Around 5:30am, the train stopped in Lao Cai in northwest Vietnam. The rail station is actually only 2.5km from the China border...not that there's a lot to do in a border town. According to Lonely Planet, it's not worth visiting unless you really have a thing for border towns. We were met by guides that loaded us onto a bus with a bunch of other Western tourists, and we settled in for the hourlong drive to Sa Pa town, way up in the mountains. We climbed higher and higher into the mists, enjoying the lush vegetation.
It had already begun to rain, and little did we know, it would not stop for the duration of our trip. We had breakfast and checked into the "high-end" (according to Lonely Planet) Chau Long hotel, which resembles a castle. The owner bought out competing hotels and expanded so as not to obstruct the beautiful valley views.
That afternoon we met our personal tour guide, Daht, a native of a neighboring town. He led us on a 5km trek to Cat Cat, a local Hmong village. We saw an amazing waterfall, rice paddies being planted, and the traditional life of ethnic Vietnamese. It was awesome...and wet.
After a nice hike, we rewarded ourselves with some MORE Vietnamese coffee and pastries, followed by much-needed showers and a siesta. Daht had promised us another tour if the weather let up, but it did not. So we enjoyed a nice dinner, some CNN, and quiet time, hoping that tomorrow's weather would prove better.
Click here for complete Sa Pa pics
No comments:
Post a Comment