The Impacts of Tourism on Socio-Economic Development

important but it is the place where the Dao people organize family activities. And is chosen by tourists.

“I had the opportunity to attend a family’s initiation ceremony recently. While walking on the street, I saw that the family had put up a lot of colored papers on the door. I asked the tour guide about it and wanted to see it. At that time, the tour guide came in and asked and the family agreed to let me watch. After that, my family and I sat in that family’s house to watch them perform the ceremony. I asked and was told (Chong Akkharadet knows Vietnamese) that this is a ceremony that takes place in most Red Dao men from the age of 13.”

(CHONG AKKHARADET, 37 years old, tourist from Thailand)

Our second interview was with an American tourist, born in 1971. The topic we wanted to ask here was about information before coming to Sa Pa and impressions when tourists arrived in Sa Pa.

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“Dao, I found them friendly and hospitable. They were enthusiastic when they took us to visit the cave and they told me about their lives, their work and their families. There were so many people here that as soon as my family got out of the car, they came to the door to welcome us and invite us to buy their goods. I found their way of selling quite agile, they were there in a flash and they were friendly, they showed us around and talked to us.”

(JOEL KENDALL, 45 years old, American tourist ).

Through the second interview, we found that both domestic and foreign tourists assessed the selling behavior of the local people as making them not interested in buying or feeling annoyed when visiting tourist attractions where they kept offering tours. When we interviewed the group of tourists in Ly village, Lao Chai commune to see how the tourists felt and then see if the phenomenon was similar to that in Sa Xeng village, Ta Phin commune.

We stayed at a Hmong house that ran a homestay business in the village. According to our observations, in addition to the homestay business , the owner also sold souvenirs and displayed a loom for weaving. However, we saw that this loom was no longer used for weaving, but instead served as a place for visitors. This told us that they had adapted well to tourism services and knew how to serve tourists to increase their family income.

2.3.2. Domestic guests

Previously, the number of visitors to Sa Pa was limited by the means of transport from Hanoi to Sa Pa, but in recent years, when the Noi Bai - Lao Cai highway came into operation, the number of visitors to Sa Pa increased day by day, not only on holidays but Sa Pa has become a weekend destination for tourists from all over the country to Sa Pa. This has had a significant impact on the tourist landscape of Sa Pa and the lives of ethnic minorities here are also affected, especially the two groups of Hmong and Dao communities. The Hmong and Dao communities are the largest ethnic groups in Sa Pa district. They are the subjects of Sa Pa cultural tourism. They are influenced by tourism activities. To find out the feelings of Vietnamese tourists about Sa Pa, we had many interviews with groups of visitors, delegations from all regions of the country to Sa Pa departing from Hanoi.

Group of guests from the Northern provinces:

Every year, many groups of tourists from the Northern provinces come to visit and relax in Sa Pa. It is impossible to monitor and interview all groups of tourists from the Northern provinces. Therefore, we chose to interview a number of randomly selected groups.

“I still like to attend the love market of the ethnic young people here, dancing with umbrellas and blowing pipes, along with dances that show the form of courtship. Sometimes I also like to join in dancing with them. Before, I saw these young men and women, some of them were “performing” while one or two were holding hats and walking around where the audience was standing to ask for money. But this year (January 8-10, 2016), I saw that the young people were more polite, they made a box made of aluminum and glass so that when tourists watch their performance, they can put money in that box.”

(NHQ, 32 years old, tourist from Hai Phong)

According to our many observations, the “love market” nights every Friday and Saturday take place in the central courtyard in front of the church, mostly consisting of teenagers from grades six to eight, divided into groups (about four to five groups) and dancing with pipes and umbrellas. These techniques they have learned for a long time.

early (when we observed a group activity of primary school students in Ta Phin commune, we saw that first and second graders already knew how to dance according to their ethnic traditions). They often invite each other to town on weekend evenings to dance together and earn money with their labor in a legitimate way.

On the same issue, we interviewed Mr. TBM, a youth union officer in Hanoi who traveled to Sa Pa. In the interview, we wanted to know how tourists feel about the Hmong culture.

