Visiting Sapa/Sa Pa, In Vietnam's Hill Country
The Hanoi - Lao Cai train stops at Valley Lao Cai, just 40kms/24 miles from Sapa. Off the train with all the other Westerners, guides milling about holding up signs, and looking for their clients. Found our Guide and driver who were waiting with some bad news. It had been raining for days and was raining even as we spoke. This meant that the all important Bac Ha Market, held only on Sunday (today), was impossible to reach. Just too much mud and the roads were impassable even for our 4-WD vehicle. Very disappointing because the Bac Ha Market is "The Big Market" for the Flower Hmong to buy and sell their goods.
Not only was it currently drizzling, but cold and foggy - completely unexpected by us. Cool yes, cold no... With absolutely no choice in the matter, the guide suggested we eat a fast breakfast, head immediately to another small market before all the other tourists got the same good news as we and headed there also. Good plan and off we went.
This other Sunday market was close to the Chinese border and may have been called the Muong Hum Market. Not too clear on exactly what it was called but it was the only other Sunday market being held. Vistors come to this area just to see the variety of ethnic minorities still dressed in traditional clothing. The Ha Nhi, Giay, Red Hmong, Flower Hmong, Red Dao are just a few of these groups both walking the streets and gathering once a week to trade in the market. (As well as to drink rice and corn wine.)
Walking around this small market, we noticed a woman selling a meager stock of produce wearing a gorgeous silver necklace holding up her apron. She was a Tu Di, a subgroup of the Bo Y people, ethnically Tai but most of them speak Chinese. With guide and driver interpreting, she told us it had belonged to her grandmother, an heirloom handed down to her and took it off to show us. The silver chain was heavy with butterfly clasps, very old and this woman was not young by any stretch of the imagination. We asked if by any chance she would be willing to sell the necklace and, if so, for how much. Her response was 1,000,000 Vietnamese Dong! By now, we had a huge group of locals around us, listening and interjecting comments in their languages. One Million Dong...we walked away...and then converted to U.S. $. It converted to less than $60 (at that time). Turned around...walked back...and now she wanted 1,250,000 Dong! Whipped out a little calculator and discovered we were up to $75 - still not too terrible by our standards. We had a deal and sat down to count out 1,250,000 Dong...a lot of Dong. This money represented several year's income that she might make selling meager amounts of fruits and vegetables once a week in this market!
ex-Marine and I were very concerned about her carrying that large amount of money, but a neighbor promised to help her get home safely. Our driver sat with this lady and patiently counted out Dong...recounted the Dong...and tried to instill some comprehension as to exactly what this amount of money would do for her and how long it should last. We seriously believe that it was beyond her comprehension. She had just named an unbelievable, fantasy figure never thinking anyone could possibly pay that amount of Dong.
Sapa is home to more than 30 colourful hill tribes and close to Vietnam's highest peak, Mount Fansipan (3,143m/ 10,311 feet. So glad we didn't have plans to trek that in this obnoxious weather. From the market, we drove to a small village, got out of the car and started walking up the road. Hadn't gotten very far before three colorfully dressed ladies appeared, rushing towards us in the fog...
They were Dazo and in a hurry - we thought - because they were happy to see us. No, they just wanted to be the first from their village to try and sell us something....
...and they did. I loved their unusual little earrings and the first lady instantly took them out of her ear lobes and sold them to me for a pittance. Correction...a pittance for me...and lot for her. Extremely friendly even though we didn't buy anything else. Soaked to the skin and miserably cold, we drove back through Sapa and to the ****Victoria Sapa Resort. The Victoria Sapa is the only luxury hotel in Northwest Vietnam, built in traditional mountain chalet style above Sapa village. Many tourists straggled in after us, all looking like drowned rats. A very interesting day but everyone was chilled to the bone.
We were supposed to leave the Hotel tomorrow and spend two days trekking to a remote hilltribe village, spending one night there. Forget about that! Neither one of us wanted to trek through mud and freeze all night in a hilltribe house. Instead, a fast consultation with our guide to discuss all options. Back into Sapa to arrange for a train tomorrow night back to Hanoi. (By the way, the majority of Westerners in Sapa were backpackers. ) Beside the Sunday Bac Ha market, there were many other excursions for good weather only. HamRong Mountain, Catcat village, jeeping, motorbiking, waterfalls, and the Coc Ly market on Tuesdays.
The Victoria Express wouldn't be running that night but ordinary trains leave every day without 2-bunk compartments. Instead of sharing a 4-bunker, we bought up all 4-bunks for the two of us. Very cheap to do that. The train would leave at 8:20 pm, and arrive in Hanoi the next morning at 5:00 am. Bought train tickets in a small restaurant, the guide telephoned Hanoi to make arrangements for our pick-up at the train station and a hotel in Hanoi. Everything settled, got out of wet clothes, took a hot bath, ate a very good meal at the Victoria Sapa, and prepared to tour more of Sapa the next day before training back to Hanoi.
