We traveled 6 hours to Sa Pa town area by Fansipan Mountain, which, at 3,143 meters tall, is the highest mountain in the Indochinese Peninsula. It is very close to the height of our Haleakala on Maui. To get there, we rode in a sleeping bus, which was a bit nuts. All the seats were reclined so you can sleep and the bus fit 36 of these, so it was totally cramped!
We did some beautiful treks in the area and got to experience some spectacular views of the famous rice terraces. Our local Hmong guide, MaiMai, shared the local customs and traditions and took us into Cat Cat town and her own village of Loa Cai. We got to dunk our feet in the cool mountain streams while we watched tourists dressed in traditional local clothing and posing on horses and oversized swings.
At night time we went to get some ice cream and went through the heart of Sapa town - there seems to be plenty nightlife in Vietnam. . . maybe because it's cooler after dark and more tolerable to walk around, but it also seems like they like their nighttime drinking! Uong!
Nho Que River in SapaHeading through the main part of Sapa town toward Cat CatOur first view of the rice terraces!Trekking into Cat Cat VillageOur guide MaiMai with Cat Cat Village in the background.There were a bunch of tourist trappy photo ops, like this big nest. . . .. . . and this sweet view . . .. . .a nice place to chillax for a bit.They still practice the art of making fabric from hemp, where they make the thread, spin it, weave cloth and then make some beautiful pieces afterwhich they die with indigo.Ducks everywhere. . . . reminds me of home.Raging waterfall in Cat Cat village.Max enjoying a foot soak in the cold mountain water.Map of Sapa Town. We trekked from Sapa all the way through to Ta van and visited some cool local spots along the way - almost an 8 mile trek! Good job kids!Can you see the water buffalo?Stacks of hemp, drying to be made into thread.Tired and hot, but still on the move. . .Slightly sweet and sour berries from this tree are edible (didn't get the name), but I think gave me some belly trouble. I liked it going down, but not after. . . bleh!Baby indigo plants!Dexter and Max in particular were interested in the marijua,. . . I mean hemp plants, growing just on the side of the road. Haha.Can't get over the beautiful terraced fieldsRice up close - looks kind of like wheat.MaiMai teaching Zoe how to make a tiny woven basket out of banana leaf.Sapa at night was hopping!Pretty lights across the river in Sapa town.A little tast of "Aloha" to remind us of home!
