First experience of duck massage
Nestled in the middle of Hau River, Con Son has long been famous as an attractive community eco-tourism destination, with fruit-laden gardens. Even more special, farmers in the islet have constantly created, turning familiar animals such as frog, snakehead fish... into "actors" in entertainment circuses. These are frog jumping around, snakehead fish... or most recently the unique "massage duck" service.
This "massage duck" service is a highlight that attracts tourists at Phuong My garden of Ms. Bui Thuy Lieu (41 years old). Under the wooden hut in a durian and grapefruit garden that is bearing fruit, visitors will be guided to sit on a low wooden chair, relaxing their feet on the water surface. A call of "ative,ative,ative" from Ms. Lieu immediately attracted the attention of the ducks swimming in the pond.
Accordingly, this herd of ducks and geese flapped their wings, swam up and climbed stairs in a rhythmic manner to get towards the visitors' feet. When the food handles were spread down, dozens of sparkling duck droppings hit the skin, creating a feeling of both relief and delight.
Mr. Nguyen Hai Lap (a 24-year-old tourist), burst out laughing and shared: "This is the first time I have experienced it. The feeling of being massaged with ducks is hard to describe, both fun and interesting. Farmers here are very creative, but they don't know how to let those ducks be so bold and good at interacting."
Also expressing her excitement, Ms. Tran Thuy Linh (a tourist from Ho Chi Minh City) excitedly said: "I have been to Con Son many times, but this time it was really surprising. The feeling of massaging with a duck handle is very unique, painless but instead relaxing".
Arresting the ducks
Before this unique "massage duck" service, Ms. Lieu only raised ducks with grass for eggs to process into dishes to serve tourists. However, when she saw many visitors expressing their excitement and taking pictures with the ducks, this woman came up with the idea of massaging the ducks.
To have such a bold and friendly flock of ducks, Ms. Lieu said she had to go through a persistent training process. She took a flock of ducks about 15 days old and patiently sat for months to get used to eating on human legs. The closeness and gentleness helped the shy ducks become bold.
When the ducks have been around for more than 2 months, their food is strong, and the mines are strong, Ms. Lieu will launch tourism products right on the occasion of National Day on September 2. Going beyond expectations, Ms. Lieu was surprised when the herd of massage ducks attracted many tourists, especially children and foreigners.
"I have to wait for the ducks to be big enough and healthy enough to be able to massage to please tourists. Here, this flock of ducks will both serve tourism and lay eggs every day. I will raise the ducks until the old ducks die, not make them meat," Ms. Lieu shared.
