Pushing the Boundaries

We intended to stay in Sapa for 2, maybe 3 days, but we stayed for 4.

In Sapa we found a cool climate, mountainsides covered in rice paddy terraces, colourful hill tribes, and some beautiful people from local villages. We met lots of wonderful people, but will likely only maintain contact with La, Ah and Mi.

We caught the overnight train there, and as we were eating breakfast on the morning we arrived, Vee came up to us and said he was on his way to meet up with Ann and Peter! So we took the day to chill out and explore – we walked to Cat Cat village and a nearby waterfall – and then we had dinner with the others. The next day was their last day in Sapa, and we all went for a guided tour with our guide, 16-year-old Black H’mong girl, La, to Lao Chai village where her family live, and to the 2 villages beyond, where Black H’mong and Dai people live. La has wonderful English language skills and an email address. So we’re going to stay in touch.

Luckily we had had our 5 flights of stairs in Saigon, followed by 4 in Hanoi, 5 on Cat Ba Island, and another 5 back in Hanoi, as in Sapa, we had – about a thousand stairs to walk up to get to our room. That might be a bit of an exaggeration. How many stairs in 10-12 flights? It was huge anyway, and usually we needed to stop for a moment and take breath or two on our way up. And we went up and down 2 or 3 times each day! AND, in between we went for big mountain walks that often meant hiking up steep paths – thank goodness we don’t smoke anymore!

It was so nice to wake up to misty mountains and rice terraces. It felt like we could just stop.

However, one “Hello? You buy from me?” can turn into many “Hello? You buy from me?” and then become “Hello? You buy from me? Why you buy from her, you no buy from me? You buy from me? Hello?”

And then you find yourself unable to buy the thing you want without buying things that you don’t want. And then you find yourself unable to buy the things that you want and ONLY able to buy things you don’t want! ☺ …and then you find your wallet empty and your bag heavy and more “you buy from me” songs each time you step outside!

Mi was the first person we bought from. Ah was the last.

So, new boundaries set(!?) and new things to post home ☺

See photos at http://web.mac.com/erinfearn/iWeb/SE%20Asia/Sapa.html

and hear Ah's song at http://web.mac.com/erinfearn/iWeb/SE%20Asia/Ah%27s%20Song.html