PROFILE - Ly May Lai

Five years ago I befriended Ly Mai Lai. I was living in the village at the time and she was the shy girl who never really talked. I later found out that she had stopped going to school younger than the rest of the girls in her village. And, her English was almost nonexistent.

Because of her proximity to where I was staying we had the opportunity to become very good friends. In the fields, collecting wood, and at dinner, I would practise my Dao-ness, and she would be practising her English.

Today, Ly May Lai's English has become so good that she has just become a tour guide for international trekking tourists coming to Sapa. She has learned about tourists and tourism through running one of the most successful homestays in Ta Phin village.

Just after the CIDA funded Capilano University tourism capacity building project, Ly May Lai, learned from other Ta Phin homestay owners, to start her own. Her brother and father built a complementing addition onto their home; following traditional Red Dao architecture. Ly May Lai, met and networked with day-tripping tour guides and invited tourists to her house for lunch. The connections she made became business partnerships and her homestay has seen regular occupancy ever since.

She is however very busy, and especially with her new tour guiding job. This young entrepreneur has begun training her new sister-in-law in hosting guests, cooking and even English. In August (2010) she created a mini-business development plan outlining some short term goals which included: enhancing her menu options for homestay tourists, building a new herbal bath room, and decorating the guests' common area.
We will continue to post updates on May Lai's developments as she continues to excel as a youth leader in her community's tourism.

Context - Setting the Stage

YVR; HKG; HAN is 14 hours.

Visa stamps, baggage collection, and then WHAM - you've just walked into a semi-solid wall of humidity. You can feel the air as you walk through it, the rest of your senses are trying to get used to what you see, smell, and hear.

Nothing can prepare you for the next morning. Those who wake up early will venture out into the busiest of streets.

Motorcycles and more motorcycles. Food vendors, tourists, and excercise groups are drawn to Hoan Kiem Lake. However, you are here on a mission; you have a meeting at 9 am sharp.

Meetings and meet-ups, quick dinners, running arounds and last-minute fix-ups, the excitement builds as we prepare the final touches on modules and gather training materials. Tonight we board the train.

When you arrive in Lao Cai train station there is a flurry of activity before we find ourselves daydreaming on the bus up to Sapa. The highs and lows of Vietnam never cease. Extreme extremes challenge your body, challenge your patience, and inspire you.

And then there is Sapa. The energy is astounding. A hundred years worth of travel stories have been collected and interpreted between a multitude of cross-cultural interactions and histories.

Sapa is the main tourist centre. Sitting at the highest elevation of any populated area, the hotels, shops, restaurants, travel agencies, and government buildings are adorned in French influence. Below this busy hub of activity, and seen from easy-to-find vantage points, are the small hilltribe villages. They dot a terraced landscape that is worked on an annual basis. Subsistence farming is the means to which the Hmong, Dao and Day feed themselves.

These villages are also where tourists will go to take their pictures, do their trekking, stay in authentic cultural homestays, buy their handmade souvenirs, and hopefully learn something.

It is in two of these villages, Ta Phin and Lao Chai, where we will do the same, and then some.

Students from Capilano University get involved - the application process begins!

Beginning the week of November 8, interested students from Capilano University will be putting together application packages expressing their interest in traveling to Viet Nam as part of the next two Canadian trips to work in Ta Phin and Lao Chai (estimated timeline is March and June of 2011 for these trips). After submitting their applications (due Tuesday, November 16), students will be participating in a competitive selection process including both a group assessment on November 19 and individual interviews the following week.A total of four students will be selected to participate (two students on each trip).

We are looking forward to gaining the involvement of several more students at a local level in British Columbia as well, to contribute to a variety of initiatives such as fundraising for the project, helping with lesson planning and preparation of classroom materials, and compiling information to promote the project to external audiences.

Stay tuned for profiles of the students who have been selected to participate!

A message to all interested students...

To those students who are interested in gaining more information on the project, have questions, inquiries, concerns, or better yet, would like to start some discussion on this blog please feel free to comment here!

Those questions that could spark discussion will be copied as posts. Lets see if we can get some dialogue going, and make good use of this blog.

