Magnificent Sapa

Oh how I had dreamed of Sapa. This was the epiphany of my trip, what I had been waiting for all along. After more than two months travelling, I could not wait to get lost in the beauty of the green, foggy mountains of rice fields!

Unfortunately, Chris had to stay in Hanoi because he needed to get his work permit sorted out for Thailand. With only a few days left, I decided that a short independent trip would be great for me anyway, a new experience and a reason to test my ability to travel solo.

After saying goodbye to Chris, I took a taxi to the train station Friday evening. I had read that overnight sleeper trains offer comfort and security. Road safety being an issue and having tried long-haul buses in Vietnam already, I was keen to try something new. The train stops in Lao Cai, which is 38 km outside of Sapa. I didn't want to book tickets through my hotel because I knew they overcharged you, so I went straight at the station around 7:30 pm, thinking I would have many departure options. Big mistake. All trains were full!!! I panicked a bit but there was no way I was taking a taxi back to the hotel. I was determined to go to Sapa that night. I spent a long while going from window to window, begging and pleading, and overall not taking no for an answer! I'm not quite sure how it happened and I am positive I overpaid (500 000 dong), but I finally got an employee to sell me a ticket! I ended up in a 4-bed sleeper with 3 locals! The girls were friendly and smiled at me, but the men smoked all night inside our cabin so that was very rude. I considered telling them I was pregnant so to please go outside but I decided against it... I preferred being friendly and safe as I was going to have to sleep with them! In any case, it sure felt like an adventure was starting.

We arrived in Lao Cai at 5:30am. I was groggy, but excited. A hoard of mini-buses were waiting to shuttle us to Sapa. When they got full, they left. It took about 50 minutes of intense driving through steep curves and narrow roads, going up and around the mountains. What a view! With grey mist surrounding deep green rice fields, I got more and more excited at every turn. When we arrived in Sapa, I got to walk around town and look for a hotel. Although it was very early (around 8:00am), hotels there are used to early arrivals because of the train schedule, so it was not a problem. I found a lovely, cheap hotel (10$ a night) on a cliff with magical views. After checking-in, I went to explore town and get breakfast!

My first glimpse at Sapa - View from my hotel

Dreams come true!

After breakfast, my first mission was to book a trek. I shopped long and hard, weighing my options carefully and ready my Lonely Planet thoroughly... in the end, I found out that most companies offer the exact same itineraries for single day tours. Also, by observing some tours leaving that morning, I noticed that many of them just follow each other! For those reasons, I opted for a quite reasonably priced tour. Turns out I was right to do this as in fact, I was paired up with people who had paid a lot more than me for the same excursion. The trek around the Sapa Valley was for 5 hours, guided by a Hmong tribe member, going around the surrounding cascading rice paddies and mountain villages.

I decided to go for my walk that same day. It was a bit insane after all night travelling but it was my best option as I had plans to visit Bac Ha Sunday market which involved travelling on Saturday. My guide was lovely and tiny (!). She told me about the work options for Hmong women and their lifestyle. It was very interesting. The trek was super muddy and my hotel actually recommended for me the rent rubber boots to walk in! It turned out to be a great advice as I did slip a few times and all the mud would have ruined my shoes.

Sapa

My first time seeing and touching rice!

We walked along Muong Hoa River surrounded by rice paddy terraces. We visited some of the local tribes villages and even visited a school and ate lunch at a Black Hmong villagers' house.

Local school in the mountains - what an amazing experience for me as a teacher!

Children that are too young to attend classes just sit outside (butt naked) for their older siblings

My walk in Sapa was great and made for a truly memorable day. 

My tiny guide and I