Mu Cang Chai is one of the 50 most beautiful destinations in the world!

The place name Mu Cang Chai is in the language of the H'Mong people because there are more than 90% of the H'Mong people here. Translated into Kinh language, it means "dry tree village", the reason it is called dry tree village is that previously, this land was very arid, with few large trees growing, accompanied by a dry wind blowing from the west, making the land even more arid and poor land. But for about 30 years now, the pine hills, pine hills and Son Tra forests have covered the land with a green color. At the same time in 2012, Son La hydroelectric reservoir came into operation, the huge amount of water in the reservoir created humidity for neighboring localities, and Mu Cang Chai is no exception because it is only along the road from the hydroelectric reservoir birds fly only 40km. From there, a colorful Mu Cang Chai like today was formed.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that Mu Cang Chai is a land of colors. In spring, Mu Cang Chai's sky and earth glow white with azalea and camellia flowers; In the summer, Mu Cang Chai's terraced fields shine silver when people pour water into the fields; Autumn golden rice flowers create a poetic, rustic and majestic Mu Cang Chai; And winter is when the flowers are so thick and red that the entire forest area is red, and that is also when the yellow color of maple leaves turns bright pink. Perhaps there will be no other place in Vietnam where maple leaves are as beautiful as this. In the sustainable tourism development project in Mu Cang Chai, thick plum blossoms and maple leaves will be the colors of this tourist land in winter, and in the near future, Che Tao commune will also be one of the tourist destinations of tourists when visiting Mu Cang Chai.

Located west of Mu Cang Chai, Che Tao is the most remote locality and the journey here will also be a challenge for tourists. The road has an exact length of 32km from Mu Cang Chai Town to Che Tao commune. Currently, although the road is wider and the road surface is also concrete, it still takes more than 2 hours by motorbike to get to town. Che Tao Street represents the sweat and effort of all Mu Cang Chai people. It is a symbol of the labor and solidarity of all three ethnic groups living in Mu Cang Chai including: Mong, Thai and Kinh. 

Ninety percent of the people in Mu Cang Chai district are Mong people. Besides the Kinh people, the Thai people only live on the outskirts of Mu Cang Chai town and the Thai community here is a cultural highlight of Mu Cang Chai. Coming to Mu Cang Chai, one of the most interesting experiences is being immersed in the cultural space of the Thai people here. Here, you can not only admire their traditional Xoe dance but also be fascinated by the stories about the formation of the Thai people in Vietnam. As the 3rd most populous ethnic group in the country with more than 1.8 million people, Thai people live mostly in the Northern and Central provinces of Vietnam. This is also an ethnic group with a rich and unique culinary treasure and the Thai people in Mu Cang Chai are no exception.

Not only with the rustic but majestic landscape, visitors are also fascinated by the unique culinary culture with ingredients for traditional dishes available from the mountains and forests and the talented and skillful way of preparing them. Thai ethnic people when coming here. One of those dishes is Pa Pinh Top (overturned grilled stream fish), a traditional dish of the Thai-Muong Lo ethnic group that has long been famous and is always sought after by tourists when they have the opportunity to visit. Thai cuisine is famous for its richness in marinating spices, a dish sometimes uses dozens of spices, and this is the same with Pa Pinh Top, so that the grilled fish is delicious and odorless. fishy, ​​many types of herbs and spices were used. After marinating, the final step will be to put it on charcoal to grill. All steps are very fast but this step alone will take a long time. The fire must be very small so that the fish cooks slowly. If the fire is too high, the fish will be alive on the inside but cooked on the outside and cannot be eaten. Therefore, this step requires about 30 to 45 minutes depending on the size of the fish. During the grilling process, you must also turn the fish up and down continuously so that the fish cooks evenly.

The red color of maple leaves and the flavor of Pa Pinh Top will be what visitors will remember when leaving this land. Every time you come to Mu Cang Chai, you will experience something new here. The beautiful scenery and culinary cultural life here are the colors that create a Mu Cang Chai that is always imprinted in the minds of tourists. Mu Cang Chai is one of the 50 most beautiful destinations in the world.