Dao in Sa Pa in tourism activities and Mr. TBM said

“Regarding the Hmong and Dao people, my initial feeling was that I felt sorry for them. They are so poor that they have to come here to sell goods to earn a living. I feel sorry for the little children who have to sell goods to earn a living. But the further I go, the more I feel that their way of selling creates an uncomfortable feeling, when they follow me around to buy goods, now children also ask for money. It's a pity not to give, but after giving, I guarantee that later there will be about ten children asking for money. When you go to enjoy grilled food with friends, they also come out to ask for skewers of meat or something, which is also offensive to tourists. The love market is no longer a love market, my friend, the young people come out to perform and ask for money, it's not really a place for couples to get to know each other anymore. Going to Sa Pa, three days and two nights is more than enough. I think if Lao Chai and Ta Phin have an art troupe to serve tourists, not only me but also many other tourists will be very excited. You can see the performances of ethnic people that always attract tourists, typically Ham Rong and Cat Cat are always crowded with tourists coming to watch.

(TBM, born in 1984, tourist from Hanoi)

Group of guests from the Central and Central Highlands provinces:

Tourists in the Central and Central Highlands regions are tourists living in areas with many ethnic minorities, the culture of the ethnic groups living in the area is no longer strange to tourists. Although no ethnic group is the same, each ethnic group is a different cultural treasure, creating regional appeal. According to our survey, this group of tourists has little need to travel to Sa Pa for many different reasons, including the reason that the landscape and climate are similar to Sa Pa (mainly in the Central Highlands). The group of tourists choose to go to Sa Pa partly because of their taste to go to Sa Pa to see the "love market" and want to climb Fansipan,

The rest is the need to go to Sa Pa to know. Among the many guests we had the opportunity to talk to, the opinion of a tourist from Da Nang is typical.

“The ethnic people sell from early morning until late at night, I don’t know how much money they make a day, but looking at them, it’s cold and they don’t have much warm clothing. The vendors, both old and young, sit along the sides of the road in the biting cold, but they still sit there hoping to sell their goods, hoping to sell something to earn extra money for the day. Looking at them sitting huddled in the cold, but still dozing off, a while later a group of customers passed by, they saw the scene and felt sorry for the child, they gave them money and they also wanted to buy something for him. When selling, the child’s eyes were still closed and he said the price of the product, when the customer asked again, he looked at the product and said the price again. There was no need to bargain, the customer in that group was willing to pay the child for the price he quoted. After walking a short distance, she saw two Hmong sisters sitting and selling goods. The older sister held her baby in her arms and sat on a step by the roadside of the restaurant to sell. While the older sister had her mouth and eyes open, the baby in her arms was sleeping just as much as the older sister.

(Ms. NTNL, 53 years old, tourist from Da Nang)

Group of guests from the Southern provinces:

According to our survey in this thesis, tourists who come to Sa Pa for the first time want to see and learn about the cultural identity of the Hmong and Dao ethnic groups and the highland market. As for tourists who come to Sa Pa for the second and third time, what they want when coming to Sa Pa is the climate and the mountainous landscape of Sa Pa, not the cultural elements of the Hmong and Dao ethnic groups here. What they have formed in their minds after their first trip to Sa Pa is the scene of street vendors following them, inviting them to buy goods. When they do not have a need to buy, they still follow them until they buy, then they do not follow anymore. As for the guests, they see street vendors following them, inviting them to sell goods, and they buy partly because they feel sorry for the street vendors, and partly because they want to buy so they do not have to follow them anymore.

“The street vendors’ products are not beautiful in design, they are not local brocade products but are imported from China or from the lowlands and sold wholesale to them with ethnic designs.”

(According to Ms. TPM, 37 years old, a tourist from Ho Chi Minh City)

However, the buying and selling between tourists and street vendors does not stop there. When following the group, there are not just one or two street vendors, but a large number, from seven to eight, even up to 17 and 18 people, as we observed (under Ta Phin is the most typical example of the crowd, they invite customers to buy with words like " buy, this is beautiful, you bought from someone else, buy one for yourself ...") they invite customers to buy at all costs, otherwise it will be difficult for them to continue their journey.

“I felt uncomfortable when a group of people followed me from the moment I set foot on the ground. When I met them, I refused to buy anything, but that group of people kept following me to the tourist attractions in Ta Phin, making me feel uncomfortable when visiting and sightseeing here.”

