Bong Mai, former member of the trio Con gai, cried when launching her first book.

Journalist, director Bong Mai, former singer of the famous Con Gai band, has embarked on a 99-day and night journey across Vietnam, inspiring positive living for those who dare to live a brilliant life.

"If not now, when?", that is the question that the female journalist asked herself as well as millions of women who are still "staying at home". The female director shared: "When I started my trip, many people asked: What are you going to do? Some people even analyzed my responsibility to take care of my children and family and advised me not to go! It's sad that we have to tie ourselves down to things like that. My life is a series of neat "drawers", I know when to open which drawer to use".

The female director also shared that her outlook on life may not be supported because there are still many people who "give" roles and responsibilities to women so that they do not dare to live with their own desires and dreams.

They have to live to make people around them happy and satisfied, but unintentionally bury their own ambitions and dreams deep in their souls. That is what sometimes makes them lonely in their lives.

Up to now, Bong Mai has completed her journey, which includes places in the Northwest mountains and forests such as Moc Chau, Yen Chau, Quynh Nhai (Son La), Tuan Giao, Tua Chua (Dien Bien)... For the first time, she met ethnic people that she had only seen in newspapers and on the internet before.

To make the trip, Bong Mai proactively prepared all necessary items, from personal belongings, working equipment to survival skills and car repair in case of problems.

In addition to inspiring others, the purpose of her trip was to explore and learn about the culture, customs and lives of 54 ethnic groups across the country. The trip was not only an opportunity for her to experience beautiful scenery but also to meet many new people and experience new cultural colors.

The female director said she has learned a lot, from how to take better care of herself when the Covid-19 epidemic has not been controlled yet. Bong Mai also overcame her fear of heights, the dark, or being alone.

At each ag.e, she finds that maturity in life lessons is necessary, and never enough. After this trip, she plans to publish a memoir about the journey, the stories she experienced. In addition, Bong Mai hopes to publish more photo books about women and children of ethnic groups and regions.

Bong Mai plans to soon return to some places where she sees many valuable ethnic cultural values that have been and are gradually being lost. The female journalist has also planned to produce 54 clips about 54 ethnic groups, clips about travel skills, how to pack, and how to handle long-distance travel situations. Along with that, she will introduce cuisine, life, customs, costumes, destinations, and scenic spots on each route.

With the collected documents, the female journalist will conduct discussions, inspiring women on the journey to find happiness.

Journalist and director Bong Mai's 99-day journey across Vietnam began on February 2, 2022 and is expected to end on May 11, 2022. Regarding her private life, Bong Mai revealed that she has two children who have passed puberty, who are friends who always support her on every journey.

Bong Mai's eldest chil.d is 21 years old this year, a student majoring in International Business Administration at British University Vietnam - BUV. The second chil.d is studying at the Military Arts School. Therefore, this is also a favorable time for the female journalist to make her dream trip.

Finally, she shared: "This path can be like Bong Mai's, it can be a journey to find your figure again, it can be a change in job or finding whatever you are looking for...".

Journalist and director Bong Mai, born in 1977, is a former member of the famous 3-member Con gai music group. She has 12 years of working and producing at VTV3, 3 years as manager of VTVcab Education and Entertainment Content Production Center. Currently, Bong Mai is working at Ngay Nay newspaper.

Recently, the daughter of the late musician An Thuyen - shed tears many times when sharing about her first book titled "Traveling: Colorful costumes of women of Vietnamese ethnic groups", to learn about culture, life, people and especially the characteristics of each ethnic group through costumes and inspirational stories.

"On the way, I received enthusiastic help from the border guards and local people. They welcomed me warmly and were willing to invite me to eat delicious food even though sometimes we didn't even know each other's names," she confided.

In his first book, the author researched and vividly recreated 55 unique costumes with nearly 1,000 details on the costumes from meetings with people of 35 ethnic groups, opening up stories about culture, history and tradition.

The costumes are drawn and redesigned by a group of Gen Z youth. The book takes readers into the colorful space of costumes for Mong, Khang, Dao, Tay, Nung, and Thai ethnic women. Each costume has its own unique characteristics, and the people preserve its identity through each pattern, weaving, embroidery, dyeing, printing, and beading techniques.

Author Bong Mai shared: "This is not a cultural research document like the previous generations did. However, I hope the book will become a reference document, to verify what belongs to the national costumes remaining in the middle of a century of industrialization and technology. That is also what I hope to contribute my small effort to the journey of cultural preservation."

At the event, Bong Mai also expressed her gratitude to her father, musician An Thuyen. The author said that her father was a collector and researcher of culture since he was very young, when he was working in Nghe An.

"And on this journey, I met An Thuyen's father in my story, as well as myself in his story. My mother and I performed the song "Em chon luong nay" - a work composed by An Thuyen's father - expressing my feelings during the days of wandering to the localities to collect the beauty of Vietnamese culture", Bong Mai said emotionally.

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