The path to Duong Lam ancient village (Photo: ND)

For those who come to Duong Lam Village in Hanoi’s Son Tay District for the first time, they will be extremely interested to discover the cultural space and traditional architecture of the typical ancient village of the north, especially tile-roofed houses that are four centuries old. When they come back for the second or third time, many people realise that the most valuable experience for busy people the privilege of “living slowly”.

Coming to Duong Lam, there is no reason for tourists to rush. The village gate under the shade of the ancient banyan tree opens an idyllic but familiar world where villagers go to work and go to the fields every day. A few simple water stalls along the village’s roads, which sell rustic foods such as voi (Cleistocalyx Operculatus) juice, tea, ‘che lam’ (nutty ginger sticky rice bars) and keo lac (peanut brittle), have become ideal places to rest. Here, villagers will become rustic "narrators" who introduce their homeland.

The beauty of ancient buildings made of laterite, from houses to walls or wells, are considered like sediments of time. Walking along the paths in the village, visitors will see the sophistication and meticulousness of the previous generations through the slanted brick roads and the ancient wooden gates that are dotted with natural thien ly (telosma cordata) trellissor vines. In the harvest season, the village roads are filled with the aroma of straw and the wide yards are dyed yellow with the colour of rice and corn.

Visitors to Duong Lam will have more chances to experience the typical life of northern people, from living in an ancient house, working in the fields and picking lotus flowers to learning how to make soy sauce and peanut brittle. One of the indispensable activities when visiting Duong Lam is to enjoy rustic rural dishes such as sugarcane chicken, rice cakes, water spinach soup with soy sauce, braised fish, and shrimp.

To make the journey to the village more interesting, visitors can choose to cycle through the ancient duoi (streblus asper) trees, rest by the green bamboos to admire the village pond and lotus pond, visit the temples and enjoy the fresh air of the peaceful countryside.

Nguyen Le - Translated by NDO