I returned to Sam Neua town, Hua Phan province, Lao People's Democratic Republic, during the Son La - Hua Phan Cultural Tourism Festival in 2024. Sam Neua today has undergone a transformation; the streets are wide and spacious with plenty of traffic; goods in shops and commercial areas are quite abundant; and the lives of the people are constantly improving.
Sam Neua town, Hua Phan province.
Sam Neua today is bustling with new buildings springing up on both banks of the Nam Xam River, creating a vibrant atmosphere without being overly noisy. The town's streets are paved with asphalt, and streetlights and high-voltage power lines illuminate the urban landscape.
Lao Hung Friendship Park.
Located right in front of the Huaphanh Provincial Friendship Reception House, the Lao Hung Friendship Park is the venue for many of Huaphanh province's major political, economic, cultural, and social events. The park is built on a large area, adjacent to a vital traffic route in Sam Neua town. Its design uniquely reflects Lao culture, with a stage backdrop vividly depicting the beauty of Lao ethnic people in their daily lives, labor, and production.
Leaders from Son La and Hua Phan provinces visited the beautiful photo exhibition at the Lao-Hung Friendship Park.
During the Son La - Hua Phan Cultural Tourism Festival 2024, the Lao Hung Friendship Park will host opening ceremonies, exhibitions, and promotional activities showcasing cultural and tourism products, introducing culinary culture, displaying local specialties and products; and promoting cultural products and tourism of the two provinces of Son La and Hua Phan.
Speaking with us, Aikeo Sibounwang, a reporter from Hua Phan Newspaper, shared: Lao Hung Park is a frequent venue for major provincial events, including trade fairs that attract small traders and businesses from Vietnamese provinces bordering Hua Phan.
Ong Tu Pagoda is located in Sam Neua town.
The Tay Ethnic Museum or Ong Tu Pagoda are must-visit places when in Sam Neua. Here, visitors can receive blessings from the monks with a ritual of tying threads around their wrists, accompanied by wishes for peace and good fortune – a message that each local person sends to everyone around them, including international friends.
Tourists enjoy local specialties at Sam Neua market.
What's noticeable about Sam Neua is the absence of makeshift markets; all buying and selling takes place in a designated market area situated on the banks of the Nam Xam River, with one side specializing in general merchandise and the other in food and groceries. Sam Neua market doesn't have a wide variety of goods, mainly traditional Lao handicrafts, with the remainder being imported from Thailand, China, and Vietnam.
Tourists visit stalls selling brocade products at Sam Neua market.
The stalls selling brocade products at Sam Neua market always attract a large number of locals and tourists who come to visit and shop. According to local people, Hua Phan is the province with the most famous brocade weaving in Laos, with exquisite, high-quality products.
Having visited Sam Neua many times, Ms. Lo Thi Ha Huong, who works at the Son La Provincial Song and Dance Theatre, is familiar with the area. She took us to visit the brocade shops, pointing to stalls selling traditional Lao women's clothing. Ms. Huong said: "Sam Neua is famous for its brocade weaving. These outfits aren't too expensive; depending on the material, a set costs around 500,000-700,000 Kip, equivalent to 650,000-800,000 Vietnamese Dong. Every time I have the chance to go to Sam Neua, I buy traditional Lao women's clothing to bring back as gifts."
Food stalls at Sam Neua market.
Along with the colorful handicrafts, the unique local dishes in Sam Nua market also pique the curiosity of visitors, such as jeow mak len (a spicy chili dip), various dried meats, smoked meats, sausages, dried buffalo bile, dried beef bile, dried rats, and green frogs.
The town center of Sam Neua today.
During our time in Hua Phan, we also had the opportunity to experience the unique local cuisine. Besides other traditional Lao dishes, the table always features two dishes: sticky rice and laap (a type of Vietnamese sausage). The small, beautifully crafted sticky rice containers, made from woven reeds or bamboo, are skillfully designed to preserve the rich and lingering aroma of the sticky rice.
My business trip to Sam Neua left me with a lasting impression of the peaceful pace of life there. Goodbye Sam Neua, but the images of the low-lying stilt houses nestled on the hillsides, the kind and simple people, the beautiful and charming Lao girls, and the captivating Lam Vong dance will forever remain in my memory. I look forward to returning to Sam Neua soon.
Duy Tung