Vietnam Photography: Hanoi Craft Villages
Hanoi Craft Villages
Hanoi’s traditional craft villages are an essential part of Vietnamese culture, showcasing unique communities where collaboration among villagers enhanced productivity and ensured mutual benefit. The city is home to 1,350 craft villages, each historically specialising in a single craft, with one-fourth of them over a century old and rich in cultural and historical value. These include pottery, conical hats, embroidery, rattan weaving, bronze casting, silk production, incense making, and more, highlighting Vietnam’s diverse artistic heritage. For travel photographers, these villages are a hidden gem, offering endless opportunities to capture candid moments of everyday life and the beauty of vanishing traditional crafts, preserving these timeless stories through the lens.
Quang Phu Cau Incense Village
Quang Phu Cau is a small village located about an hour’s drive from downtown Hanoi. At first glance, it might seem like an ordinary Vietnamese town, with locals enjoying meals at small diners, sipping coffee on their porches, and working on crafting bamboo baskets. However, what makes this village unique is its thriving incense production.
The most remarkable aspect of the incense-making process can be found in large, fenced courtyards where vibrant incense sticks are laid out to dry under the sun. While you may spot small clusters of incense sticks drying in random spots around the village, the truly stunning displays are within these courtyards.
It’s important to note that these colorful arrangements of incense sticks are not there for tourists to take photos. They’re an essential step in the production process, as the sticks dry naturally before being packaged and transported for sale. Visiting Quang Phu Cau offers a rare opportunity to witness the authentic craftsmanship behind one of Vietnam’s traditional industries.
Ban Yen Soy Sauce Village
Ban Yen Nhan Soy Sauce Village, located just 25 kilometres from Hanoi, is a charming destination renowned for its traditional soy sauce making, offering visitors a glimpse into techniques passed down through generations. Soy sauce holds a vital place in Vietnamese cuisine, serving as an essential flavour for countless dishes.
Creating a bowl of soy sauce is a meticulous process requiring time, specific techniques, and experience. First, sticky rice is soaked, boiled, and left for two days until it turns yellow due to the growth of fungus. The fermented rice is then mixed with soybeans, salt, and water before being poured into tightly sealed earthen or ceramic jars. These jars are placed under the sun to ferment for two to three months, during which the mixture is stirred daily, both in the morning and at noon.
While soy sauce can be found in many parts of Vietnam, the variety produced in Ban Yen Nhan Village is widely regarded as the most delicious. For regular tourists, visiting the Soy Sauce Village may not be as engaging as it is for photographers. Similar to the Incense Village, the family-run factories welcome visitors to observe their work, but they do not provide guided tours or structured experiences, as these are functional workplaces rather than museums. Additionally, the intense aroma of fermenting soy sauce might deter some visitors. However, for photographers, the sight of hundreds of large soy sauce jars arranged in intricate patterns, paired with the traditional, machine-free methods of production, offers a unique and fascinating subject.
That said, the work in the factories can be somewhat unpredictable, so it’s not guaranteed that you’ll see workers in action. To make the most of your visit, it’s best to arrive early and inquire about the work schedule to ensure you’re there at the right time to capture the process.
Thu Sy Bamboo Fishing Trap Village
Several villages in northern Vietnam have preserved the centuries-old tradition of handcrafting bamboo underwater traps for over 200 years. Each trap takes about an hour to make and is sold for roughly $1. These traps come in various designs, specifically tailored to catch different aquatic creatures such as fish, crabs, or eels. However, as fishing methods evolved, single-fish traps were replaced by modern fishing rods and nets. Today, these traditional traps are no longer widely used for fishing and have instead found a place as decorative items or unique furniture pieces.
The village of Thu Sy has become a living museum for this vanishing craft. Only a few households, primarily run by elderly villagers, continue to make fish traps, often as demonstrations for visitors or as souvenirs for tourists. If you visit Thu Sy independently, locals can easily point you to the home of an elderly craftsman known for his iconic photo with an array of fish traps. He’ll gladly show you around his yard and demonstrate the intricate process of making these traps.
While this may not be the most engaging experience for a regular tourist—especially without a local guide to provide background context or translate the details—a photographer would find this to be an incredible subject. The unique textures of bamboo traps, the quiet dedication of the craftsmen, and the poignant reality of a fading tradition offer a visually rich and culturally significant story to capture. Unfortunately, with no younger generation to carry on this craft, it is destined to disappear, making every photograph a piece of history preserved.
Read our other articles about Vietnam
In the beginning of 2024, we spent over 4 months traveling around Vietnam. By staying longer in Vietnam, we were able to visit places off the beaten path, where regular tourists don't usually go, and create comprehensive guides for you to plan your travels.
Comments