The Van Kieu preserve their stilt house

The Quang Tri provincial Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism has upgraded 16 stilt houses of the Van Kieu in Kalu hamlet in Dakrong district. Kalu hamlet has now become a cultural and community-based eco-tourist site of the Van Kieu.

In a newly-upgraded stilt house, Ho Thanh Man told us about their old way of building stilt houses. Their wooden or bamboo-frame house was often roofed with rattan leaves.

In recent years, they use corrugated iron or fiber cement boards to roof their houses. They are now very happy to have a stilt house made of natural materials just like before.

Ho Thanh Man said, “We are very glad to have this house done thanks to province’s project. Previously, we couldn’t afford to build a traditional stilt house. The project has preserved our traditions.”

In order to preserve the traditional cultural characteristics of ethnic minority groups, the Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism of Quang Tri province has invested in repairing 16 stilt houses, each at a cost of US$1,500 to US$2,000 and was repaired by the local Van Kieu.

The stilt house of the Van Kieu is small and has rooms for parents, couples, and children. Sleeping rooms are on the right side and the living room is in the center. The high sloping roofs are made of bamboo and covered with rattan leaves.

Patriarch Ha Van Hum said roofing is the most difficult part. In the past all Van Kieu men could make the roof, now only a few old men can.

He said the project has preserved the Van Kieu traditional houses and taught young people a craft of their group. “In the past we made stilt houses by ourselves. Now we have to restore our traditions to introduce to foreign tourists.”

Kalu hamlet has been projected to become a tourist site on the East-West Economic Corridor. In stilt houses Van Kieu artisans and young people are reviving their unique festivals.

Pham Van Thang, Head of the project management board, said after restoring the stilt houses the Project on sustainable tourism development in the Sub-Mekong region is building a number of public guesthouses and an observatory in Kalu hamlet.

Thang noted, “Promoting tangible and intangible values covers traditional festivals, food, daily utensils, and community-based services. Community tourism can generate jobs for the local people and raise their incomes.”