May 21st – Sapa

The train station is in the town of Lao Cai and we arrived in the early morning hours before the sun arose. In front of the station is a large square with a parking lot full of vehicles waiting to take passengers to Sapa and other destinations. It was interesting to be greeted by music playing from an overhead speakers system. The weather was warmer than we had hoped, but we were not to be disappointed as the temperatures dropped to a very comfortable level when we later arrived in Sapa.

We were happy to see a sign indicating our names, with a driver awaiting us to take us to Sapa, just 40 km away and about 1 hour by shuttle bus or private car. We had reserved a room at the Chapa Gardens Hotel and had made arrangements with the hotel for car service upon arrival. We had assumed that we would be met by a private car, however, we were shown to a bus where we had to wait approximately ½ hour for other passengers to arrive. We had chosen the boutique Chapa Gardens Hotel after reading recommendations from other travelers and especially after having heard about the wonderful hospitality of the Australian owner Tommy and his Hmong wife who sometimes takes guests on guided tours of the area. After a long drive and winding ride to Sapa, our bus let us out on the main street and we had to carry our bags (22” roll on suitcases) up many sets of stairs before arriving at the hotel entrance. Since I have been instructed not to lift anything, my poor husband had to do all the carrying. Our room was not ready as it was still early so we asked to have breakfast before heading out. We were surprised that breakfast was not complimentary upon our arrival, as everyone gets in so early. We would have preferred to have been charged a few dollars more for the room and to have been offered breakfast, rather than to have been asked to pay. We didn’t feel that the owner was all that friendly or helpful upon arrival and his wife was not available as she was helping her family to plant rice in the fields. The room was a nice size and the accommodations were comfortable. It was obvious that the owners put a lot of effort into renovating this hotel. The hotel’s location is just off the main street and nicely appointed although we were disappointed that there was not a great view from the room. The only computer available for use was one just off the dining area which was used by the owner and while I asked if I could use it, I felt uncomfortable to do it more than once. The owner though was happy to let me use it and was helpful the next day when my husband needed medication for a stomach problem.

We had not pre-arranged any tours for Sapa or the surrounding areas and our first stop was to the Information Center which was just up the street. As we walked the street, we were approached by many of the Hmong woman and young children trying to sell their wares – pocketbooks, postcards, wallets, etc. We were not interested in buying anything and they all asked that we remember them later and come back to buy from them.

The staff at the Information Center which was situated just at the end of the block across from a park area was quite helpful. We were not interested in any lengthy treks or homestays, but rather wanted to do some easy hiking and take some wonderful pictures. Since it was Saturday and market day in Sapa, it was suggested that we visit the market and then hike down to Cat Cat village & to the waterfall just beyond that.

The market was wonderful, with all kinds of colors, foods and wares for sale. The Hmong people were dressed in their traditional garb and were quite persistent in attempting to make a sale. It was a bit difficult moving forward without being accosted. We stayed for a short bit and then started off on a leisurely walk into the valley which took us several hours as we stopped along the way often to take pictures of the rice fields, the people and the water buffalo. The Hmong woman followed us along trying to make a sale as we walked along. The terraced rice fields were lovely, but the rice was still being planted so the fields were a mixture of mud and greenery – a bit disappointing as they weren’t in their full bloom, but still very beautiful. The fields should be at their lushest further into the summer and towards September when it is time to harvest the crops.

We were able to observe the men and woman in the fields planting rice, woman with small infants swaddled upon their backs and young children running around unaccompanied, playing along the roadside and in the fields. We were appalled to see one particular girl, shoeless and disheveled, probably no older than 5 years old, carrying a small infant upon her own back. The infant’s head was unsupported and for the life of me, I could not figure how this infant could survive. I was so concerned that I tried to pull the blanket up to protect the baby’s head, but to no avail as it kept coming down. The baby slept throughout the ordeal, with the older sibling crawling on the ground, climbing over rocks and playing with her friends, oblivious of the infant. These are poor people, struggling to earn a living and living a hard life. The children are only schooled a small portion of the day and many must fend for themselves as their parents work. The irony is that as poor as the people are, we observed that most own motor-scooters, cell phones and televisions.

Along the way, we observed children playing with water buffalo, climbing on their backs and posing for pictures. The children were adorable. I found it particularly interesting to see one small boy playing with baby birds that he found on the side of the road. We passed children sitting with a teacher trying to learn English songs and we joined in to sing nursery rhymes with them. In general, here and throughout Vietnam, we noted that children and their parents were anxious to learn English and they loved taking the opportunity to use their limited vocabulary when they met us.

