sticks (called "banh") are stacked on top of each other. The player holds one stick and stands about 15 meters away. If they hit the target, the stacked wooden sticks will fall down, and each time they do so, they will receive a meaningful reward.

Cang villagers happily carve furrows. Photo: Cong Khang

Mr. Luong Van Nghiep - who was awarded the title of Folk Artist by the state said: "Every year, it has become a habit that on the 3rd and 4th day of Tet, when finishing family and clan matters, the people of Cang village often gather at the community cultural house to celebrate Spring. Here, we try to direct activities towards traditional culture, mainly folk songs, folk dances and folk games".

According to Village Chief Lo Thi Huong, Cang Village currently has 165 Thai ethnic households with nearly 650 people, whose main source of income for generations has been from wet rice. Muong Qua fields are irrigated by the Giang River and Moi Stream, so they are lush all year round, helping the residents here always have enough to eat and rarely fall into poverty.

Fun throwing festival. Photo: Cong Khang

Once they had enough to eat and save, the people of Cang village had the conditions to build spacious houses and contribute money and labor to build rural roads and community cultural houses. The internal roads were concreted, contributing to creating a clean and beautiful village landscape. At the same time, when they no longer had to worry about food, the Thai people in Cang village had time to take care of preserving their traditional cultural identity.

Along with maintaining the brocade weaving craft, the Cang Village Folk Song and Dance Club was established more than 10 years ago and has been recognized as a provincial model. This is a gathering place for talented members who compose and perform Thai folk songs (khap, lam, nhuon, xuoi); folk dances (xoe, nhay sap, lam vong) and create and use traditional musical instruments (khen be, pi, dan tap tinh...).

Children and adults are excited about the towel throwing game. Photo: Cong Khang

The club is the nucleus of the local cultural and artistic movement, representing the commune and district in participating in festivals and performances and winning high prizes. “Therefore, every time Tet comes, Spring comes, activities always take place enthusiastically, helping people have a healthy and useful place to have fun, contributing to limiting social evils” – Ms. Lo Thi Huong said.

From Cang village, we continued down to Xieng village, Thai Son, Nam Son, Thai Hoa, then around to Bac Son, Cua Rao and Tan Son. Everywhere we went, we heard the sound of gongs, drums, and drums, making the atmosphere of welcoming Spring more bustling and exciting.