Weekend Escapade: Explore Traditional Craft Villages in Hanoi

Experience water puppetry in Dao Thuc village or learn the art of making bamboo dragonflies in Thach Xa. These are some suggestions for your weekend trip in Hanoi.

Weekend plans are always a timeless topic. If you're still unsure, visiting traditional craft villages is an exciting suggestion. Not just the familiar Bat Trang pottery village or Conical Hat village, there are other equally fascinating craft villages worth exploring.

Weekend Escapade: Explore Traditional Craft Villages in Hanoi

Thach Xa Bamboo Dragonfly Village

Located near Tay Phuong Pagoda, about 35 km from Hanoi, Thach Xa is a famous village for making captivating bamboo dragonflies in Thach That district. These dragonflies are visually appealing and can stand balanced on small points. Hence, tourists visiting Tay Phuong Pagoda highly appreciate this unique craft.

Crafting Bamboo Dragonflies: A Delicate Art of Precision

The name bamboo dragonfly originates from the fact that this product is crafted from slender bamboo, long and free from knots. The intricate process involves splitting bamboo, shaping the body and wings, creating the mouth, assembling the wings, and adding embellishments. The most challenging step is precisely attaching the wings to the dragonfly's body, demanding careful calculations for a perfectly balanced result. Only when the dragonfly is well-balanced will the artisan secure it with glue and adorn it with decorative elements.

Chang Son Fan Village

Chang Son Fans are renowned products from Chang Son commune, Thach That district, Hanoi. The craft of making fans here dates back over a hundred years. In the 19th century, French people exhibited Chang Son Fans in the glamorous city of Paris. The most skilled fan maker in the village even received the title of 'Ba Ho' (a high-ranking title in the feudal system bestowed upon meritorious or wealthy individuals).

The famous Chang Son Fans are both durable and beautiful. To create the perfect fan, each craftsman must carefully select the best materials. The bamboo used for fans must be flexible, free from pests, and the rattan must be smooth and long to avoid breakage. The paper used for the fans is Dó paper, a kind of paper made in Dong Ho village for traditional paintings with beautiful colors.

The challenge of making fans lies in precisely measuring the folds in each fan rib. This requires meticulous calculations to ensure that when folded, the fan does not affect the painting on top. The folds must also align in the middle to avoid cutting off figures or objects in the painting. If cutting is unavoidable, the skill of the Chang Son craftsmen is to add subtle connections that are hard to notice without a closer look.

Yen Nhan Fermented Soy Sauce Village

Tương bần, a type of soy sauce, is produced in Yen Nhan town, Hung Yen. Initially offered as a tribute to kings, tương bần is now renowned not only in Hung Yen but throughout Vietnam.

The ingredients for making tương bần are simple and easy to find: glutinous rice, yellow flowers, soybeans, and salt. However, creating a delicious bowl of soy sauce is not a straightforward task. The tương bần making process involves three main steps: fermenting glutinous rice, roasting soybeans, and fermenting the sauce.

Yen Nhan Fermented Soy Sauce has a honey-like yellow color and is an indispensable dipping sauce for rice cakes and traditional dishes. Moreover, it enhances the aroma and richness of various dishes during cooking.

Quat Dong Embroidery Village

Quat Dong Embroidery Village, one of the traditional craft villages in Hanoi tourism, cannot be overlooked. This renowned village has a history dating back to the 17th century when embroiderers focused on creating noble items, banners, couplets, and ceremonial handkerchiefs.

Quat Dong Embroidery Village

Usually, the chosen fabric for embroidery is cotton or silk, and the thread is made from dyed silk. For ceremonial items, gold and silver metallic threads are also used. The artisan sketches the frame of the embroidery on the fabric and adds or subtracts various details based on creative inspiration.

Dao Thuc Water Puppet Village

Unlike other traditional craft villages, the traditional art form in Dao Thuc, Dong Anh, Hanoi, is renowned for Water Puppetry. The village's master puppeteer is Nguyen Dang Vinh.

Craftsmen in Dao Thuc not only create puppet models but are also the artists who perform in each show. Historically, Dao Thuc village presented famous traditional plays like 'Three Scholarly Boys', 'Raising the Net into the Water', 'Buffalo Crawling through the Tube'. However, new performances have been created to praise the homeland, such as 'Offering Flowers on Festival Day', 'Parading Uncle Ho's Portrait', 'Hanoi Day and Night', and more.

Visitors to Dao Thuc can come at the end of the year or the beginning of spring, which is the peak tourist season. During this time, artisans perform about 20 shows or more each month. Initially, the performances were held at the village pond with stages lit by oil lamps and torches, and there were no seating arrangements. However, now the village pond has been expanded, and a beautiful communal house has been built, providing convenient seating for guests.

Dao Thuc Water Puppet Village, Thuy Lam Commune, Dong Anh District, Hanoi, is known as a place preserving the traditional cultural heritage of water puppetry, an ancient folk art that has thrived for nearly 300 years. To get there, cross Duong Bridge, turn left onto National Highway 3 towards Phu Lo, then follow the Ca Lo River levee to Dao Thuc Hamlet (Thuy Lam Commune, Dong Anh District, Hanoi). The total distance is approximately 24 km.

Directions Guide

Thach Xa Firefly Village: From Hanoi, head along Thang Long Avenue for approximately 25 km to Thach That, then turn right and proceed another 10 km to inquire about the route to Tay Phuong Pagoda. When you see the Tay Phuong Pagoda sign, turn left. The village is located at the foot of this mountain, near Tay Phuong Pagoda.

Chang Son Fan Village: Located on the same road to Thach Xa Village, but do not turn right towards Tay Phuong Pagoda; instead, turn in the opposite direction.

Yen Nhan Fermented Soybean Village: From Hanoi, follow National Highway 5 for about 25 km to reach the destination.

Quat Dong Embroidery Village: Follow Giai Phong Road, pass through Van Dien Town, and when you reach Vo Market, you will see directional signs along the road.

Dao Thuc Water Puppet Village: From central Hanoi, cross Duong Bridge, turn left onto National Highway 3 towards Phu Lo, then follow the Ca Lo River levee to Dao Thuc Hamlet. The total distance is approximately 24 km.

Source: VnExpress

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Reference: Mytour Travel Guide