Towards the bottom of the valley is the small village of Cat Cat which we passed through and then a small waterfall where we sat and rested. We continued to the end of the road to a point where the road started its ascent. There, fortunately, were situated men with motor scooters awaiting lazy tourists like ourselves who did not wish to hike back up out of the valley. All in all, we thought this was a fairly easy hike and well worth it.

Upon our return to the town of Sapa, we headed to our rooms to shower and rest up. Fortunately, the clean cool air was doing wonders for my husband’s asthma and all would have been great but for a touch of an intestinal problem that he developed. We stayed in the room for a while and wandered out again in the early evening in search of a place to eat. I do not recall where we ate, but I can say that there was no where that I would say we ate that was remarkable or worth recommending. We enjoyed the cool air, the interaction with the Hmong woman and female children on the streets who attempted to sell us their goods, as well as the lovely scenery around us. We wandered up the steps off the main street which led to a street lined with food stalls and people barbequing – all very interesting, but we did not venture to eat at any of them. It was a wonderful first day in Sapa and one of the highlights of our trip, as we had anticipated. We headed back to the room to get an early nights sleep as we were getting an early morning pick up in the morning to head to the Bak Ha Market. We had booked this group trip through the Visitor’s Center. More on the trip to the market later.

Bak Ha Market – May 22

The Bak Ha Market is quite a ways from Sapa (approx. 3 hrs), but well worth the drive. I am afraid we did not plan this well since to get to the market we had to return to the train station and go an additional 2 hours past in the opposite direction. A better strategy would have been to arrive on a Friday morning, returning to Hanoi on Sunday evening after the market. Since we had reserved 2 nights in Sapa, we had to go back to our original hotel room. It is best to be in Sapa for the weekend as the markets throughout this region all seem to be on Saturday and Sunday. The Bak Ha Market is only held on Sunday and the various minority groups come together from all over to participate in this event. For us, this was a major highlight and well worth the long drive. The Market is an array of amazing colorful sites from the costumes that the minority people wear to the merchandise for sale which included live animals such as water buffalo, pigs, ducks, dogs, etc. While this market is a major tourist attraction, it is really a time for the minority people in the surrounding areas to come together and buy what they need. We spent several hours here, then had lunch on our own before proceeding on our tour bus to a minority village in the area where we took short hike. This part of the tour was rather lame as our tour guide was pitiful. We heard other guides who seemed to be much more knowledgeable and interested in their tourists. While a private guide may have been nice, we did enjoy the company of several of the younger people on our bus who were spending extensive time traveling throughout SE Asia and we enjoyed hearing about their travels. Our last stop for the day was a bathroom break by the side of the border bridge that separates Vietnam from China. It was interesting to see just how close we were.

We arrived back in Sapa and after a short rest found a restaurant which overlooked the main road. While the meal was nothing extraordinary, we sat tableside to the street and we enjoyed the young girls who came up to us trying to sell their wares. We did not buy anything, but had a lovely conversation with one of girls who enjoyed talking and practicing her English. After dinner and a short stroll we called it a night and headed back to the room to relax as we had an early morning pickup by a private guide the following day.

i am simply loving this report!!

Thanks Bob - the feedback helps. I was beginning to wonder if I should continue!

Please continue!! We're out here reading and enjoying

Yes still reading....

Yes, please continue -- really enjoying reading this. Learning alot -- the tip on the train station in Hanoi and picking up tickets with a Voucher from Tonkin is good to know.

Very interesting reading about Sapa and Bak Ha. Didn't you get tired of all the sales pitches?

Barefoot - We took the sales pitches all in good stride. After all, they are trying to make a living. I felt somewhat badly that we purchased so little. It was especially shocking to see how grateful the ethnic minority people were just to make a $5.00 sale.

May 23 Sapa, Local Villages & back to Hanoi

On our last day in Sapa, we hired a private English speaking guide and driver from the Tourist Info center and were picked up after breakfast to visit area villages. The car was comfortable and the guide very pleasant with good English skills. We had asked for fairly easy walks with nice scenery and the information center recommended the morning spent walking from the Lao Chai Village, through the beautiful rice fields of Thao Do and ending in the To Van village which is known for their stone carving. The walk took us downward on a path that was rocky and a bit steep in the beginning, although nothing too difficult. Several Hmong woman stuck to us like glue, in the expectations that we would reward them by buying merchandise from them at the end. My husband who is not a big spender when it comes to “tchotchkes” (knick knacks) kept trying to ward them off, but I was happy to have their company and in the end, of course I bought several pocketbooks which I felt obliged to buy from them. We returned to Sapa, which was not far away, in time to get some lunch before meeting up with the same driver and guide. Note – for those wanting to trek longer, it is possible to take an 8 mile trek from Lao Chai Village to To Van, but we didn’t have the time or the inclination to do that!