(Mr. TQH, 34 years old, tourist from Ho Chi Minh City)

Here we divide the domestic tourist group into three different groups, the tourist groups' demand for enjoying the cultural values of ethnic groups in Sa Pa is different. For example, Northern tourists come to Sa Pa a lot in the summer to avoid the heat of summer, while in other seasons they want to explore new phenomena in Sa Pa, for example, snowfall in Sa Pa, when the temperature drops below 0 0 C in winter. As for tourists from the Central, Central Highlands, and South, the demand for travel is often in the fall and winter. Because they want to feel the cold in Sa Pa and the culture of ethnic groups in Sa Pa. The above analysis shows that the number of visitors to Sa Pa occurs regularly throughout the year, not seasonal, this has helped the Hmong and Dao ethnic communities have more income and stability throughout the year.

Chapter 2 Summary

In this chapter, through studying the exploitation status of travel companies, we have surveyed some cultural values of the people under the impact and viewpoint of tourism exploitation as well as its impact on the lives of the Hmong and Dao people in the two research areas. It can be affirmed that

The Hmong and Dao people in the study area have recognized the benefits of tourism activities for the ethnic groups. On the other hand, tourism companies have taken advantage of traditional ethnic cultural values to build and provide tourists with tourism products. Thus, they have created opportunities for ethnic children to participate in tourism services in an informal way. According to the process of tourism development, many new occupations have been formed through tourism services. In terms of the economic aspect, many Hmong and Dao households in the two study areas have changed for the better.

CHAPTER 3

DISCUSSION ON TOURISM ACTIVITIES

ASSOCIATED WITH THE CULTURE OF THE HMONG AND DAO ETHNICS IN SA PA

3.1. The impacts of tourism on socio-economic development

3.1.1. Creating opportunities for integration into the market economy

The massive increase in tourists in recent years, followed by the rapid development of restaurants, hotels, large-scale projects such as the cable car to Fansipan, some 4 to 5 star hotels have created opportunities to expand contact with new people, increase resources and the amount of information exchanged, which has changed the appearance of the Hmong and Dao communities, making them clearly aware that the outside world is completely different from the cradle they live in. In this process, the perceptions of phenomena, concepts of events and society of local people have profound changes that outsiders see the impact of commerce on the culture of the community. It is this commerce that motivates people to go beyond the invisible wall of the traditional self-sufficient economy so that the community can take advantage of new business opportunities more effectively, forming new economic perceptions and thinking methods to satisfy the essential needs in life. These needs will change in the future, when people in these two research areas enter deeper into the market economy.

Thanks to the exchange of information through the market, people are able to meet more of their personal needs. People begin to pay attention to the changing needs of the market, thereby orienting or adjusting their production methods to create products that promptly meet the tastes of tourists.

In addition, the people in these two research areas face many difficulties and challenges such as language barriers, customs and behaviors. These difficulties, only when they know how to recognize what they lack and are weak in, will they have the ideology to overcome and turn opportunities into advantages to enrich themselves, their families and the community.

3.1.2. Expand communication and understanding

First is the form of communication between tourists and local people through sales. Next is the form of communication between business people outside the town and local people through the exchange of goods and the help of the Kinh people in adapting to the market commodity economy. Vendors and street vendors on tourist routes want to communicate with tourists to understand customs and learn English to sell more to tourists. Communication with tourists and the open market for tourism goods have stimulated the demand for new products from tourists among local people, while stimulating the development of production and exchange of goods to increase revenue from tourism.

3.1.3. Increase investment

The boom of Sa Pa tourism in recent years has prompted the State and local authorities to have new perspectives, re-evaluate the tourism potential and re-plan Sa Pa tourism. According to the Chairman of the People's Committee of Ta Phin and Lao Chai communes, the People's Committee of Sa Pa district has approved the project to upgrade the road to Lao Chai to 6 km and to Ta Phin to 12 km using the state budget and Sa Pa District Tourism Development Fund. When the upgrade of these two routes is completed, it will promote tourism on the two routes Sa Pa - Lao Chai - Ta Van and Sa Pa - Ta Phin, from which the people of these two localities will benefit from the increasing number of visitors, promoting tourism in the two localities to develop more strongly than at present.

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