Hello again boys and girls,
This week we visited the highly praised town of Sapa in the north of Vietnam, only 30 kms from the border of China. We had been told many things about Sapa; That it was a beautiful, yet different, part of Vietnam. Almost a different country to visit. The atmosphere, the people, the language, the clothes.
We will just have to take their word for it as we could see none of it. Sapa is situated about 2000m above sea level and was built as a temperate retreat for the French when they were kings of Vietnam. The weather can be quite hot here in 'Nam and i can sympathise with the French here on this one. So they built this little town up amongst the clouds. Right inside the clouds in fact.
We had a lovely little room, and as cheap as we have had anywhere in Vietnam. It came with hot water and a balcony overlooking the valley and with an uninterupted view to the next mountain. Uninterrupted except for the clouds. We could see nothing. One the first day we could only just see the end of our hotel. Walking into town was a 'one foot at a time' adventure. On the third day Livia cried out in shock as we could see the hotel next door to us. Up until that point we could not have said whether it existed or not.
We decided not to do any walking/hiking tours as Livia and I do not do these things unless we can see something cool. Neither of us like to go hiking just for the sake of it. Rumour had it that there was a radio tower on a hill above the town where you could see a gorgeous view of the local landscape. Unfortunately we could not see the tower and therefore Livia did not believe it existed and it was probably just a trap for local tourists to be robbed.
Oh i joke and i complain yeah? Yeah, i know.
Actually, it was a gorgeous town, surrounded by rice terraces cut into the mountains. The local tribes are very different to the Vietnamese; in appearance, dress and manner. We still received the usual 5 questions:
Where do you come from?
What is your name?
How old are you?
Do you have any brothers and sisters?
and finally...
Buy something from me?
But somehow these were all asked with a nicer smile, and more charm. Don't ask me why they are more lovely up there, but they are.
As you might ask; Mountain town in the northern hemisphere in December. Is this a cold or a hot place to be? Full points for everyone in Switzerland who answered 'cold', but less points for our Antipodean friends who might have had to think about it. I felt that it was cold. Livia felt that it was bloody f*cking cold. For those of you who don't know her well, she is almost always cold. Those who do know her well will not be surprised.
She wore the following:
Warm socks
stockings
normal underwearThis week we visited the highly praised town of Sapa in the north of Vietnam, only 30 kms from the border of China. We had been told many things about Sapa; That it was a beautiful, yet different, part of Vietnam. Almost a different country to visit. The atmosphere, the people, the language, the clothes.
We will just have to take their word for it as we could see none of it. Sapa is situated about 2000m above sea level and was built as a temperate retreat for the French when they were kings of Vietnam. The weather can be quite hot here in 'Nam and i can sympathise with the French here on this one. So they built this little town up amongst the clouds. Right inside the clouds in fact.
We had a lovely little room, and as cheap as we have had anywhere in Vietnam. It came with hot water and a balcony overlooking the valley and with an uninterupted view to the next mountain. Uninterrupted except for the clouds. We could see nothing. One the first day we could only just see the end of our hotel. Walking into town was a 'one foot at a time' adventure. On the third day Livia cried out in shock as we could see the hotel next door to us. Up until that point we could not have said whether it existed or not.
We decided not to do any walking/hiking tours as Livia and I do not do these things unless we can see something cool. Neither of us like to go hiking just for the sake of it. Rumour had it that there was a radio tower on a hill above the town where you could see a gorgeous view of the local landscape. Unfortunately we could not see the tower and therefore Livia did not believe it existed and it was probably just a trap for local tourists to be robbed.
Oh i joke and i complain yeah? Yeah, i know.
Actually, it was a gorgeous town, surrounded by rice terraces cut into the mountains. The local tribes are very different to the Vietnamese; in appearance, dress and manner. We still received the usual 5 questions:
Where do you come from?
What is your name?
How old are you?
Do you have any brothers and sisters?
and finally...
Buy something from me?
But somehow these were all asked with a nicer smile, and more charm. Don't ask me why they are more lovely up there, but they are.
As you might ask; Mountain town in the northern hemisphere in December. Is this a cold or a hot place to be? Full points for everyone in Switzerland who answered 'cold', but less points for our Antipodean friends who might have had to think about it. I felt that it was cold. Livia felt that it was bloody f*cking cold. For those of you who don't know her well, she is almost always cold. Those who do know her well will not be surprised.
She wore the following:
Warm socks
stockings
a thick t-shirt
a long sleeve t-shirtwarm trousers
a fleece (i don't know what this is, but she keeps saying this word)
a thick hoodie
a north face windsheeter
a scarf
my beenie
heavy hiking boots
She exclaimed: What the hell are we doing in a cold place? This was not part of the plan! And we even paid to get up there!
a fleece (i don't know what this is, but she keeps saying this word)
a thick hoodie
a north face windsheeter
a scarf
my beenie
heavy hiking boots
She exclaimed: What the hell are we doing in a cold place? This was not part of the plan! And we even paid to get up there!
Livia: one thing I really liked up there: their tea. They have a Sapatea, based on green tea with fresh cinnamon and ginger in it. I loved it! It nearly made me feel that Christmas would be close...
In any case, while we didn't get to see much of Sapa, what we did see we liked.
In any case, while we didn't get to see much of Sapa, what we did see we liked.
We arrived in Hanoi at 4 am yesterday and spent today and yesterday chilling out and shopping. I love shopping near the end of any trip.
Tonight we take the overnight bus to Hue on the central coast of Vietnam. Hopefully it will be warmer...
Tonight we take the overnight bus to Hue on the central coast of Vietnam. Hopefully it will be warmer...
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