In the afternoon, we headed to Ta Phin village, home of the Red Dzao and Black H'mong people. This village is only 9 miles from Sapa and on the way towards the train station. The Red Dzao people are recognized by the red that they wear in their clothes and by their red hats. While this walk was not as long and not as scenic, our interaction with the three woman who accompanied us was very interesting. Their English was very good and they were happy to share a pleasant conversation with us about their families, their marriages, etc. They enjoyed my husband and referred to him as “Happy Buddha” as did many of the Vietnamese people we encountered. They are just not used to seeing men with large bellies! The walk led us past the homes of the woman who walked with us, past children playing in the fields, as well as workers planting rice. The Red Dzao people that we observed in the field here seemed particularly lively and although their work was grueling, they seemed to be enjoying themselves. When we took their pictures while they worked, they bantered with us good naturedly and said “$1.00 picture please”. We laughed back and told them we wanted $1.00 for taking their picture. Many of the people we passed wanted us to take their pictures so they could see themselves on our camera. I would have loved to have taken their addresses to send them pictures, but who knows how to do that. Our walk ultimately led us to a small cave, which was rather unexciting.
All in all, this was a wonderful day. Our guide and drive took us from here back to the train station where we had only a few hours wait till our train departed. We found a restaurant just across the plaza and had a quick lunch, I picked up some fruit for the train track and we were off once again to Hanoi. This train trip was not to be as comfortable as our trip to Sapa as the people in the next compartment were smoking cigarettes, setting off again my husband’s asthma and preventing us from getting much sleep. The next morning the train was scheduled to get in to Hanoi at 5 AM & I was hoping to stop by the lake to watch the early morning exercises. We were scheduled to fly out to DaNang at 12:30 and had plenty of time, but due to my husband’s respiratory difficulty, we chose to go straight to the airport. Our time in Sapa was definitely one of the major highlights of the trip and it sure was a relief to get some reprieve from the heat.

More later…

I forgot to mention that while we did not visit the Sapa Victoria, we were curious to find out where it was located and we learned that it is high up on the hillside of Sapa, which we did not think was very convenient to the main action.

May 24 – Flight from Hanoi to DaNang – to Hoi An

You may be wondering why we didn’t go to Hoi An & Hue from the South and then proceed onward up North, which seemed to be the more logical route. We chose to add an extra leg to the trip so that we could be in Hoi An during the full moon festival which we had heard so much about. It cost us an extra plane ticket back to Hanoi, but how often would we be in Vietnam, so we decided to take the opportunity.

We arrived in DaNang after an uneventful trip on Vietnam Airlines which was very reliable, being on time on both occasions which we used them. We had pre-booked the Vihn Hung Resort and they included a complimentary pick up from the airport in a comfortable vehicle with a very nice English speaking driver who offered to stop along the way at the Danang Museum and also at Marble Mountain. Anxious to get to Hoi An, we declined both, figuring we could visit them at a later time if we wished.

Upon our arrival we were welcomed with a delicious pineapple fruit drink. One fruit drink was more delicious than the next. I don’t know if it was the heat and our thirst or just the sweet fruits of Asia that made these drinks so wonderful. The Vihn Hung Resort is well located - just a short walk from town – approx. 5 minutes, although it seemed endless in the heat. The grounds were lovely and there were two pools – one very nice and the other smaller. There was a small gym, although I’m not sure if it was in use and who needs to work out when just walking in the heat is exercise enough! Each day at 4 pm, barring rain, there is free local food offered on the grounds adjacent to the pool area. The hotel grounds are on the riverfront and there are free shuttle boats to take one to town if they prefer that to walking, although we did not find the boats readily available at all times and it was just as easy to walk. Our room was very nice, although we had an issue with the bedding on the first night – it didn’t seem to be clean and we had them change it. There is a business center on the premises, just behind the dining room with several computers and free internet service along with printers. All in all, we thought the hotel was very nice, especially for the price we paid. There are other high end hotels in Hoi An, but they seemed to be mostly situated on the beach which is much further away from town and in our opinions not convenient unless you are seeking a beach vacation. As we live in Florida, that was not our goal.

