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Published: January 11th 2016
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The overnight train journey from Hanoi to Sapa was not the most enjoyable experience so far. We shared our sleeping compartment with two young men from Holland who were very good company. We chatted for a couple of hours before we attempted to sleep but even then both Chris and I hardly had any sleep for the rest of the 8 hour journey. The beds were quite hard, the train was noisy and the air conditioning central system made it too cold - not very good preparation for our 12 km trek that morning! We were met by our guide and driver at the station then undertook an interesting drive up into the mountains on hairpin roads to Sapa. Vietnam doesn't seem to have any rules of the road, even if they do everyone ignores them! All drivers are itching to overtake the driver in front of them, even when it is unsafe to do so. It makes travelling around quite hair-raising!
Our guide, Lin (pronounced Lan) lived in one of the local villages in the Sapa Valley where there are a number of different minority communities who live a very basic lifestyle and can be distinguished by slight differences
in their traditional dress. We started our walk in quite misty conditions which began to clear as we progressed. As we left Sapa, we were followed by 2 ladies from the H'Mong tribe. Our guide explained that they would check the safety of the route we were following and offer us a hand on the more slippery parts of the track, which they did very effectively. Chris needed to have his hand held on a very narrow bamboo bridge! We followed a route into the valley down some very steep, rocky and muddy pathways passing through terraced rice paddies. The views en route were spectacular but we were quite relieved to reach the village of Lao Chai at the bottom of the valley. Lin had given us a very good insight into the way of life for the local communities and our additional helpers asked us lots of questions and gave us their life stories on the way. On arriving at the village they showed us some of their handmade goods and we paid some highly inflated prices for some embroidered purses and bags but it seemed well worth it. Lin then took us to her home to meet her
family. The house was made of bamboo with a corrugated roof and a very uneven concrete floor. The one room had two double beds which took up most of the space and there was no running water or tolet but they did have a computer. She and her husband and their 9 month old daughter share the house with her mother in law. However simple the lifestyle, Lin was a lovely, cheerful individual who has learnt to speak english by following other tour guides for 6 months and talking to tourists! We were innundated with more local ladies trying to sell us goods while we stopped for lunch but it is impossible to buy from everyone!
In the afternoon we continued on to Ta Van and this time were followed by two ladies from the Dzay tribe who also produced beautifully embroidered bags etc, We parted with more money and nicknamed them 'the Sapa Muggers'. They were all very friendly and welcoming and we were privileged to meet them and see how people manage in very difficult situations - an example to us all. There are downsides to tourism but Lin explained to us that since the Sapa valley
opened up to tourists 10 years ago, women's lives have improved considerably. Previously, women never had a say in anything, their husbands ( who can still have more than one wife) ruled the roost. The women now have an outlet for their handmade goods and they have gained more independence as a result of this. I just hope they manage to retain their traditional lifestyle.
On our second day in Sapa a small group of local girls who had spoken to us the day before managed to find us again - more purses! We then walked to a different village in the afternoon, a quieter route chosen by Lin because she thought we deserved a break from the sellers. It was a very memorable two days - mainly due to our delightful guide, another good hotel with very friendly staff and last but not least a spectacular location. We shared our compartment with a very pleasant couple from Costa Rica on the way back to Hanoi and we even managed to sleep!
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Gerry Herd
non-member comment
Vietnam
Hi J & C Lovely to read your blog this morning, looks and sounds amazing love the photo's. You haven't really mention the food hope you are enjoying some of the local cuisine, have you tried the street food, whatever your eating Chris seems to have shoot up he's looking very tall:-) Lins house sounds a bit like Tonys except he dosen't have a computer!! Really makes you appreciate what you have, glad you are enjoying yourselves what an exprerience. Look forward to the next instalment! Lots of love G & H xx