Taking place from May 19 to October 5 in LaPan Tan commune, Mu Cang Chai district, the exhibition is jointly organised bythe Vietnam Association of Architects, the Yen Bai Association of Architectsand the Mu Cang Chai People’s Committee.
The display is the first of its kind in Vietnam and the second in the world,following the Crystal Cloud garden created by artists Andy Cao and XavierPerrot at Swarovski Crystal World in Australia.
Together with local landscapes and light effects, 59,000 crystals, which aremounted atop bamboo and steel poles on wire netting in the shape of clouds, areexpected to create a romantic atmosphere for tourists.
The colourful crystal clouds create agarden of 400m2 in the middle of the magnificent terraces, providing anattractive experience for tourists visiting Mu Cang Chai.
The same day, the paragliding festival openedon Khau Pha pass in Mu Cang Chai district, offering visitors a chance toparaglide over the terraced rice fields to enjoy the panoramic views of Mu CangChai’s well-known landscapes.
Located at 1,200m above sea level, Khau Phais one of the most beautiful destinations for paragliding, not just in Vietnam,but in the whole world. It is also one of the longest mountain passes inVietnam.
The festival is held twice a year, in Mayduring pouring water season, when farmers make the water run into their fieldsto start a new rice crop, and in September when the terraced fields are full ofripe rice.
The event is held by the Vietwings HanoiParagliding Club and Mu Cang Chai authorities from May 19 to 20.
Mu Cang Chai has 500 hectares of rice terraces in La Pan Tan, Che Cu Nha and DeXu Phinh communes, cultivated by the Mong people for centuries. The localterraces are among the 2,500 hectares recognised as national heritage sites in2007 by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
The locality is about 1,000 metres above sea level, making it impossible toadopt rice farming method from the deltas. Local residents grow rice interraced fields to prevent water flowing downhill.
Terraced fields in Mu Cang Chai are beautiful all year round. Visitors in Marchcan see glittering ponds before locals transplant rice seedlings from April toMay. After May, the hills are covered in green until the fields start to turnyellow with ripe rice in early September. During the harvest in October, thegolden rice fields stand out amidst green forests.-VNA