To enter the Jun Village is to step into a time of highland legends and poetry.
Houses on stilts built in the distinctive architectural style of the Central Highlands stand in the shadow of century-old trees; and women work on looms, still dressed in the traditional attire of the ethnic minority community they belong to.
The village, located on the shores of the Lak Lake in the district of the same name, is home to 30 families of the M’nông R’lăm community. The largest village in Dak Lak Province’s Lak District has preserved its traditional culture through generations.
It is a major tourist attraction now, presenting visitors with a breathtaking landscape of mountains and lakes in which they can ride on elephants, and enjoy cultural performances put on for their benefit.
An incredible highlight of a visit to the village would be to sit at the door of a stilt house on a full moon night, feeling the cool wind blowing in from the Lak Lake, and inhaling the scent of mountains and forests that it carries with it.
Gathering around a keg of the Can Wine –a special kind brewed in the western highlands – and listening to elders recount ancient legends, visitors are transported effortlessly to the land of dreams and fairy tales.
The Jun Village also offers visitors the chance to go rowing in dugout canoes on the Lak Lake and enjoy a feast of Lam rice, grilled in bamboo sections, served with special fish and eel delicacies cooked in the highland style.
Hundreds of acres of farmland add to the rustic beauty of the village, and visitors during the festival season can round off their experience in a carnival atmosphere as the air is filled with the sights – of traditional dances – and the sounds – of gongs and other instruments.
The peak tourism season in Jun Village is from March to August.
