On October 17, Hue Odonto-Stomatology Hospital, in coordination with A Luoi Medical Center, organized a training course titled “Enhancing knowledge for school oral healthcare staff in 2025”, for school healthcare staff from the communes of A Luoi 1, 2, 3, 4, and A Luoi 5.

The stretches of forest in A Luoi not only shelter the villages, but also have now become the livelihood foundation for locals. The Emission Reductions Payment Agreement (ERPA) in the North Central Region has helped people in the mountainous areas gain stable extra income, and more importantly, changed their perspective: Protecting the forest is not just a responsibility, but a right associated with their daily lives.

Amid the majestic Truong Son Mountain, the Pa Co people continue to preserve a sacred festival, where the sound of gongs and drums blends with the flickering red flames. A Rieu Piing is a time to honor ancestors, a communal celebration that illuminates the unique cultural values of the Pa Co community.

The Co Tu people in hamlet 5, Nam Dong commune (merged from Huong Xuan, Thuong Nhat and Huong Son communes) still call Village Elder Tran Dinh Lua (72 years old) the “living treasure” of their village. To this day, he is one of the few remaining people who preserve the sacred sound of the gong that has been intertwined with generations of the Co Tu people.

The sound of gongs echoing through the mountains, the graceful spins of Pa Co and Ta Oi (ethnic groups) dances, once thought to belong only to the memory of old festivals, are now alive again in A Luoi 2. Here, a Co Tu girl named A Rel Thuy Linh, along with local youth, continue to nurture their passion, bringing the heritage of their homeland to life with vibrant performances that immerse audiences in the atmosphere of a true festival.

Together with the Huong River - Ngu Mountain, the conical hat and the purple ao dai of Hue Women are also a symbolic cultural combo that is deeply connected with the locals in the Ancient Capital. And the poet Bui Giang once “fell in love”: The poetic conical hat / Taking you to Hue City / Sunshine pierces the rim / Revealing the soul of homeland in poetry… (Taking you to the city).

Nestled at the foot of the majestic Truong Son mountain range, Doi village (Khe Tre commune) resembles a peaceful and lush green valley. There, a Co Tu girl quietly tells the story of her village day by day, with all the pride she holds for her ancestral culture.

The mountainous areas of A Luoi and Nam Dong (now Phu Loc District) possess a year-round supply of clean, naturally flowing water, making them an ideal environment for sturgeon farming. Capitalizing on this advantage, the local Agricultural Extension Center (AEC) implemented the “Application of Science and Technology to Develop a Sturgeon Nursery and Farming Model Based on the Value Chain in Mountainous Communes of Hue City” project, with the goal of successfully applying scientific and technological advances to sturgeon nursery and farming within a value chain framework.

With more than 25 years of collaboration with Hue Monuments Conservation Center, Prof. Satoh Shigeru, a leading expert in the field of landscape study and urban planning at Institute of Urban and Regional Studies, Waseda University in Japan, has made many interesting discoveries about the mountain-water landscape in Hue. Hue Today Weekly had a meeting and interview with him about his exciting discoveries.

As part of the plan to organize the National Tourism Year and Hue Festival 2025, the spring festival - “Spring of the Ancient Capital” has many unique programs and activities. Not only are there festival activities in the city center, but in the land on the majestic Truong Son mountain range, the “Spring Colors of A Luoi Highlands” festival would create more highlights and impressions for visitors to Hue this March.