In the morning, the path connecting the Van Phuc village gateway and the center of the silk production village is crowded with foreigners who come to learn about the village’s time-honored silk weaving craft. They touch the smooth, light and elegant silk, and buy unique silk products with a variety of beautiful patterns.
While visiting the village, six Argentinean tourists were interested in handbags made from Van Phuc silk and kept showing their admiration for the Van Phuc weavers for making such nice products.
Enelia, 72, a retired lawyer, said that in spite of having travelled to various famous silk production hubs in the world, she was still surprised by the spectacular, elegant, but reasonably-priced silk products from Van Phuc. “I will recommend Van Phuc village to my friends,” said Enelia.
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Foreigners impressed by Van Phuc silk products |
At the Van Phuc Silk Development Center, foreigners carefully observed Van Phuc weavers’ steps of making traditional silk products, from reeling, spinning, weaving, to dyeing. Having been introduced to the process of producing silk by the center’s Director Le Thi Kim Thu, French tourists were amazed at the creativeness and meticulosity of the weavers. Van Phuc silk products are diverse in design and have a reputation for durability and elegant colors. “I have used Van Phuc silk products, and I feel pleased. Van Phuc silk fabric is suitable for making clothes in my country. In the coming time, we will study about and start making clothes from Van Phuc silk,” said Emilie, a fashion designer from France.
One of the important factors that make Van Phuc silk different from others is its materials. Van Phuc silk is made from natural materials. Nicolas Varkozo, a French tourist, said that he was impressed by a silk aodai (traditional long dress of the Vietnamese people) and the memories it brought back of his Vietnamese mother. When alive, she used to wear it on important days. “This visit to Van Phuc reminds me of my mother and her keepsakes,” said Nicolas.
Van Phuc now has 30 silk production businesses and more than 200 households associated with silk weaving. Coming to the village, tourists have a chance to not only learn about the process of silk-making, but also buy various silk products throughout 150 shops.
Chairman of the People’s Committee of Van Phuc ward Nguyen Van Du said that thanks to the effective organization of tourism promotional activities, Van Phuc has attracted thousands of foreign tourists over the past year. Together with promoting trading activities, the village has coordinated with travel agents to host tours for international travelers. The locality has also paid attention to organizing tourism promotional activities, a cultural-tourism week, and restoring traditional products.
“Each international tourist will serve as a cultural ambassador who will contribute to popularizing the Van Phuc silk brand to the international market,” Du said.
Translated by Tran Hoai