A tour to H’mong traditional new year holiday
The H’mong ethnic is one of the most prominent ethnic minorities in Vietnam. Originated from China, H’mong ancestors immigrated to Vietnam’s high mountains avoiding being hunted down by China’s federal government. H’mong people have their own calendar, thus, they celebrate their own new year holiday.
If you travel to Vietnam mountain during november or december, there’s a high chance that you can experience the H’mong traditional new holiday – the most festive time of the year to H’mong people.
When is H’mong traditional new year holiday?
H’mong people celebrate the holiday in the 12th month of the lunar calendar, one month sooner than national Tet holiday.
They do not celebrate the new year on specific days, it depends on the family. Some can celebrate on the first day of the month, some other families can celebrate on the second week and so on.
Since lots of young people work in big cities, many families do not celebrate in the 12th lunar month traditionally but in the two months after as long as all family members can gather together.
Where to celebrate the H’mong new year holiday?
You can take part in the festive holiday in mountainous regions where the H’mong live. They live on high mountains of Ha Giang, Son La, Yen Bai, Lai Chau, etc
Most of the photos in this tour are taken in Ta Xua – a small town of Son La province. Ta Xua is a charming mountainous town 5-hour drive from Hanoi with an enchanting sea of clouds and fascinating indigenous culture.
Interesting things to enjoy in H’mong new year festival
Making Banh Giay sticky rice cake
“Banh Giay” is a special cake made from glutinous rice. To H’mong people, Banh Giay is the symbol for the sun, thus, it is a must-have dish in their Tet offering meal.
Making Banh Giay is one of the fun activities during H’mong Tet. They use heavy pestles to beat cooked sticky rice until it’s perfectly pureed. It’s a physically demanding activities, thus, making banh giay often involves many people.
For me, the rhythmic beat of pestles is the iconic sound for H’mong Tet holiday
Enjoy a Khen performance
Khen is the mesmerizing folk instrument of H’mong people. It’s a combination of music and dance. It takes years of practice for a H’mong man to master the art of Khen. A Khen’s performance shows the man’s talent, strength and sentiment. Thus, it’s the instrument of love: a H’mong man expresses his feelings to the girl he likes.
Holiday festival is the chance for boys to meet girls, so it’s also the time when you can experience a Khen performance.
Enjoy new year festival
During the festival, young H’mong boys and girls will be wearing their traditional costumes. H’mong costumes are vibrant with intricately tailored patterns, warming the cloudy and cold of Ta Xua town.
“Nem pao” is the signature game during this festival. Pao is a ball-like object carefully made by the H’mong ladies, decorated with floral fabric. On a flat ground the lady team and the man team will throw “pao” to each other. One must not let the ball touch the ground.
The simple game is in fact H’mong people’s subtle art of flirting. The lady will throw Pao to the man she has a crush on along with her eye signal and her smile. And if the boy likes her back, he will catch the pao and throw it back to her.
Behold peach and plum blossom
It’s the end of winter and the start of spring when peach and plum blossoms start blooming. In the high mountains of hazy clouds, ancient trees, and rustic villages, beautiful blossoms make the atmosphere more romantic and dreamy.
If you travel to Vietnam mountain during november and december, do not forget to check the lunar calendar to see whether it’s time for H’mong traditional festivals.
If you are specially interested in local festivals, feel free to ask our travel experts to find out if there’s any interesting festivals during your stay in the mountains of Vietnam.
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