Hanoi has long been home to hundreds of craft villages. Over the years, many of the crafts have develope while some have disappeared altogether.
The heart and soul of Hanoi's vibrant old crafts are its craftsmen and women. One such couple are Nguy Van Hoa and his wife Dang Huong Lan of Ba Dinh District's Hang Than Street. They are among the f artisans still making elaborate cardboard masks in order to preserve the traditional culture.
Although the work itself requires many steps, the materials required are simple: newspapers, glue, pa and paintbrushes. The first step entails tearing the newspapers to pieces and then using glue to combine th into a mold. The masks are painted one color at a time and then laid out to dry. Cardboard mask makin therefore dependent on dry weather and the couple can only make about 2,000 masks per festival. These priced from VND25.000 to VND 35.000 a piece, bringing in VND50-60 million - a sum is not commensu with the efforts that go into making these elaborate crafts.
The continuity of traditional crafts adds to the capital's attractiveness in the eyes of citizens an nternational visitors.
1. Who plays role as the heart and soul of Hanoi's crafts?
2. Which traditional craft do Mr. Hoa and his wife preserve?
3. How many materials are there to make that craft? 4. Which kind of weather does the craft making process depend on?
5. How much is a piece of cardboard mask?