Water lilies on the flood plains and the soulful beauty of the countryside
On the flooded fields with the bright color of alluvium, the colorful image of the water lily mixed with the Ba Ba shirt is an unmissable opportunity for photographers to capture extremely vivid and beautiful moments eyes from above. Like a date from nature every time the flooding season comes, Long An as usual stands out with a colorful color of water lilies blooming. Water lily is not only for viewing but is also a popular dish, many people love it, bringing a source of income every flood season.
In the middle of the vast water fields, water lily plants grow together, everywhere the water rises on the water lilies stretch their body, the more the floating water turns red alluvial, the fatter the water lily body and the bigger the water lily leaves. The picture of the flood season is so vivid with the addition of water lily petals, sometimes they bloom in pure white, other times they bloom in sweet, passionate purple. The flood season brings with it a harvest of livelihood for people who always spend their lives floating along the water, traveling in canoes on vast fields or following canal banks to pick water lilies has become a feature of their lives. has existed for a long time. Living in the middle of a vast water field of water lily fields is never lonely. When the flood season comes, you can hear the roar of machines blocking the water everywhere, the laughter and forgetting the hard work of people picking.
The West is a wetland when the flood season comes, the water lily is an aquatic plant suitable for this tropical land, with conditions to grow and develop. That natural charm has helped many residents in this valley in the Southwest region find business opportunities. On these days in the upstream districts of Dong Thap Muoi, especially on the Lo Brick River, Vinh Tri Commune, Vinh Hung District, every day there are nearly a hundred people plucking water lilies. At this time, the floating water season becomes more exciting often. Previously, there were lotus fields along this river, but the value of the lotus plants was unstable, so recently people have converted to growing water lilies. Every household grows at least a few acres, some households grow up to 5 hectares. Just like that, each flood season, a kilometer-long stretch of river is covered with water lilies, they quietly bloom with a rustic beauty like the people here. Water lily is grown in the dry season and harvested in the flood season with two varieties: Da Lat red water lily - currently sold for 3,500 VND/1 kg and rice water lily sold for double the price of 7,000/kg. 1 kilo.
In the West, each product is associated with a separate lifestyle, residents adapt to farming and exploitation conditions as a matter of common sense. In the water lily fields, people have a creative way of moving. Life in the water lily fields is always bustling with residents who are diligent in their profession. After harvesting, they clean the pond, collect seaweed,... and then harvest again, plan for the next season, thereby creating a magical cycle. Water lilies harvested from the fields will be gathered in granaries for preliminary processing and then continued to wholesale markets near and far.
During the flood season, the family's meals always include water lilies. From the days of June and July, when the water was just beginning to reach the edge of the fields, countless shoals of young fish began to flock to the canals and then began to swim fields when water overflowed the fields. Just go fishing and set the roof to catch a bunch of fish to process, braise peanuts and eat with water lilies, especially water lilies served with braised fish sauce, easy to make and very delicious. Hence the saying:
“Bông súng nấu với cá linh
Mặn mà hương vị đậm tình quê hương”
Water lily stands shoulder to shoulder with friends in the floating season such as sesbania, water spinach, and banana blossoms, making a salad with braised flexible fish, or water lily is delicious in sour soup with any type of fish, but the best dish is to cook water lily with snakehead fish. The days when it rains lightly and cools down, enjoying the dishes of the countryside with the family is the happiest thing for those who have never experienced the simple life in the quiet countryside.
Delicious food from water lilies blends with nostalgia for the idyllic, peaceful countryside, filled with wind and rain. Slowly eating each stem of water lily, you can see the essence of growing it every day, that is the flavor of river silt mixed with the sunshine and wind of the homeland...