Son La District

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The second part of my trip to Viet Nam was to go and do some research. This a quick overview of the area that I got to see. I am not sure why, but instead of getting permission to be in the highlands for 2 weeks, I ended up with only part of a week. My goal was too see the highlands near Son La to observe their farming practices. The landscape is severe, with steep slopes all along the way. (There is precious little flat land in the valleys.) There are many fields with 60 degree or more sloped areas where people are on the edge of survival. Due to my time constraints, I was only able to do a some interviews, and due to the rain, I was not able to really explore any farms. But I can describe the area and its inhabitants. There are three groups living in the area of Thuan Chau, a small town in Son La. They are the Thai, Muong, and Kinh. They are all different in dress, custom, and language. I chose this area to understand their cropping patterns and decision making now that the market controls prices. The landscape is eroding very rapidly and I wanted to know what the farmers were doing to manage the soil. Everyone agreed that population pressure on the land had become much worse and everyone seemed concerned about the sustainability of their livelihoods.
In Thuan Chau I visited a market and was essentially coerced into wearing a traditional outfit of the Black Thai. I decided not debase myself further and include the photo. I was impressed that the clothing was almost large enough. I have been told that I am tall by many people. That may attribute to my luck when traveling. We were welcomed quickly in to the commune and made arrangements to turn the following day. We conducted a few interviews then returned back to Thuan Chau. We said our goodbyes and returned the next day to Hanoi. Along the way I took some pictures of road cuts and farms. There were pictures that I wanted to capture, but could not due to the road conditions and inclement weather. I hope to return and feel grateful to have come so far. I wish I had more time to explore the area. Stay tuned for another trip in the future. I am making arrangements to return back to the states. I may have another journal entry to submit. Thank you for your interest in Viet Nam.

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