Vietnam - Sapa

The time had come for another concentrated dose of culture, complemented by some solid exercise, so Grant and I signed up for an overnight trek out of Sapa, a mountain town in the northernmost region of Vietnam. We had heard some stories of the beauty of the terrain and hilltribes, but even with high expectations going in (something I've generally learned to avoid), I was still astonished by what lay before my eyes on the journey.

As if hiking for 12km in a day wasn't enough on a cold start, we did this just after a 9 hour overnight trainride with a shockingly loud breathing local and a transfer shuttle up the sickeningly windy mountainside. We were rewarded for our initial journey to Sapa with an all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet at a European style hotel. Banana crepes, eggs, hash browns, and fresh fruit where spread on silver platters before us. Of course I stuffed my face like a true American (all in preperation for the journey!). Grant, representing England, would not be outdone and had a competing helping including bacon and sausages.

Now that we were 'ready-to-roll' on the trail, we started the descent towards the lower town of Lao Cai. Grant and I were lead by a charming and witty 25 year old guide named Tui who offered insight, stories and jokes along the way.

We watched farm animals, lush green rice paddies and low-slung bamboo houses materialize amidst the shroud of mist in the early morning hours, while the Dragonhead shaped mountain top gazed down on us.

In Vietnam people prefer legends to explain their wondrous land. Tigers gain their stripes from trying to outwit man amongst flames; buffalo lose their top row of teeth by accidentally crunching rocks while eating and laughing at the tigers misfortune. Protective limestone karsts and high peaks are formed by dragons whipping their tails against the earth. The mist provided the perfect atmosphere as we listened to Tui tell us these stories, and our imagination afforded us anything otherwise lost from the usual vista points.

Grant, me and the kids:


Zhao people and their handmade wares:
Helping out around the house by grinding corn for the farm animals:Advanced irrigation systems for the mountainside rice paddies:
Nature at another angle:
Mist Beast (water buffalo):
Me and Tui:
Tui frying-up our hand-wrapped spring-rolls:
I showed everyone how to make an AMERICAN sized spring-roll:
The homestay owner at the end of the table kept the ricewhisky flowing during the meal of epic proportions:
Unfortunately even the strong spirits couldn't stop illness from getting to me the next morning. I was out of commission with food poisoning for the rest of the day and had to be motorbiked out. :