Legend has it that Khum, who was good at farming and hunting, fell in love with Ban, who was skilled at weaving and sang beautifully. However, Ban’s father had arranged for her to marry into a rich family. Distraught at the decision, Ban ran to find Khum and, exhausted, collapsed at the foot of a mountain. A strange tree with white flowers grew at the place where she laid, which was later called “ban”. Khum, meanwhile, upon hearing the bad news, hurriedly ran to find Ban. He went up and down the mountain before falling down beside the ban tree and turning into a bird. Since then, whenever ban flowers are in full bloom, people always hear birds chirping.
The northwestern region is dyed with a marvelous white during March, with ban trees now planted in many parks and streets around the locality.
Over the past time, Son La city has made great efforts in recent years to plant ban trees all around town.
Many visitors descend upon Son La at this time of year to enjoy the ban flower festival. The flowers have become a symbol of this peaceful and hospitable land./.
