Sa Pa

Following our cruise, which was scenic and relaxing, we were taken back to Hanoi to wait to catch the night train to Lao Cai. We had a four berth soft sleeper, we were lucky that we were with friends Rob and Erin from New Zealand so there were no worries about trusting who we were sharing with.

We did find out that although there was food available on board the train the options were limited. We were lucky that Wayne had the foresight to find some snacks on the platform and we washed these down with a drink from the same vendor and I was soon fast asleep. We were met by our guide at the railway station in Lao Cai. He took us to a restaurant for breakfast before travelling on to Sa Pa.

Sa Pa is a delightful town approximately 36 km uphill from the railway station. Along the way we passed many local people who were starting out on their daily activities. Lots of them were walking along the side of the road. Walking is a main means of transport, as well as scooters, for many of the hill tribe people.
The local market had some interesting food ...not sure I would want to eat some of it.
After dropping off our bags with un-needed clothes we set off on our trek.

Day one was a 14 km walk, starting from the town, down into a beautiful valley. In this valley there were a number of small villages and the rice terraces that we had come to see.

Our first glimpse of the rice terraces from the road leading to the track.

We stopped for lunch at a restaurant after about 3 hours of walking downhill. (I guessed we were going to have to walk up at some stage!) The track was definitely mostly a walking trail up to this point.
It was steep and stony dropping from a road down into the main river catchment. All along the way were people working the rice fields; it was harvest time so there was much to be done. Cutting rice, threshing it, sifting it to remove husks and also bagging rice, are all done by hand. We had two local young girls attach themselves to us as we walked.

They were chatty, and helpful, we found that they do this to trade with us tourists and if you don’t buy they can get upset.

Wayne is crossing one of the bamboo bridges. We weren't sure this would hold us but was amazed at how strong the bamboo is.

We enjoyed the walk from here which was along a road that was used by local motor scooters, to get in and out to the main road, which was across the river. The pace of life down in here was so different, with so many interesting things happening around us. It was great to soak in the atmosphere.

Following are some of my favourite photos of the first day of trekking. We wore good trekking shoes/boots, the locals wore plastic sandals.

I think her face says it all.

Seems to be normal attire for all in the region. Black H-Mong people.

We were hot and bothered and so were some of the locals.

A brilliant sky background makes this picture.

A typical busy scene.

The home stay was a home beside the river which was set up with guests beds on the top floor(marae style). These were mattresses on the floor with mosquito nets. The hosts slept on the ground floor. The river had a good swimming hole. It was fun, relaxing and the evening meal was very nice. Our guide was good, making sure we enjoyed the experience and spending time with us after dinner chatting and drinking local tea and happy water – rice wine.

The homestay place. Lovely place to stay, beautiful food, lots to see and do.
Cutting the rice. People of all ages work in the rice fields.

Catching grasshoppers for the guides' singing birds.

This young lady doesn't use shoulder straps to carry her baskets.
The next day we walked out going further down the river. We had an interesting experience when a local insisted we go up along the path and not through the rice fields. She was not a happy camper, (throwing mud at us – onto me and the guide) our guide was upset by these actions. It meant we had to climb uphill and walk through bamboo jungle. Once again full of new, exciting views.

Erin being braver than me at the waterfall.

We stopped by a big waterfall before crossing over the river and climbing up to the road to eat a local lunch. I couldn’t eat this...it was buffalo and had a very strong flavour. The van met us and took us back to Sa Pa. As we left in the van the rain started to fall. With a free afternoon until dinner time we enjoyed wandering around Sa Pa in the rain. Shopping was very cheap.
Dinner that night was with our guide and his family. We walked up to our guide’s house and had yet another meal that was a feast. It was cooked on the floor in a hotpot. They live in a one room house – with a small kitchen annex joined on outside. We want to find out the recipes so I think we might need to go back for lessons. Our guide was an excellent host, with a delightful wife and daughter.

The next morning was free time again (and it was raining) , with lunch and then another trek through CatCat village. After this trek we travelled back down to Lao Cai to catch the overnight train to Hanoi. We explored Lao Cai which is very much a rural service centre. There were lots of friendly people who spoke to us as we wandered around exploring.

Ha Long Bay

Where do I start...this was an absolutely wonderful experience, magnificently beautiful, absolutely stunning and serene

After catching our flight on Tuesday to meet up with Rob and Erin in Hanoi, we travelled by van down to Ha long Bay. the trip was quite eventful in its own way. One of the guys developed some kidney problems and had to be taken to a local hospital...would not be my choice but i think it was the best place for him to go to.

When we arrived in Ha Long bay, I was not prepared for how many junks there would be touring around these wonderful islands. there seemed to be hundreds and we didn't know which was going to be ours.

Ours was a lovely small one that could only take 7 couples, we were so lucky.

Sailing around in this junk was just awesome...and I didn't even get a little bit seasick once we started moving. even when we anchored for the night the water was so calm.

I was not prepared for the sheer magnitude of the islands and there beauty. One of our stops was to walk through a cave, it was huge. After this we stopped off for a swim and the waters were very warm.

The meals on the junk were superb. Well presented and yummy to eat. and not a sign of any chili. An onion flower - and yes i did eat the onion petals.
these flowers were made from peppers, carrots and cucumber.