FIELD TRIPS TO GIA LAI AND KOM TUM PROVINCES

On February 08, 2015, the Center for Vietnamese and Southeast Asian Studies (CVSEAS), University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University – HCMC, organized field trips to Gia Lai and Kom Tum provinces from February 08-12, 2015. The group, including Dr. Tran Dinh Lam, Assoc.Prof. Thanh Phan and Nguyen Quang Tue, MA (Deputy Director of the Gia Lai Office of Cultural Heritage), visited several localities where CVSEAS had conducted studies about 5 years ago. 

By 2010, CVSEAS had undertaken fieldwork to investigate economic activities, culture and the traditional society of the Bahnar people in Mang Yang district, Gia Lai province and of the Hre people in the Po E hamlet, Kon Plong district, Kon Tum province. Those places are still preserving many economic activities, cultural practices and a traditional society which are friendly to the environment.

In 2012, CVSEAS had the book titled “The Economic, Cultural and Social Life of Bahnar People Sustainable Development” published and honorably received the award “Excellent scientific research in the academic year of 2010 – 2011” presented by the Director of Vietnam National University – HCMC on January 03, 2012. This is the reason why the research group would like to return to Mang Yang district in order to investigate changes of the Bahnar people’s life during the past four years.

On the morning of February 09, 2015, the group visited the Gia Lai Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism to work with Director Phan Xuan Vu; Nguyen Quang Tue, MA (Director of the Office of Cultural Heritage) and KSor Phuc (Deputy Director of the Office of Cultural Heritage). During the discussions, Vu was very interested in the idea that we should pay more attention to the generations of 6- to 10-year-olds as important subjects in imparting traditional culture. Then, the group headed for the Dak Po District Office of Culture to work with H’ Duyen (Director), who introduced Nguyen Tien Nhat (Deputy Director) as a guide for the visit to Cham Stone Stele in Tu Luong village, Tan An hamlet, Dak Po district.

Although the stay was only part of a day and the weather was unfavorable since it was windy and likely to rain, the research group managed to complete a replica of the stele, which was, according to Nhat, recently discovered by the locals. Since then, quite many research groups have come to examine it, yet no information about its age and value was disclosed. As for the research group, since the shortage of time for in-depth research, they could only provide some information about the stele. Based on its replica and a little examination, the last sentence of its inscription indicated that it dated from 1370 Saka Raja (i.e. in 1448 AD).

On February 10, 2015, the research paid a visit to the Mang Yang District Office of Culture and Information and was warmly welcomed by Deputy Director Vo Van Son. Through the discussion with Dr. Tran Dinh Lam, Son talked about the economic development and achievement in promoting traditional culture in the locality. Then, the group headed towards the Mang Yang High School for Ethnic Minorities, which is a boarding school, and its library. They took some photos with the school’s students and Principal Phan Tan Quang before leaving.

Before going on travelling to the Bahnar village, the group spent some time visiting the family of Le Huu Phong, a devoted teacher who dedicated his whole life to conveying invaluable traditional values of the ethnic groups in the highland to students. With 25 years of teaching and doing studies on the Bahnar’s culture, he has been regarded as a “cultural hero” by his community and as a “spreader of literacy” in the land of “cồng chiêng” (gongs). The teacher has been rewarded with a medal acknowledging his devotion to the educational career by the Ministry of Education and Training.

In the afternoon of the same day, the group visited the Lo Pang hamlet, working with Dinh Thi Lan, Chairwoman of the hamlet’s Women’s Union. She shared that she had stopped doing business, and now was working in the union as a leader with the hope of helping the Bahnar women overcome poverty and hunger. Then, they went sightseeing in the Bo Dau village and especially the Chup village, where Bliu, now 78, the village patriarch, was living with his family and grandchildren. Upon that occasion, the group presented them some gifts.

On the morning of February 11, 2015, they came to the community of Hre people in Vi Kon Tau village, Po E hamlet, Kon Plong district, Gia Lai province, where CVSEAS had conducted a field trip with Dr. Toshihiko Shine. The group visited the village patriarchs Dinh Xuan Ram and Alet, presenting them some gifts for the Tet holidays. After quite a long period of time, they realized that not many changes occurred there. More specifically, the locals still maintain 6-month rice drops without using any fertilizers and herbicides, pick vegetables in forests, catch fish from streams and raise some animals as a supplementary source of food. The group also noticed that no Hre people went to the market to buy vegetables or other foods. Their staple diet was still from natural sources.

In the afternoon of the same day, after returning to Kon Tum, the group was introduced a specialty named “leaves salad”. It was a dish mainly made of various leaves picked in the forest, which are hardly found in HCMC. It can be said that they are truly organic vegetables. In the late afternoon, they got to Pleiku City and spent a night there. In the morning of the following day, they visited the Gia Lai Province’s Museum and ended an interesting journey to the highland.

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