Vietnam's 'incense village' blazes pink ahead of lunar new year
"Incense village"
It is the most frantic time of year for workers in the cottage industry in Quang Phu Cau village on the outskirts of Hanoi, where families have been making incense for more than a century -- a great source of pride for many.
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A spiritual job
Her village is among several dotted across Vietnam making the sticks, the scent of each batch tailored to the tastes of regions they will be sold in.
(In pic: Dang Thi Hoa sitting in a courtyard as workers stack incense sticks in the village of Quang Phu Cau on the outskirts of Hanoi.)
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Sales
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Family business
Selling her sticks to central Vietnam, Hoa can earn up to $430 a month leading up to Tet, a tidy sum in the country where the average monthly income is $195.
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The process
Some hack bamboo planks down to be fed into a whittling machine; others dip the thin strips into buckets of pink dye, leaving hundreds of brightly coloured bushels fanned out like bouquets on the streets to air out.
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Good money
The work offers more than just pride for many in Quang Phu Cau: like Hoa, many earn good money making incense compared to factory work nearby.
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Handing over the craft
That said, she's happy her two other kids have decided to work with her.
"We need at least one to work in the business so they can take over in the future."
(In pic: Le Thi Lieu carefully picking incense sticks kept for drying on a street in the village of Quang Phu Cau.)
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