Hong Thai pear blossom season dots the whole sky

Pear flowers bloom in the two most beautiful seasons of the year, early autumn - late October, when the rice fields of Hong Thai commune become a vast golden sea, when the fire dancing festival of the Dao Tien people takes place enthusiastically, when the cool breeze under the high blue autumn sky dotted with colorful paragliders of the paragliding team makes the space feel airy and poetic, then pear flowers bloom for the second time in the year.

The first time the flowers bloom is of course in the spring, around the end of February and the beginning of March, when the Lunar New Year has just passed, when the scent of spring still lingers around here, making visitors still have to wear a thin coat when going out in the spring, the silver-gray pear branches, the rough pear trees in the winter bloom with clusters of pretty white flowers showing off the pure, immense and splendid mountain forest colors intertwined with the green of the young buds full of vitality on the occasion of the new year, creating a floating and splendid scene.

Spring pear blossoms are of course bigger and more beautiful than autumn pear blossoms. The pear branches are full of life, just waiting for spring to come and bloom brilliantly. But autumn with its cool breeze and clear moon makes the blooming pear blossoms more poetic.

When we left Na Hang Hydroelectric Lake to go up to Hong Thai, it was late afternoon. After nearly two hours of traveling over 50 km through winding mountain roads, we arrived at the homestay just in time for dinner. The younger brothers enthusiastically welcomed us and urged the family to reheat the food. In addition to the "rocket" pig dish with grilled meat, steamed meat, intestines and sausage, there was also a dish of field carp. The homestay owner excitedly introduced: "Rocket" pigs raised on the farm are only fed with chopped banana stems grown in the garden mixed with bran ground from upland rice. And this is the specialty dish of crispy fried field carp - this fish is smaller than normal carp but the meat is fragrant, fried crispy and can be eaten by everyone. Field carp is best during the rice harvest season at the end of October, when the fish in the fields have the most water, eat a lot of rice buds about to bloom or are still suckling, so each fish is firm, the meat is very fragrant and fatty. Listening to the younger brother's story, we swallowed our saliva repeatedly.

Good wine, fatty meat, fragrant fish, and the fresh, fragrant spring air of the mountains and forests made us sleep soundly until morning. After breakfast, I dressed neatly, and my younger brother rented a motorbike to take me to the first place to see pear blossoms in Hong Thai: the longest pear blossom road in Vietnam, the road runs more than 5 km from the center of Hong Thai commune to the border of Co Linh commune, Pac Nam district, Bac Kan province.

In 2023, this route was awarded a certificate of record for the longest pear blossom route in Vietnam by the "Vietnam Record" organization. In the middle of spring, the pure white pear blossom trees are planted on both sides of the road, winding along the highland slopes, leaning against the green of the mountains and forests, creating a beautiful scene that makes visitors, whether walking, cycling or driving slowly on motorbikes like us, cannot help but admire, stopping from time to time to pose or take photos next to the pear trees blooming with beautiful, pure and splendid white flowers, immersing themselves in the fresh air of the beautiful spring village full of vitality and forgetting the tiring days with the hustle and bustle and dust of the city. While leisurely walking among the pear blossoms, while looking out over the vast green rice fields or seeing the ancient trees along the roadside with trunks that required several people to hug, my younger brother told me about the beautiful and interesting scenery of this land and then clicked his tongue regretfully: "My stay in Hong Thai was too short. If I had stayed longer, you would have taken me to see more places, I would have definitely enjoyed it."

Wandering through the pear blossom path with its surreal beauty, my younger brother took me to visit the ancient pear garden. Passing through the wooden arch with a barred bar made of a dry bamboo tree, when I stepped in, I was once again amazed by a large hilly area, under my feet were new grass sprouting from the layers of dry leaves and rotten grass of the old season, creating a gentle green color, above were pear trees - although I rarely come into contact with this tree species, I did not think there were pear trees that big. And flowers and flowers and flowers, flowers of Spring make you feel like a pure white color, fragrant and beautiful, swaying in the wind, flooding your mind, all your senses with a very rare feeling.

Wandering around under the old pear trees covered with flowers, I kept standing, sitting and crawling on the uneven rocks on the hill, looking and taking pictures, and suddenly saw some smooth-skinned, healthy horses leisurely grazing on the hillside. Knowing that I could not be attached to the pear flowers, to Na Hang, to Hong Thai, to the pure and splendid spring of this place, I had to leave with a restless heart, promising to return one day to the green mountains and blue waters, to the hills and to the seasons of pure white pear flowers, so captivatingly beautiful.

“Pear blossoms are white, your smile is the color of sunshine

The rolling hills and graceful steps of your walk

The distant traveler stood still, pondering something.

To go or to stay? I can't bear to leave...

Phuong Thao is the Editor of Travellive Magazine. She is passionate about traveling and loves to capture moments with her camera in every land she visits. Travel, art, and lifestyle are her favorite writing topics.

Le Hong Lam