Shortly after our arrival and before we had an opportunity to get out into town, the skies opened up and the rain lasted for several hours. Since it was mid-day, we took the opportunity to avoid the heat and took a nap. We had been fortunate up until that point, only encountering rain 2 times previously and only lasting a short time. We had been concerned about it being rainy season while we were in Vietnam, but it never affected us. We heard from another traveler that it had rained in Hanoi for 12 straight hours only days after we departed.

Finally, towards evening we were able to venture out in the light drizzle. The hotel provided us with umbrellas, but we barely needed them as the rain soon stopped. We were anxious to get into the lovely town of Hoi An and what a wonderful surprise awaited us. As we crossed over the bridge to enter the Old City, our impressions of Hoi An were everything and more than we had anticipated

Hoi An has a distinct Chinese atmosphere with low, tile-roofed houses and narrow streets; the original structure of some of these streets still remains intact. The houses are made of rare wood, decorated with lacquered boards and panels engraved with Chinese characters. The streets are filled with colorful stores filled with merchandise including lacquer ware, ceramics, silk scarves, and with tailors anxious for hire. We wandered the streets and headed towards the riverside where we found a wonderful market which was still very busy. Past the market and a bit away from the main area, we headed towards “Brothers”, a fabulous restaurant situated directly on the riverfront, where we decided to dine. I do not recall what we had, but it was one of our favorite dining experiences while in Vietnam and it is one of the more upscale restaurants in Hoi An. I highly recommend going there. While we had only a short time to see Hoi An on this day, it was a lovely day and we looked forward to our next days in this delightful town.

thanks for the hoi an details....we look forward to our visit in november and at the same resort....K will check out the sheets i am sure...

At the risk of exposing what a squeamish eater I am -- were you not concerned with the juices having tap water in them that could cause stomach upset?

After getting sick on a couple of trips I've gotten really cautious and juice is one thing I'm nervous about. Usually try to stick to bottled water or beer. I just got back from Morocco and had amazing orange juice there but it was all fresh-squeezed, no water added, or ice. Would you guess what you had in Vietnam was similar or do you just not worry about that kind of thing?

Leslie - The hotels are all very aware that foreigners don't drink the water and the ice and water that they use are generally distilled. We never worried. My husband has a sensitive stomach and never had a problem.

Thanks dgunbug - I am really looking forward to the food there and feel relieved to hear that you had no problems.

Thanks also for the great report - I'm loving it!

I love all the details, thanks for sharing. Saving for whenver I can get there.

Leslie - would love to hear about Morocco. How long did you spend there? Hope you are doing a trip report.

May 25 – Hoi An

While most people go to Hoi An to have clothing made by the tailors, we are not great shoppers and were not interested for several reasons – 1) It was way too hot to try on clothing and to be fitted 2) Most of the woman’s clothing in the storefronts were unappealing to me and had a very Asian look. My husband, who I would have liked to have gotten a much needed suit, refused to be bothered.

On this day we took the boat from the hotel into town and were dropped off at the bustling market which is at the far end of the town (just before the restaurant Brothers where we had eaten the night before) Vendors were also docked where we disembarked, bringing fresh fruit and fish to the marketplace. The local residents were picking up their produce and meats for the day – fresh chickens which they held up and weighed, wonderful looking fruits and vegetables. The market was quite crowded and was a feast for the eyes. We wandered for quite a while before moving on, taking plenty of pictures of both the boats unloading their goods and people selling and buying merchandise.

From there we headed further into the town, simply enjoying walking the ancient tree lined streets with all its flowers and shops. Besides its silk shops, Hoi An is famous for its wooden houses, its chapels, and Assembly Halls, the purpose of which is to meet friends, pray to the gods, and pay respect to the dead ones. There is a tourist office that sells tickets for visits into these assembly halls and houses, although we never found it. There were several free buildings which we entered into and we peaked into several that required a ticket, seeing enough to satisfy us.

As in other Vietnamese cities, vendors carrying bamboo poles ladened with fruit and other merchandise strolled the streets. Colorful lanterns, for which Hoi An is famous, adorn the streets. The streets are uniquely quiet by Vietnamese standards as the moto-scooters do not beep their horns incessantly and are banned from the main walking streets. While the town of Hoi An can be walked in approximately one-half hour, there are cyclos available for those too tired to walk or who want the experience. There are plenty of tourist shops filled with lacquer ware, silk scarves, chop sticks, place mats and other souvenirs.
Towards the opposite end of town from the market and close to the bridge leading out of the city is the very picturesque Japanese Bridge also known as the Pagoda Bridge, built by the Japanese community back in 1593. It links the Japanese and the Chinese quarters. On both ends of the bridge are altars with guardians; dogs on one side, and monkeys on the other one. In the middle of the bridge there is a small shrine.
We thoroughly enjoyed our time strolling this unique town, but of course after several hours we were spent from the heat and needed to return to our hotel where we took a swim in the pool and then headed in for a nap. We found the pool to be a bit warm for our liking as it did not cool us off. The air-conditioning of the room and another cold shower was just what we needed. We slept until the late afternoon at which time we took advantage of the free taste testing of local foods on the hotel grounds. We were sufficiently satisfied to warrant only a small meal later on. Dinner in town that evening was nothing memorable, although our stroll with the lanterns lit up was lovely.