Information Session at Capilano University

Today an information session was held at Capilano University. It was attended by Capilano Tourism faculty and a number of interested of interested students from Capilano's Tourism Diploma, Degree, and Outdoor Rec Programs.

A number of topics were covered including: Tourism in Vietnam and Sapa, Past Projects, and details of the current PATA funded Capilano Tourism Training Project. Students were also told that four positions will be offered for students to join the team on future trips to Vietnam. From the turn out, it would appear that there will be some excellent candidates to strengthen the team and the project

Chủ đề thảo luận 1 – phát triển điểm đến

Những “chủ đề thảo luận” này được viết ra để khởi đầu cho những cuộc thảo luận mang tính chất xây dựng về nhiều chủ đề. Những chủ đề đó được thiết kế để khuyến khích khách du lịch, tư nhân, chính phủ, sinh viên và bất cứ ai cống hiến cho blog này.

Việc đào tạo đang được làm trong bản Tả Phìn dựa theo những dữ liệu đã được thu thập về xác định nhu cầu nhu cầu cũng như nhiều cuộc thảo luận với người dân địa phương, khách du lịch, tư nhân và nhà nước. Việc đào tạo được thiết kế để giải quyết cả về nhu cầu của người dân địa phương, về vấn đề của những người bán hàng rong ( Đây đã là lý do khiến một số công ty du lịch dừng việc đưa khách du lịch tới Tả Phìn)

Phần lớn việc đào tạo đã tập trung vào khả năng kinh doanh với mục tiêu giúp cho một số người dân địa phương có thể tiến hành kinh doanh nhỏ ở trung tâm thị trấn. Kết quả có thể thấy được là sự phát triển của một số cửa hàng nhỏ , nhà hàng, quán cà phê, v.v.. dọc theo đường đi của du khách do người Dao đỏ sở hữu và điều hành. Nhiều cửa hàng của người Việt đã được thuê từ người Dao đỏ có thể bị thay thế và những cửa hàng mới có thể được xây dựng.

Câu hỏi: Khách du lịch hiểu như thế nào về phát triển của điểm đến? Khi nền kinh tế của bản thay đổi ở trung tâm, nó sẽ ảnh hưởng tới cuộc sống người dân địa phương như thế nào? Nếu như những người bán hàng rong được thay thế bằng những cửa hàng nhỏ phục vụ khách du lịch, tư nhân, bạn sẽ hỗ trợ như thế nào cho những dân tộc trong nỗ lực của Tả Phìn

A word of condolence

In Taphin, there was a young boy named Ly Lao Su who filled our classes with a joy and an enthusiasm that inspired everyone. He attended almost every class smiling and giggling as he drew pictures, practiced English and participated in the village clean-ups. Tragically, he died on the third day of our trip. His joyful spirit will live on in our memories as we move forward. 

Ly Lao Su (just right of centre) after participating in a workshop learning about
environmental stewardship in which many children in the community
spent time picking up litter around the village.

Training Trip 1 - Complete!

A week and a half have passed since we (Chris, Kim, and Jen) have made our return to Canada. Overall, the first training trip was incredibly successful. A huge thanks goes to our training team leader Ngoc Anh, and her Hanoi Open University Student Assistant, Trang; cam on rat nhieu!

From learning how to hold a pen so that they could draw pictures, to coming up with personal goals to build new skills in tourism, to drafting a community plan for a new community house and market, the village learners impressed us with their keenness, enthusiasm, and growth.

Here are some of the details of what was accomplished:

• A total of 15 training sessions were completed in Ta Phin and Lao Chai;
• Cohorts ranged from Children (4 - 16), Young Entrepreneurs (16 - 35), Small Business Owners, Street Sellers, and Local Government;
• Modules included: Environmental Stewardship; Tourists' Needs and Wants; Tourists and You; Introduction to Community Based Tourism; Marketing; Community Tourism Planning, and Homestay Development.
  

Hanoi Open University student Trang working with local business owners.

