Ma Ly Pho is a remote
village of Lai Chau province, the sacred frontier
of our beloved country. The windy and sunny atmosphere of Ma Ly Pho is made
more wonderful by the Nam Na stream – a major tributary of the Black River winding
into Vietnam,
bringing irrigation water to this land.
The beauty of Ma
Ly Pho is pure and gentle. A poet once likened the road coming to Ma Ly Pho to “the
thread weaving through traditional Mong’s dresses”. Fragments of this artful
image remains to this day, in glimpses of charming Mong girls bathing daily in
Nam Na stream, drying their dresses on flaps of green grasses.
The name “Ma Ly Pho”
originated from the phrase “Mã Lỳ Pho”, meaning as “(a road that can) exhaust a
horse”. The terrain of Ma Ly Pho is rugged and bumpy, compounded by occasional gray
stone cliffs. It is a challenge to anyone planning to explore this wild, mysterious
and romantic land. The steep ramps up and down are always testing the courage
of adventurous travelers.
However, once
your bravery has brought you pass the “horse exhausting” road, Ma Ly Pho welcomes
you like a gentle maiden. There are no luxury amenities, but cozy stilt houses,
with Mong girls diligently weaving and embroiling fabrics, smiling brilliantly
like blooming chrysanthemums in the mountain slopes.
Many delicacies
of the Northwest region can be found here in Ma Ly Pho. One can enjoy “khâu nhục”,
made from pork slow-steamed in traditional fashion; or sweet grass-smelling “thắng
cố” – a famous horse stew – whereas a hot bowl can keep you warm against the chilling
cold winds of winter.
Watching the
sunset, visitors can experience a melancholy feeling from this land, far away
from the bustling cities, with the deep blue smoke from stilt houses on
mountain slopes flows along the wind, hangs in the air, mixes with the trees
and melts into the mist. That special feel from Ma Ly Pho bring about an
unforgettable memory for those who came this far.
At night,
scattered on the hillside, halfway up the mountains or in the far valleys are flickering
lights of fireflies. It is not difficult to find a safe place to camp overnight,
or one could choose to light a fire in some nearby caves, roasting fish caught from
the stream of Nam Na.
At last, you will
enjoy the friendly and cozy hospitality of the local Mong people in Ma Ly Pho,
sharing stories and experiences over the bonfires. When you leave this
memorable place, you will feel attached to these people, saying farewells like
family members with calls of “U mạn gi” - “see you again”.
Kiều Trang
Traslator: Thu Phương
Update: 12/5/2014