Every day two Cham women sit in the lobby of the Victoria Can Tho Hotel to weave tho cam, a special type of fabric woven from hemp or cotton (brocade).
Why in the hotel’s lobby? Because the hotel by the Hau River in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho wants to introduce the unique handicraft to its guests.
In fact, it wants guests to be able to see and taste as many specialties as possible.
Bao Thi Hoang Nhu and Le Thi Hong Ngao, both from the central province of Ninh Thuan, share their knowledge of tho cam from 9:30 a.m. till as late as 9 p.m.
It is also enjoyable to watch them skillfully handle the weaving loom and listen to the clattering sound from the equipment.
Those who like what they see can venture straight into the shop also in the lobby, selling the differently designed scarves and fabric of the Cham ethnic minority of Ninh Thuan and of Chau Doc in the Mekong Delta.
Open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., the shop also sells other handicrafts and souvenirs, such as stone artworks, interior decoration items, postcards, chopsticks and bamboo fish-catching baskets.
Once guests have finished shopping, they can learn about more southern traditions. Near the pool local artisan Le Thi Nguyet demonstrates how the region’s non la (conical palm-leaf hat) is made, curving bamboo stems, shaping the hat’s frame and covering it with palm leaves.
Besides chatting with Ms Nguyet, who works daily from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., guests can try to make hats themselves. After that they can bring the hats to Ha Thuan Trung, who waits nearby and paints landscapes of the Mekong Delta on them.
For more shopping, guests can return to the lobby to buy various types of rice wine.
If they are then still in the mood to shop more and taste more regional specialties, the hotel arranges a free shuttle boat to Ninh Kieu Wharf from 7 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. From the wharf they can walk around Can Tho to discover what the locals are doing during the day and night.
Those who just want to relax can, of course, also stay at the hotel’s pool and listen to the engines of passing boats or get a massage. To meet the increasing demand for the latter, the hotel has opened three more massage parlors by the river.
Victoria Can Tho has just launched a US$49 summer package comprised of a one-night stay at a superior room, a welcome drink and fruit basket, a breakfast buffet and a 45-minute massage.
Located in a quiet part of Can Tho, the hotel has 92 rooms with eight suites overlooking the Hau River and the Au Island.