• Learners have indicated a need to develop individual skills (tourism related) and have created plans to learn them in the next 4 months
• Entrepreneurs and Small Business Owners have developed rudimentary business plans to either start, improve or grow their businesses through marketing, networking, or small infrastructure developments. They have also agreed to complete their plans in the next 4 months.
• Lao Chai community members have expressed an interest in developing new opportunities in tourism in their community through homestays.
• Ta Phin local authority is enthusiastic about gaining knowledge in Community Tourism Planning and have agreed to create, support, and help build the capacity of a Community Tourism Planning Committee made up of tourism stakeholders in the village.
• The first of a series of community planning sessions was held (attendees included: Ta Phin community members, local youth, local government, Sapa Trade and Tourism). A draft plan for a Ta Phin Community House / Tourism Market spearheaded by the Ta Phin community was a key outcome of that session.

Some of the children sitting in on a lesson in Entrepreneurship.

We are currently compiling and synthesizing all the information and data collected. Stay tuned for profiles of some Ta Phin residents and fun stories of our time in Vietnam and in Sapa. Once again, a very successful trip! We have all gained so much from the experience!

DISCUSSION TOPIC 1 - Destination Development

These "Discussion Topics" have been written to begin healthy, productive discussion and debate on a variety of topics. There are designed to encourage tourists, private sector, government, students, anyone to contribute to this blog.

The training that is being done in the village of Taphin is in response to the data gathered in the needs assessment as well as numerous discussions with locals, tourists, private and public sector. It has been designed to address both the verbalized needs of the locals the problem of street-sellers (which has been the reason for some tour companies to stop bringing tourists to Taphin).

Much of the training has focused on entrepreneurship with the goal of seeing some locals starting their own small businesses in the Taphin's town centre. This could eventually see the development of a number of small shops, restaurants, cafes, etc. owned and run by the Red Dao along the tourists 'strip'. Many of the Vietnamese shops that have been rented from the Red Dao may be replaced and new shops may also be built.

The question: How will the tourist interpret the destination's development? As the economy of the village changes within the town centre, how will it impact local life? Will it? If the street-sellers are replaced with small tourist shops, private sector, how will you support the peoples of Taphin's efforts?

Day 3 - Training in Taphin and Lao Chai

We are about to start the third day of training. Already we have trained the small business owners, young entrepreneurs, street-sellers, and local authority their first, and some their second, lessons. The classes have been filled with energy and enthusiasm.

With the small business owners we have had to adjust the training content to a higher level. The young entrepreneurs have expressed that they would like to start a variety of small tourism businesses ranging from coffee shops, souvenir shops, and even horse / buffalo-and buggy transportation services.

In the first class we had with the street-sellers, some participants dressed up like tourists while others acted as street-sellers in an attempt to give the women an idea how tourists feel when they are bombarded by the street-sellers. 

Finally the local government participated in a training session where some community issues were fleshed out. They will be participating in another workshop on community based tourism later in the week.

Yesterday in Lao Chai, the Hmong community expressed that they want to start homestays for tourists. However, they voiced a variety of concerns during the meeting. Their concerns included the availability of resources, sustainability, financial risk, and capacity. Today, Chris and Ngoc Anh will be returning to Lao Chai to complete the first homestay lesson, while Kim, Jen and Trang continue working with the residents of Ta Phin.

Second Trip Begins - Sapa Arrival

All the packing and planning; the three hot days in Hanoi finalizing the training materials and lesson plans; the night train, and the one hour drive up to Sapa, have added up to this: our arrival in Sapa!

Even though we were greeted by our Hmong friends in the rain, we are all happy and safe. Our morning included a short walk to a favorite breakfast spot followed by a trip to the market. In the lobby of the hotel we are pleased with our purchases of umbrellas and rubber boots.

We can see blue patches of sky trying to make their way through the clouds. The sun should be out soon!

New CBT team members

Two new members have been added to the project team. From Capilano University's Tourism Faculty, Kim McLeod and Jen Reilly both have a wealth of experience in planning, resource management and tourism.