May 26 – Hoi An Day 3

While we had planned to visit the Cham ruins at My Son on one of the days in Hoi An, we decided to pass on it as we were told that it pales to the ruins at Angkor Wat, which we had seen the year before. I regret that we missed this excursion as I love ancient ruins. Instead we spent the morning heading to the beach. Some of you may have read from my previous report that my intrepid husband enjoys bicycling. He is the one that wanted to rent bikes to go back and forth to the ruins around Angkor Wat (That didn’t happen thankfully) So here we were, left with the dilemma of whether to rent peddle bikes at $1.00 for the day or moto-scooters for, I believe $8.00. After some debate, we opted to rent the scooter. My Capri pants were so sticky from the heat that I could barely move them sufficiently to peddle the bike and the seat was too high for me. I hesitated though, to rent a scooter as neither my husband nor I have had previous experience of riding one. That compounded with the Vietnamese traffic scared me. Nevertheless, after a 5 minute lesson and practice session on our very quiet street, we ventured out on the moto scooter. The traffic was reasonable and the ride enjoyable, although I think my husband enjoyed this venture a lot more than I did as being a passenger I had no control. The beach was much further than we expected and it took us a long time to get there. I think though that was due to the fact that my husband drove so slowly that bicycles could practically keep up with us! The beaches are lovely with beautiful white sand and palm trees. Further along the beach we came across an area of newly constructed high end hotels. As stated earlier, we were happy that we did not take a hotel on the beach as we felt they are too far from town and we were not interested in sunbathing. We took a short walk along the beach to see the people enjoying their time there, cooking their meals and taking a swim, although we did not swim ourselves. We road down the main road in front of the beach for a short distance before heading back and returning to the hotel where we returned our moto scooter. For lunch we snacked on fruit and then rested in the room for a bit.
In the late afternoon we returned to town to hire a boat to take us around on the river. There are many English speaking woman along the pier offering one a ride in their boat for a minimal fee. We selected one of the larger boats with a cover rather than the small row boats available and spent approximately 1 hour riding up the river and into a small canal area. We passed by an area with hundreds of ducks wandering freely, past fisherman and large fishing nets. The ride was a nice way to cool off with the breeze from the waterway and enjoyable for an hour, but certainly not one of our highlights.
We returned to the town shortly before dinner in search for a place to eat. I believe we settled on pizza that evening as we found a nice air-conditioned restaurant. The food was ok…nothing memorable but the air-conditioning was wonderful!
This evening, our final one in Hoi An was the night of the Full Moon Festival. On the 14th day of the lunar month, the streets switch off their lights and hang out cloth and paper lanterns on their porches and windows. Television sets, radios, street lights and neon lights are turned off. Strolling through the lantern-lit streets is like walking into a fairytale. It is all the more picturesque since motor vehicles are banned from Hoi An’s Old Quarter. After dinner, there were Vietnamese people lined up along the streets, adults and their children, selling small paper lanterns with candles to put in the river for good luck. Both tourists and residents alike hired small boats to take them down the river where they deposited their lanterns in the hope to bring them good luck. After watching for what seemed like hours in amazement at all the candles, we finally headed back to our hotel to call it a night. On the way back, we encountered several street performances with dancers and singers. There was also a large colorfully adorned boat with a large dragon lit up on the river with music playing. The same boat had been there the prior evenings and many of the locals and tourists alike enjoyed its entertainment including music and a game held on its docks which seemed to be like Bingo. All in all, our time in Hoi An was wonderful. Our next stop in the morning was to Hue.

your report is perfect for our planning as you travel about like we do except we are short on the naps, but love the a/c

Bob - this is the first time in our lives that we napped. We usually run about from early morning till evening non-stop. It was just impossible on this trip, between the heat and my husband's asthma. Truthfully, I did not nap as much as he did - I spent much of that time on the computer corresponding and IMing with family.