http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Asia , Vietnam , Northwest en-us Sun, 19 May 2013 01:19:08 +0000 Sun, 19 May 2013 01:19:08 +0000 If Sapa is the phantom presence you can never quite grasp one whose impending absence haunts you even as you sit in the soft quaint majesty of it39s powerful mountains and sprawling valleys then what hope is there for those of us who have come and left can such longing ever be quenched or will there always be a sense of emptiness for that which once was and may never be again. But that is http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Lao-Cai/Sapa/blog-785687.html httpworldtravelbuzz.comtravelsmummaintergenerationaltravelvietnam http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/blog-785264.html Bo and I had bought hard sleeper tickets to the train from Hanoi to Sapa and expected and kind of hoped for the experience as well wooden beds which unfortunately wasn39t the case. Instead we discovered that the only difference between hard and soft sleeper was that there were 6 people instead of 4 people in a room in a hard sleeper and the beds was a bit wider in the soft sleep http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/blog-785184.html Wow after 3 weeks in China I hadn39t realised how much I missed talking to English speaking people It has really made me realise just how few Westerners I didn39t see in China. I made my way to Vietnam by bus a 8 hour journey crossing the border I was so excited as Vietnam has been on my hitlist for so long and I have heard so many great things about the country culture and landscape. T http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/blog-785173.html Tourists to Sapa this at this time On the way to conquer Mt.Fansipan the roof of Indochina with the height of 3143m above sea level you have the opportunity to catch many flowers blooming red rhododendron mountain side.Scientists have discovered an area of 3143metres in the Hoang Lien Mountain Range that has up to 36 types of Do Quyen flowers that grow naturally.lttable classtrcapt http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Lao-Cai/Fansipan/blog-783779.html On a cycling trip across north Vietnam Kevin Rushby finds that.By Kevin Rushbylttable classtrcaptioncontainer stylepadding 4px marginbottom 0.5em marginleft auto marginright auto textalign center cellspacing0 cellpadding0 aligncentergtlttbodygtlttrgtlttdgtlttdgtlttrgtlttrgtlttd classtrcaption stylefontsize 13pxgtBiking http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Hoa-Binh/Mai-Chau/blog-783092.html By Joseph Ferrislttable classtrcaptioncontainer stylepadding 4px marginbottom 0.5em color 333333 fontfamily arial fontsize 14px lineheight 22.390625px float left marginright 1em textalign justify cellspacing0 cellpadding0gtlttbodygtlttrgtlttd styletextalign centergtlttdgtlttrgtlttrgtlttd classtrcaption stylefontsi http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Lao-Cai/Sapa/blog-782440.html Next up was Sapa and I39d been looking forward to it for a long time. I took an overnight sleeper train from Hanoi which is an experience in itself. I paid a little extra still only about 20 for an 8 hour train ride to the cold mountanous region of Sapa. I shared a cabin that was supposed to hold four people with a family of 6. There was the grandmother the mother her two babies her co http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Lao-Cai/Sapa/blog-782285.html As a country with every terrain imaginable Vietnam offers a memorable bicycling adventure for any and all peddlers regardless of experience or condition. The flat expanse of the Mekong Delta grows to rugged mountains in the central expanse and then blends into the widest variety of difficulty north near Hanoi.ltstrong stylefontsize 1.4remgtTraffic and Bicycle LawsAlong with standard la http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Hoa-Binh/Mai-Chau/blog-781522.html Mai Chau a small town in the northern mountainous province of Hoa Binh Vietnam was named one of the top ten fresh Asian destinations. lttable classtrcaptioncontainer stylelineheight 18px color 333333 fontfamily arial fontsize 14px textalign center border0 cellspacing0 cellpadding0 aligncentergtlttbodygtlttrgtlttd stylecolor 444444 fontsize http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Hoa-Binh/Mai-Chau/blog-780315.html The housesonstilts nestled between the mountains the yellow terraced fields and green primitive forests. white cloud aroundmaking a natural and wild picture dream. That is scenery you may see when arriving Nature Reserve NR Pu Luong.lttable classtrcaptioncontainer stylepadding 4px marginbottom 0.5em color 333333 fontfamily arial fontsize 14px lineheight 22.390625p http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/blog-779654.html Trekoutside of Sa Pa Day 2 Sunday December 30 2012We wanted an easy walk so we trekked to two villages up and down the local hills through the rice paddies of Lao Chai and Ta Van Village.We went to firstly Lao Chai village 6 km from the centre town where the Hmong people are living. The trek was through rice fields and quite steep. The most difficult part was walking and balancing on the http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Lao-Cai/Sapa/blog-777963.html I apparently don39t know what region any of the places in Vietnam I went to are in but I39m talking about Hanoi Ok I figured I39d write this in case anyone else is in need of info for getting their India visa while vacationing in Hanoi.Turns out it is incredibly easy to get your visa it just takes a few days.First fill out the online application and print it out. When you are filling i http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/blog-777071.html Hotel in hanoi Hoi An VietnamA highlight of a trip to Vietnam Hoi An is a town oozing charm and also history having largely escaped the destruction of successive battles. When a sleepy riverside village its today truly surely a traveler town with hotels diners pubs tailors and souvenir retail stores dominating the familiar centre. Despite this air of irreality Hoi Some kind of s http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Lao-Cai/Sapa/blog-776707.html The bus ride that I was suppose to fear was pleasant enough. I passed out and before I knew it I was there. Where are these horror stories coming from With a destination in mind I grabbed my bags and started walking but not before chewing down on some more street food. I chatted it up with some locals who knows what they were having me say and then moved on. I found my hostel and instantly sta http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/blog-776529.html SummaryHome Stay H39mong villiageRead more... http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Lao-Cai/Sapa/blog-776304.html SummaryHanoi to Lao CaiRead more... http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Lao-Cai/Sapa/blog-776303.html After months of research for our second road trip through Vietnam we decided on the following circuit.Saigon 3 nights The Evergreen Hotel great clean location location helpful staff upgrade and interesting for meandering. Park outside.Dal Lat 3 nights Dreams 1 Domestic flight with VASCO one way clean brilliant breakfast jacuzzi is a bonus location ok good for meandering 2 nights http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/blog-775939.html Allo tout le monde J39ai quitte le Vietnam le 7 mars avec une pointe de nostalgie. J39ai beaucoup aime le pays et j39aurais aime rester plus longtemps mais de nouvelles destinations m39attendaient Avant de partir nous sommes alles a Sapa passer 3 jours. On a pris le train de nuit et en arrivant on avait booke une randonnee de 2 jours dans les petits villages autour avec nuit chez l http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Lao-Cai/Sapa/blog-774802.html The International Women39s Day is coming It is time for you to the woman whom you admire and respect through show your love gratitude and appreciation.On this occassion ACTIVETRAVEL ASIA wishes all female travelers in this world Wishing youll get everything to take the world in your stride. Happy womans day lttable classtrcaptioncontainer stylepadding 4px marginbot http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Hoa-Binh/Mai-Chau/blog-774530.html