Ever heard of Sapa?
I hadn’t. Not until the first two volunteers I met at FLO told me about it.
“So what’s been one of your favorite places to travel to in Vietnam?”
“Sapa,” they replied in union, “Yes, definitely Sapa.”
And then the physically smaller of the two–who btw Rick, the cameraman, loved to call the troll . . . : ); the other young lady was nicknamed the giant . . .; yeah, they made a great pair–she, the troll, started talking a mile a minute about the nice Hmong lady who guided them on their hike had told them all about the area. “It’s so beautiful!” she continued.
“Hmm, Sapa,” I thought to myself. “Maybe I should make that happen . . .”
And I did. The following shots have been chosen from a long list of shots; the task of editing these down was the hardest thus far. I took so m a n y amazing shots! It’s easy to do in Sapa; it really is breathtaking there.
“Where is Sapa?” you ask.
In Northern Vietnam, close to the border with China. I took a night train from Hanoi. The train left that busy city around 9 p.m., and by 6 a.m. I was in a minivan with lots of other tourists heading along the narrow road to Sapa. About 45-minutes later I arrived in that cute mountain town. (My first thought upon entering Sapa? “It’s the Gatlinburg of SE Asia!”)
Enjoy!
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| I shared the cabin with a lovely couple from Israel and a young Aussie girl; the rest of her family was next door. |
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| Water buffalo are e ve r y w h e r e in Vietnam! (even on busy highways!) |
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| She was working in a practically black chamber with only the light coming in from the open door to work by. |
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| Locals hanging out in one of the villages we trekked (i.e. hiked) through. |
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| “It looks like Tuscany,” the beauiful Israeli woman said; “Yes, it does,” I replied. |
(Have I ever been to Tuscany? No, but I’ve seen movies. : ) |
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| We have a few of these flowers growing by Rocket Girl’s house. |
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| This guy had the biggest darn teeth! He seemed to love showing them to us. |
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| A cute, shy girl with a Tigger umbrella who didn’t know any English. “Okay,” she said to the request to take her picture. (At least that’s what the guide told me she said.) |
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| Lunch break. We ate upstairs in a house used for “home stays.” Our guide had brought food which was cooked there by the family. It was good: Pho (noodle soup) made with water buffalo meat. No, I hadn’t eaten any red meat in ages, but figured I’d give it a try; it was okay, a bit tough. Two bites was enough. But the noodles and broth was yummy! |
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| Their “job” is to follow tourists as they walk on their trek. These ladies had left their village early in the morning; they were returning home (as they walked beside/behind us). And why do they do this? To sell something to us, that’s why! There seems to be a “rule” that they have to wait till the end for their sales pitch. “Where are you from?” they love to ask as we walk along. “The moon!” was my standard reply. “I’ve come down to earth to see how you live; it’s nice!” The gal on the right “tagged” me; I bought two bags that are earmarked for my sister Hannah. I figure she can use the design in a quilt maybe, or not, up to her. |
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| We walked up hills and down to dales . . . and yes, over bridges. |
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| This guy looked up. I waved. “You’ll have to marry him now!” the guide said. “Oh really?” I asked. No worries Tones, I kept walking. : ) |
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| I bought the purse I’m wearing from the young gal on my left; her mom made it. AND, I gave her my purple purse which I’d been carrying for 4.5 months. I was thinking that I’d leave it in the hotel room (like I’ve been slowly doing with lots of my clothing), and then thought, “Why not just give it to her?” She seemed jazzed. (It was cold in Sapa; that’s a new jacket I’m wearing . . . ) |
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| Vietnamese scarecrows. |
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| Yes, they were literally right with us the entire trek. |
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| How long of a walk? you ask. About 5-hours. We left at 9:30 a.m. and were back around 4:00 (after having about an hour lunch break). A van picked us up for the 12 – 16 km or so return. I hiked two days in a row. |
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| These guys were assembling a building. |
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| My last day in Sapa I went to a village which only happens on Sunday. Thought of you Marcie! |
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| The mountain villagers come from all over to buy and sell at this market. |
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| That puppy was so cute; I hope he wasn’t “marked” to be sold for food . . . it’s all part of the market. : ( |
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| Locals dining. |
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| Locals shopping . . . and getting their hair cut. |
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| This person was returning from a day working in China. |
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| We stopped at the border for a look. |
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| OMG, I hope that’s not what I ate in Luang Prabang! This was at the market outside the train station; we had a few hours to “kill” in this arm pit of a town (like all areas around train stations and bus depots the world over). |
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| Oh . . . being in Vietnam is making it easier and easier to not eat meat; these guys wanted out of their cage so very badly! |
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Okay den, Aloha everyone. Until we meet again.
-sj
AND
though this was posted on Monday, October 10th in Vietnam (Hoi An), I realize that it shows October 9th (the date in Hawaii).
Right now, as I type, my husband of 25-years is throwing himself a bash of a party in Kokee, Kaua‘i.
Happy Birthday Tones!
May you have many, many more healthy and happy birthdays!
Sat nam.
