Dinh Yen Mat Village is located about 33 km away from Sa Dec City, Dong Thap Province. It has existed for nearly 100 years. It is now an attractive tourist address.
The village lies along the bank of poetic Hau River. In spite of the passage of time and industrial development, the mat village has still stood stably. The main material to make mats is sedge trees. The mat weaving craft is handed down to younger generations in the village. At present, about 7o% households still specialize in weaving sedge mats.
Every household in Dinh Yen village has one or two weaving looms. It is a fascinating spectacle for visitors to see the whole family together making mats, choosing sedge strings to dry, weaving and decorating.
For a long time, the sedge mats have connected with the life of Vietnamese. People still use the mats to sleep or sit on not only in homes but also in sacred places such as temples and pagodas. In Vietnamese culture, a pair of beautiful sleeping mats is very important for newly-weds and a mat is considered part of many love stories.
Coming to Dinh Yen Mat Village, tourists will have a chance to attend the village’s market. The markets are always animated by young female sellers who enthusiastically introduce to customers various kinds of mats, diverse in colors and patterns. In the wharf are hundreds of boats of traders from different provinces who go to the market to buy mats. Each trader buys 500 to 1,000 mats to sell all over the nation. The market is also the place where mat-making materials from Sa Dec, Vinh Long, etc., are sold.
Dinh Yen Mat Village in Dong Thap is one of famous trade village in the Mekong River Delta. If you have a chance to travel to Dong Thap Province, spend the time visiting the village. By the way, you can visit some trade village in the province such as Tan Qui Dong flower village in Sa Dec CiTy and La Vung Nem Village in Lai Vung District.
