DUONG LAM VILLAGE: RUSTIC SOUL REMAINS IN A TOURIST SPOT

Over-familiar with ancient villages yet? While many of ancient villages are loved for its historic sphere, as a tourist attraction, it gives off an unhidden vibe of commercialization. Visit Duong Lam village on an off-season tours of early summer to find the authenticity of a village - the rustic old soul still shining.

One fine day of Duong Lam village

What is the atmost drive to make one get off their butt to travel? For many cases, it is brilliantly refreshing to see new things. From the Memoirs of Geisha -like Gion Street (Japan) to the spiritful Jiufen old street in Taiwan and to the subtle yet vivid Hoi An ancient town, ancient villages hold such a special place in the heart of a traveller as it reminds us not only of the beauty of different cultures but also the everlasting rythm of life that has been beating for thousand years. However, having been to all of these places, i can’t help but feel a huge similarity: souvenir shops, locals’ pigeon English, clothing rental stores, beautiful instagram corner v…v… Since most of the activities are shopping and taking pictures. Despite being at different places, my experience remains repeated. Feelings are grounded by the action of selling and buying and stuck in camera frame. It is hard to see what we originally want from ancient town: how differently the locals live from us, how their ancestors have lived before, how they keep up with the tradition. Genuineness is somewhat vague.

In Duong Lam Village, people keep their normal life of a typical Vietnamese rural villages as if tourism hadn’t come.

Street stores and street vendors are homespun which is seemingly meant for locals: There are a cheesy-look homemade Boba shop, a barber shop whose sign is of K-POP idols from 10 years ago covered in dust, a small motorcycle repair shop with every kind of tools spreaded out in the front yard, etc

Owners of the restaurant we visited are actually restaurant owner for the weekend. In weekday, they are teachers.

People talk to each other in a leisurely pace. They greet each other coardially. They joked, they laughed, they laid-backly, quietly spend the day.

Ancient house of Mr….is popular to tourist. And yet while 6 or 7 strangers were visiting their house and taking picture , the owner would still relaxedly clean his fish tank

People still sit around under the communal house to have a cup of tea and a mid-day chat. A local man eating betel on the street. No people were there when we visit one of their temples. They leave their temple empty without any worries and enjoy an “inner circle” activity while lots of strangers are wandering around in the zone. The rythm of life is beating casually as if there were no interuption by tourists. Rather than a tourist attraction, Duong Lam is still a dear home to be comfortable at any time of the day.

Lovely couple taking wedding photos, Gaijin coming to Duong Lam, hope they don’t be offended by the smell of cow dung on the way. They are actual cows doing their noble work in the field, not some poor animals often used for children to ride on and take pictures.

Of course, Duong Lam is a tourist attraction, and there’re many signs showing it’s a well-prepared for tourist: Lots of street vendors sells souvenirs and cuisine. Owners of local house often greeted you warm-heartedly while readily providing you interesting information about their house like a professional tour guide. Of course, the lives of the people have been changed since the emergence of the place as a tourist attraction. I believe, they’re all well-aware that their life becoming something foreignly interesting in the eyes of an outsider. Perhaps, it is a lovely coincidence that Vietnamese traditional culture gives much credit to hospitability and interpersonal connection, which makes us concern less for our daily life being interrupted by strangers. I wonder if this innocence is why Duong Lam can still keep its genuineness. Or else, it must be thanked to the authority’s sublte toursim development plan, or else, in a more simple way of thinking, let’s be grateful that tourism and commercialization hasn’t touched here deeply yet.