Day 4: Lao Cai to Trung Do to Sapa

The train arrived at Lao Cai about 6.00am. Large luggage was stored at the hotel - with backpacks only for the trip into the hill country of the Hmong, one of several hill tribes in the region. Breakfast was at the hotel. 

First surprise was that the Chinese border was visible over the river. We stopped near a checkpoint later in the day so (pause) ....

Similar streetscapes. Small shops spilling onto the streets. Markets along the footpath in most places.

As we climbed, the lush greenery became apparent. It appeared to be very fertile land but farmed to make use of every available acre, square foot or square inch, as well as the metric equivalents.

Could not resist the opportunity to stop at the sight below. Authentic old style farming. Appeared to be quite genuine and not just a photo opportunity for the tourists. The woman drove the buffalo around the soon-to-be rice field (aka bog). Planting to follow we presumed.

As we drove higher into the hills, the intensity of farming seemed to increase. 

A quick stop on a better part of the narrow road gave us a chance to see cinnamon production. We had to let a following bus through, as well as some cars and the ubiquitous scooters.

The bark of the cinnamon tree is left to dry and eventually gets to us as cinnamon sticks. We nibbled on some of the bark. Definite cinnamon taste as expected but an unpleasant and strong after-taste. Guess I've never sat and chewed on a cinnamon stick at home so I can't compare, but perhaps the drying has some beneficial effects.

Further up we climbed and the population intensity lessened as expected, but the organisation of the cultivation continued to be impressive.

We had quite a walk to get to the Coc Ly Markets. The first evidence was the livestock market on the side of the road. Many goats were being traded and the occasional water buffalo. Some trucks were nearby for the larger buyers, but the majority were those buying in small numbers (1 or 2) who loaded or man-handled the goats into small cages lashed to the backs of their scooters. There was much bleating and protesting, mostly from the goats. A tad different to the Wagga and Wodonga Livestock sales, I think.

The local population are Hmong. As our incredibly well-informed guide, Binh, told us, there are 'Flower Hmong' who wear very colourful skirts and leggings (for the women and girls) and the 'Black Hmong' who wear black skirts and leggings. The men used to wear black tunics or similar, but mostly now, they wear western style clothes. It became apparent that certain 'colour schemes' existed. These are different clans or groupings within the population. (Similar to Scottish tartan, as I understand it)

The rest of the market was a mixture of 'necessities of life' in a hill-tribe, such as food, clothing and farming implements (hoes, machetes, shovels, spray backpacks etc), coupled with the wide array of tourist stuff such as hand bags, purses and satchels made from hand-woven material and assorted other art-works etc. A very colourful market.

After an interesting walk back to the bus through mud churned up by trucks, taxis and buses, we continued to drive up into the hills.

We then headed off the narrow, main road onto a smaller, narrower, gravel road. 






Just as well we trusted our guide, because we left behind a perfectly serviceable and functional bus to walk down a narrow track towards the village of Trung Do.

Our alternative transport was a water buffalo cart ride, managed very well by the women of the village.



Our charming buffalo did have some bodily-function needs to attend to, but after some swishing of the tail and resultant mud-pack application, we got along very well. A pleasant interlude and hopefully some economic benefits for the community from our visit. A great opportunity to see simple village life so utterly in contrast to the first world problems we become absorbed with. (but I'm not volunteering to swap!)

We watched an old lady carrying a wicker basket of sticks etc emerge from a field and head towards the village. Later, we visited her house, and 'chatted' with her through our guide as interpreter. A unique opportunity.

A paved walkway beside the flood-plain rice field lead us to a large Buddhist temple.

A solid walk back up the hill (the water buffalo taxis had dissipated) led us past the school, but it had finished for the day.



On the drive back into Lao Cai, we stopped at the Chinese border checkpoint. That's China just in the background.

The immigration checkpoint and bridge are quite substantial.





We drove straight through Lao Cai and headed for Sapa, only about 35 km away but further up in the hills. It was suggested it would take about 1.5 hours which surprised us. We weren't prepared for the narrow road, the volume of traffic and the 'heart-in-mouth' nature of the trip.  Traffic in the cities of Vietnam is surprising enough for any Aussie, but the highway is something else! Near misses are to be expected along with trucks overtaking trucks on blind corners, cars narrowly missing scooters etc. We did arrive in Sapa a tad surprised that we had no accident. One gets the clear impression that Vietnam drivers and riders expect the worst in any situation and do all possible to avoid collision, unlike our drivers who demand their rights on the road and expect all other drivers to do the right thing... and it's always the other person's fault. 

Anyway, we continued to climb and some of us glanced out the window occasionally and even snapped a picture or two in between frantic gasps and clutching the seat.

Terracing was evident right through the hill climb but it was on a larger scale further up the hills. Rice was the usual crop.

We arrived in Sapa eventually (and about 1.5 hours after leaving Lao Cai) and found quite an oasis in the hills.  It existed for some time as a Hmong settlement but was developed by the French in the 1880s as a resort for the elite during the humid summer months. It is now emerging as a tourist Mecca as well as remaining a resort for the elite. There are hotels and shopping outlets everywhere. Rumour suggests there are 1000+ hotels in Sapa, so quite a large town.

And just a note to finish ... Fawlty Towers fans rejoice!  Basil and Manuel are alive and well and busily plying their trade (using the term loosely) in a hotel in Sapa, albeit using different names these days.