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Photographers in Vietnamese village - 9th February 2024

An old tradition and Instagram tourists have come together in a Vietnamese village. These days, Quang Phu Cau's known as 'the incense village' because several small businesses produce incense sticks there. They're so colourful that tourists visit to get the perfect photo.

Dang Thi Hoa's an incense maker, just like her parents and grandparents before her.

Dang Thi Hoa: "I am proud of our family's traditional craft and I love my job. I also feel happy as our village has become more well known."

The custom was for incense sticks to be red or pink, but this has changed now. It's common to see yellow, blue and also green incense sticks.

Sarah's a Belgian tourist.

Sarah Vanmalderghim: "It's a perfect combination of the traditional craft that you can see here. And it's nice to take photos with all the colours. So it's wonderful."

The busiest time is before the Lunar New Year. This period's called 'Tet' in Vietnam and it's a time for people to join together at temples. They burn the sticks to remember people who they've lost.

Nowadays, the locals are joined by tourists. Businesses make sure that visitors are looked after. The tourists are shown what to see and where to take a good photo.

For only $2, tourists are allowed to take photos and they can also buy the incense sticks for a few cents. For local incense makers, the money's very welcome.

Catherine, from the Philippines, is pleased to have this opportunity.

Catherine Caro: "I have never seen anything like this one. So in terms of experience, I think this is new for us. And then the place is very nice, very colourful, and it's, it's really an Instagram worthy place."