Kim's education began with a Bachelor of Arts in Geography (minor in Arachaeology) from Simon Fraser University. As her studies continued, her focus expanded to centre on sustainable tourism and she received a Master of Resource Management from Simon Fraser University. As a tourism consultant, Kim has played a key role in a number of projects in British Columbia including assessing best practices and developing new products for Aboriginal tourism, playing a fundamental role in crafting the Whistler Environmental Strategy, developing agritourism product for the Canadian Farm Business Management Council, and more. Kim is currently the convenor of the Bachelor of Tourism Management at Capilano University and teaches in the Faculty of Tourism and Outdoor Recreation. She is also the chair of the British Columbia Tourism Management Articulation Committee.

Jen has spent the last 15 years immersed in the tourism industry. Her experiences in the tourism industry include a combination of tourism research and planning, and work in the adventure tourism sector. After completing an Adventure Travel Guide Diploma and Bachelor of Tourism Management from Thompson Rivers University, Jen owned and operated a successful adventure tourism company in Squamish, BC. Jen then continued her education with a Master of Resource Management (Planning) from Simon Fraser University. Currently, Jen teaches in the Faculty of Tourism and Outdoor Recreation and Applied Business Technology at Capilano University, and also works as a consultant doing a variety of tourism research and planning.

Homestay Training in Lao Chai

The primary trekking product in Sapa is a three hour trek, for the most part descending into Tavan. For many years this has been the route for tourists and Tavan has seen rapid development. But along the way, Lao Chai has merely become a place where many have lunch in Vietnamese owned restaurants set up along the trail, and take pictures of the quaint Black Hmong village communes.

There is yet to be a network of true Hmong homestays for the intrepid traveller who truly wants to be cultured. In recent years, the Capilano University / Hanoi Open University community-based tourism project funded by CIDA built capacity of some Red Dao residents in Taphin. The homestays, although not as busy as the ones in Tavan, have been an enormous success with the locals who have set them up, the tour operators, and the tourists.

Over the next two years, the Sapa Authority has asked if Capilano University would agree to bring some of that expertise and knowledge to the Hmong people in Lao Chai. With enthusiasm we have agreed, focusing only on homestay development. Members of the Lao Chai Hmong community have also expressed their enthusiasm.

First Trip Complete. Needs Assessment. Outcomes.

Chris Bottrill (Dean, Faculty of Tourism, Capilano University) and Chris Carnovale (Capilano Tourism Graduate) completed the first of seven trips to Sapa early July. Along with Tran Nu Ngoc Anh (Vice Head of Tourism Lecturer) and student Bich, from Hanoi Open University, the team conducted a needs assessment and secured partnerships with the Sapa Authority, Sapa Sport Culture and Tourism, and the Taphin Community.

Among the activities on our first trip, meetings, discussions, interviews and workshops were held with:

• Regional and local governments;
• Local women / street-sellers;
• Small local business owners;
• School teachers;
• Women's Union;
• Local youth;
• Sapa tour guides;
• Sapa tour operators.

The key issues that arose in the meetings, discussions, interviews, workshops, and observations included:

Positive Results

• Tourists' homestay experiences have been generally positive for tourists;
• All stakeholder groups are aware of problems associated with aggressive street-sellers;
• Street-sellers and community members see the benefit of setting up a type of stall/market for selling to tourists;
• Community groups have expressed a willingness to learn;
• Local community members have recommended topics for possible training areas;
• Community has shown an increase in self-confidence;
  

Challenges

• Street-sellers are hurting the tourist experience in Taphin village, especially on half-day trips from Sapa;
• Street-sellers do not understand the negative impact they are having and how to change;
• There are communication gaps between the tourism networks (government, community, private sector);
• The community does not yet know how to get together to solve their tourism-related problems;
• Individual people and stakeholder groups work separately from each other;
• A lack of capacity (skills, knowledge, and resources) for business development exists in the community;
• Village is looking increasingly dirty and locals do not know how to manage the environment;
• Villagers are discontent about the current outdoor market (opened the weekend we arrived) for various reasons.
  

