Sapa

Spot the Europeans among the locals! Ella was right at home and Grace was a giant.

Sapa would have to be one of my favourite places and not just for the place itself but for the people. We had a guide who took us to our homestay for the evening and she had such a great sense of humour and good English so we could find out a lot of information and share stories. What was so great was that we walked along the same tracks, 12kms in total, that they took to walk between their villages. This gave us the chance to smell and hear and see what the locals are doing rather than just from a window. We could hear and see the interaction between the locals which was often very entertaining. They are friendly people the Hmong and they have their own language. In fact, the villages have different languages and they are really only a stone throw apart. Pingh (our guide and my new bff) took us to a village that had a flowing river! Needless to say, after walking I was desperate to plunge in and we did. Travelling with us were a Danish couple and two Argentinian brothers. They were all good fun and we were together for two days. In that time it is incredible how you can bond through sharing a similar experience. We struck Sapa on a good day. We had good views once the initial mist cleared and then blue sky and plenty of sun. Sapa is very lush and fertile. Every available space has been planted with rice and crops that the locals use to dye the clothes. We saw how the clothes were woven and how they dye them. The fibres are hemp and Pingh explained that the locals don't smoke the marijuana, just the tourists do! We walked along clay banks, through the bush, past houses where dogs lay, children roamed, chickens scratched and locals cleaned. What was not pleasant were the hawkers selling their wares. three or four people shoving bracelets and bags in your face is fine but the come in waves and it does not matter that you have already bought something, because "you did not buy from me." There are only so many items made from this fabric that one person can have and I did not really want anything.
From Sapa, we caught a very nice overnight train to Hanoi.