Conscious Travel Episodes - A Volunteer Journey With The Hill Tribes Of Northern Vietnam

Imagine walking through mountains that divide the north of Vietnam from China. These mountains, which house several waterfalls, rice or tea plantations, winding roads and a population that seems to be frozen in time. Did you feel like boarding on this journey? Come with me to live the experience of volunteering in the north of Vietnam, exploring the mountains where tea grows wild.

Ha Giang is considered as home to the Snow Shan tea, where the tea plant has its origins. There are still many mountains where tea grows wild, creating a unique setting that is the perfect example of how beautiful the landscape of that country can be. Wild trees are harvested by local people and the ancient mountains are owned by the Hill Tribes: more specifically, the Red Yao, Baiyue, Tay, H'mong.

These tribes live in very small and peaceful villages in the upper mountains and the production of their precious tea is passed down from generation to generation. This is such a special tradition that the ancient Shan tea growers in Ha Giang were recognized as national heritage trees, a fact that is still unknown to many travelers exploring northern Vietnam.

My goal when I applied to volunteer in Vietnam was to learn something new, something I never thought of doing before. When I found the Baiyue Tribe Project in the worldpackers I decided that it was exactly what I was looking for towards the end of my month exploring the country. The possibility of working with children's education, responsible tourism, and learning local indigenous knowledge gave me enough motivation to board a bus from Hanoi to Ha Giang.

The volunteer work I applied for was aimed at improving the English-language skills of farmers in the former Snow Shan tea villages, as well as introducing livelihood models based on their indigenous knowledge and further developing these diversified subsistence models.

The social side of this project also sought to improve knowledge about the role of this tea tradition for the income and food security of mountain tribes. When this knowledge is available, it is possible to find greater solutions to reduce poverty in the region and increase the resilience of tribes to the expected impact of climate change in the years to come.

The routine was this: three days of the week should be devoted to learning about tea. Mr. Shen regularly made tea presentations, demonstrating the proper ways to serve him, his production process, the differences between his types and his harvest.

Mr. Shen was also an activist who sought to ensure that tea production was kept in the hands of local people (as opposed to large corporations) as a way to strengthen the community.

The other two days were to focus on empowering local youth to explore business opportunities in the relationship between tea and tourism, enabling them to start local businesses and work on their own skill sets. This was done through English conversation classes, introduction of specific vocabularies for the young and greater practice of the language, and micro-business planning and development strategies for adults.

A fact that not many people know (and they can travel through the whole country without really noticing it) is that, traditional Vietnamese tea service requires that a set of tea - specifically the pot and cups - never be separated. Like if they are all considered part of a family.

The idea of the family was something that I thought about a lot while volunteering in Vietnam. During my childhood, I always had a house full of family members who gathered for different occasions and celebrations. As the years passed, much of this tradition was lost and many family members were no longer be present in my life. This was something I’ve experienced again while in the country when I was so often taken into a local’s home, treated like a sibling, sharing meals and stories with them.

The tradition of tea consumption and production is very important for the hill tribes of Vietnam. It is a gift given to the guests, as well as a sign of social position and symbol of the cultural memory of past generations. A simple act: the making and drinking tea that represents one of the most fundamental aspects of the culture of that country. Impressive as having direct contact and recognizing the importance of this "ritual" for them made me completely change my perception about my own tea consumption.

I can say that this is one of my favorite parts when I travel to a new place. When you become truly immersed in a strange land, you (re)learn about certain truths that were not so obvious before. And when that happens, the possibility of traveling through a country as an unconscious tourist already becomes non-existent. And for me, that has immense value in the world we live in today where overtourism is so present and also, so harmful.

I had an idea, but it was only with my own eyes that I saw that life in Vietnam is still very difficult. The weather can be cruel at times and the heat can be fatal, especially for young, old and domestic animals. Accelerated industrialization is causing massive changes for Vietnamese residents, within their lifestyle. Climate change issues are very real and the impact is invisible to the eyes of many. At least I had no idea what kind of Vietnam I would find having lived my last years in Europe, where the reality is completely different.

Many people still live in relative poverty. Many villages lack the minimal infrastructure of plumbing or electricity. Much of the population does not even have a refrigerator at home.

In northern Vietnam, where tribal thinking still dominates the social landscape, people are often stuck in archaic ways of life. Children do not have the opportunity to go to school and instead are predestined to work in the field or selling their craft production for tourists.

Tourists. The disorderly growth of tourism in the country was something that surprised me the most and also worried me the most. Little is monitored, much of it is exploited and several times, not preserved.

There are yes, many Vietnamese working in the hope of creating something new. Young people are trying to bridge the gap between old and new without sacrificing their heritage and pride in the process. Homestays are being created to support themselves and provide more authentic lodging for tourists and create programs where young people can learn from their elders in an effort to preserve cultural identities.

But will these measures be enough? I would say no, these are just a start. But it is a start that we can already contribute to.

* If you are also traveling to Vietnam and would like to take part in this same experience, here is the link to the Worldpackers volunteer project