Training Plan

• Training for local community members of Taphin in: business development, understanding the tourist, better selling skills, looking after the environment, and developing events;
• Training for local government on community based tourism planning;
• Planning for a Taphin community house that is a central place for community members and tourists, and designed by locals for locals.

Taphin Street-sellers Abound

The small town of Taphin is still quiet and quaint at 9am. Local Red Dao women are sitting in small groups, sewing, and gossiping about their husbands. Dogs, chickens, even a lonely buffalo are making their way at a healthy pace that mimics the gentle breeze coming down from the hills. In the surrounding hills, above the terraced rice paddies are the small communes of about 25 families each, where all these women have come from. They are sitting at the entry to Taphin village waiting. Waiting for the tourists.

You can first hear, then see the tourist buses and jeeps making their way down the last hill before the village. Then it is a free-for-all of activity and chatter. The women jump out of their focus on their needle and thread, throw their bamboo baskets - doubling as small shops - on their backs and latch onto a potential buyer.

They are selling a variety of brocade items as souvenirs. Some extremely high-quality hand-bags and hats from authentically Red Dao, others bought wholesale from other local tribes or from factories.

This scene happens twice a day - in the morning, and again just after lunch. Some tourists don't mind local women accompanying them as they walk the one main road to the Taphin cave and back. Yet, there have been others who would rather not have the local sellers follow them through the village, and some have actually had an unpleasant experience.

Is it a logistical problem? Challenges with regards to equal benefits being shared with community members? Could it be an act of desperation? Does the key to the solution lay in the tour guides? Or, is that the locals do not understand that if this activity continues, the tour companies bringing the tourists will stop coming?

First Impressions. Return Trip to Sapa; Taphin

Still as busy as ever, Sapa remains an attractive destination for international and, more so, Vietnam's domestic market. The colourful Sapa markets were packed with tourists and the usual local street sellers.

In Taphin village, a story of mixed opinions has evolved since the last time Capilano University was there (3 years ago). Slightly increasing were the numbers of overnight stays. Complementary to that was a sustainable increase in the number of homestays and guest houses.

However, according to the companies that were running day-trips to village, a plan to cut back the number of trips was in effect. The reason: the high number of street-sellers combined with visitor dissatisfaction as a result of 'impolite' locals and arguments between the street-sellers themselves and the tourists.

Capilano University / PATA partnership

Building off of a successful five year Community Based Tourism Training Project funded by the Canadian International Development agency, Capilano University has partnered with the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) in an effort to further the tourism capacities in Taphin village.

The initial project - a CIDA funded capacity building project from 2002 - 2007 - delivered training in two villages within the Sapa region. In Tavan and Taphin, training in English, tourism product development, food safety, first aid, sanitation and maintenance, homestay development, and HIV / AIDS awareness were offered to community members. In addition, 50 ethnic tour guides and 20 Vietnamese guides working in the Sapa region were trained in tour guiding skills.

"training will be delivered in business development, entrepreneurship, understanding the tourist, better selling skills, environmental stewardship, community tourism planning"

For the next two years, student and faculty trainers from Capilano University and Hanoi Open University will continue what was started in the previous project, focusing on the village of Taphin. Training will be delivered in business development, understanding the tourist, better selling skills, and environmental stewardship. Attention will be placed on the local women and youth. Training in community tourism planning will also be delivered to local government.

Sapa

A colourful mosaic of culture, ethnic markets, and inspiring landscapes, Sapa has attracted visitors for almost one hundred years. Located in the northern province of Lao Cai, the area was first developed as a mountain retreat for the French colonists.

"visitors are welcomed by an unavoidable friendliness."

Sapa has become a favorite destination on Vietnam’s tourist list. Beyond the tourist centre lies a network of ethnic villages, home to the Black H’mong, Red Dao, Day, and Tay. Connected by a web of trekking possibilities, visitors are welcomed by cooler temperatures and an unavoidable friendliness.

Tourism has played a contentious role in the growth of Sapa throughout its history. As in most tourist destinations, both negative and positive impacts are evident. As tourism continues to develop, safeguards and proper training will be crucial in the sustainability of both the ecology of Sapa and the integrity of its communities.