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| Van Phuc Silk Village in Hanoi |
Van Phuc Silk Village Location and History
Situated on the bank of Nhue River, about 10km southwest of Hanoi Old Quarter, Van Phuc silk village is renowned for its traditional weaving and premium quality silk products. At the age of more than 1,200 years, Van Phuc is proud to be the most ancient silk village which provides the best silk in Vietnam.
Visitors to Van Phuc village will be impressed by typical manner of an
ancient village in the north of Vietnam with banyan tree, well, communal
house, and the sound of power-looms everywhere. Walking on the main
road in Van Phuc, tourists will be lost in the world of silk with
various products like shirts, ties, crafts, dresses… made of silk
available in the village.
For a long period of time, silk was considered as extremely precious
handwork which was only used to tailor Royal members' and aristocrats’
dress. The special beauty of Van Phuc or Ha Dong silk was inspiration
for many Vietnamese poems, songs and movies (see The White Silk Dress, one of the 5 most outstanding Vietnamese movies).
In Nguyen dynasty time, Van Phuc silk was brought to Hue imperial citadel
to make dress for royal members. Between 1931 and 1932, Van Phuc silk
was on display in international exhibitions for the first time in
Marseille, then Paris and was highly appreciated and preferred by the
French. From 1958 to 1988, Van Phuc silk mostly was exported to Eastern
European market, and since 1990, it has been known widely in many
countries all over the world.
Van Phuc Silk Village production
Van Phuc silk has been known for its smooth, light weight, and
elegant appearance. Especially, a traditional kind of silk called Van
Silk made in Van Phuc make the wearers feel cool in summer and warm in
winter. Today, to satisfy various demand for silk of the market, Van
Phuc silk producers have expanded their silk and garment goods like
embroidered silk, , wrinkled silk, double layers and more colors for
silk products.
Many families in Van Phuc open their own shops on the main road
of the village; create a “town of silk” that sell eye-catching and high
quality silk products. Tourists may buy available nice souvenir and
clothes in the shop, or select the most suitable materials to then get
customized products. The sellers are very friendly and can speak a
little English and French to communicate to foreign tourists.
Nowadays, although the weaving has been mechanized for higher
productivity, there are still simple manual looms in some houses in the
village which help tourists contemplate the genuinely traditional
Vietnamese way of making silk.
How to get Van Phuc Silk Village
Tourists can join a tour to Van Phuc village available in travel
agencies, or visit Van Phuc on their owns by car, motorbike, or catch
the local bus 02, 21 then walk 500m to reach the village.
Tourists should travel south west out of Hanoi center on Nguyen Trai
road until reach the border of Ha Dong district, then turn right and
drive about 3km to reach the village.
- Vietnam Travel Guide
- http://www.vietnamphoenixtour.com
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