Blogs from Ha Giang, Northeast, Vietnam, Asia - page 3

I’ve just come back home from Hà Giang province after traveling over 1,000km overland on a 5-day tour (14/4 to 18/4/2012). Hà Giang is the northernmost province of Vietnam which has 274km border line with China. The province is home to 22 ethnic groups (mainly ethnic minority people) and it’s famous for the best mountain scenery in Vietnam. This is my second trip to the province. Eight years ago I traveled to Hà Giang on a business trip. My impression on the trip was the red color of dust over houses and trees along Highway No. 2, as the road was under construction. After meeting with the leaders of the province, I traveled with a Japanese manager to the Vietnam – China border gate (22km from Hà Giang city) and we visited a market on the ... read more

Halong Bay consists of hundreds of rocky island cliffs shooting up from the sea randomly like an obstacle course of floating islands from Avatar. A junk boat is a three or four story cruise ship that looks a lot like a pirate ship. Our junk boat was not junky at all, actually it was fit for kings and queens. The dining hall where they fed us extravagant 7 course meals had glass doors and windows all around. Our room had a/c, a full bath, nice beds and huge windows. On the top deck there were lounge chairs so you could relax like a guilty pirate taking in your fortune to be in such an unreal place. Halong Bay is petitioning to become one of the new 7 wonders of nature so the government is aggressively protecting ... read more

Monday 28th March 2011. Breakfast of bread, fried eggs and a red coloured jelly, which may be replica jam (sugar and E numbers, I guess). A steady run for 7km back to the bridge we crossed yesterday and turned left following the river and then started to rise over some stiff climbs. We stopped for lunch half way up a hill and the sun came out for the first time this trip making the temperature rise to 25-30 deg C and it was a hot afternoon. The van drivers made a good lunch on their burner and wok of chips with garlic accompanied with cucumber, tomatoes and warm tinned tuna. Due to the distance to go today we were picked up by the vans at 3.45 and taken over the Mia Pi Leng Pass to Dong ... read more

C'est parti. Après quelques centaines de mètres sur la route goudronnée, nous obliquons vers un chemin. La montée est rude, il fait chaud, quelque chose comme 36°C. De temps à autre un air de vent agite les palmiers et sèche un peu la sueur qui s'empresse de perler à nouveau quelques secondes plus tard. Le regard est attiré par les éclats de micas dont le sable rouge est parsemé, ils reflètent et amplifient les rayons filtrant des nuages et en renvoient une lumière intense et irisée. A la première halte, nous découvrons ce magnifique sourire qu'arborent souvent les jeunes filles et les femmes vietnamiennes. Celles-ci appartiennent à l'ethnie des Mongs bariolés que nous retrouverons un peu plus loin au cours de notre voyage. D'autres pauses désaltérantes permettent de mieux apprécier la beauté des paysages, de détailler ... read more

Le ballet des deux-roues chargés de marchandises ne s'est pas interrompu. Premier arrêt au cœur d'un petit marché sommaire où s'échangent vêtements et fruits entre des tas de détritus. Oranges, noix de coco et sa bogue verte, fruit du jacquier, dont l'épiderme est orné de petites aspérités triangulaires et régulières, pastèques mais également de nombreux légumes ornent les étals branlants. Un peu plus loin, halte salutaire pour estomac criant famine. Au menu : pousses de bambous et aubergines au vinaigre, porc grillé aux graines de sésame, morceaux de bœuf et ses oxalis, pousses de patates douces agrémentées d'ail, omelette aux herbes et riz. Pour la digestion, un thé vert particulièrement amer est servi mais il reste plus appétissant encore que l'alcool de riz contenu dans ces bocaux trônant sur l'étagère où barbotent cobras, scorpions ou autre ... read more