Benefit from tourism
In mid-March 2013, a community tourism model sponsored by the International Labor Organization (ILO) began to be implemented in My Son village (Duy Phu commune). My Son Sanctuary is one of the main Hindu temple centers in Southeast Asia and the only heritage of this type in Vietnam. The exploitation of community tourism in My Son marks the first time that the local people have truly benefited from tourism exploitation.
Foreign tourists come to My Son.
Along with the implementation of the model, the My Son homestay community tourism cooperative was established with the coordination between the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the Quang Nam Cooperative Alliance. Accordingly, the cooperative will coordinate community tourism by dividing into operating groups, each group has a group leader, with the task of attracting customers, dealing with partners... Up to now, many such groups have been established: cooking group, accommodation group, cycling group, mountain climbing group, rowing group, performing arts group... Of which, the most effective activities are two groups: cooking and accommodation.
Previously, the ILO conducted a survey and selected 5 households to implement the homestay tourism model. Since the beginning of this year, the ILO has also organized many seminars and training courses for 5 households selected by the project, for leaders of Duy Phu commune on the homestay tourism model, with contents such as tourist guides, how to arrange guests to stay at home, how to lead visitors... At the same time, through Tra Kieu Tourism Joint Stock Company, the ILO has supported each household (selected by the project) with 3,000 USD. From this amount, Tra Kieu Tourism Company has invested in renovating the houses of 5 households, building bedrooms that can accommodate 4 guests, with air conditioning; building toilets, bathrooms...
“My Son is not only My Son”
The house of painter Nguyen Thuong Hy in My Son village, designed by the artist in the traditional style of thatched roof and earthen walls, hidden behind the trees and hills, was chosen by the project as a community house. In front of the house, every few nights, at the request of guests, the cooperative organizes traditional folk games of Quang Nam, such as singing bai choi, hat sac bua... for tourists to play and enjoy. Talking about folk art activities in the community tourism village, we cannot fail to mention the Traditional Music Club of Mr. Pham Phu Cuong. Every Saturday and Sunday, bustling folk melodies resound in his house - the club's meeting place. Here, there is a member, Mr. Nguyen Ba Phuoc (93 years old, group 8B, Trung Son village, Duy Phu commune), who is famous in My Son for playing most types of ancient instruments.
Foreign tourists learn to play the erhu.
According to Mr. Tran Sau, head of My Son village, the village People's Committee has also mobilized funds to build a welcome gate to My Son homestay tourist village, and mobilized villagers to restore traditional living habits and traditional occupations such as pounding rice and making stone. These activities, along with the restoration of traditional music, have created an interesting highlight for the tourist village, contributing to promoting intangible heritages in Quang Nam to international tourists.
Coming to My Son now, tourists not only visit once and then leave, but also stay at local people's houses, join in activities, and experience rustic dishes such as Quang noodles, banh xeo, and banh cuon. Tourists can also cook these dishes themselves. According to Mr. Vo Van Son, Head of the My Son community tourism group, community tourism has been in the making in My Son for a long time, not just now. For decades, many Western tourists have also stayed overnight at local people's houses. At the My Son dry fields (fields that use rainwater, only in the winter crop); tourists have grown rice, sowed beans, and even plowed with local people... This dry field has been supported by the district with funding to consolidate fields and exchange plots, and is a place where tourists can experience the farming work of farmers.
My Son is not only My Son; but also has relics related to Cham culture such as Vuong pond, according to legend, Cham people dug the ground here to get soil to make bricks to build towers, from which this square pond was created; in addition, there is also the four-pillar well, My Son stone making facilities... Visitors will also visit other relics such as Coc Dinh (an ancient Coc tree, next to the Lady's temple); Ong Lai cave (Hoang Van Lai); explore the Fairy Well, a clear, never-dry puddle in the middle of the rock slope, where people who go to pick paintings or collect firewood often stop to drink water; visit the remains of My Son communal house - the communal house that was conferred by the Nguyen Dynasty king. Visitors can also go deep into the foot of Hon Den to discover a mysterious rock with three Chinese characters engraved on it: "King Tran Thu", and if they have the strength, climb to the top of Hon Den to watch the sunset of the ancient tower...
Obviously, implementing community tourism will help people around the relic area to really benefit from tourism, and especially, contribute to promoting indigenous culture. "We will take advantage of everything available in the locality to do tourism, and I am sure it will be successful" - Mr. Son said. According to Mr. Tran Dinh Phuong - Head of Business Department - Tra Kieu Tourism Joint Stock Company, the unit that accepts to build rooms for households in the community tourism village, and attract visitors to the tourist village: currently, Tra Kieu Company is implementing additional services such as short tours such as going around the village for half a day; rowing a Kazak boat to fish on Thach Ban Lake. A little further, visitors can cycle to visit La Thap ceramic village, Duy Chau rice paper, Thu Bon mausoleum, Duc Duc relic...
