We caught the night train on Sunday night from Hanoi to Lao Cai. We shared our cabin with Stephan and Annabelle, two young German medical students who we’ve been travelling through Halong Bay with. We bought deluxe soft sleepers and were shown photos that made the train trip look like it was going to be a wonderful adventure. We found out that in Vietnam Deluxe soft sleeper means the same as hardwood plank with shared toilet (as in shared by everyone else in the carriage – about 75 people) None of us slept at all and when we were arrived in Lao Cai at 4.55am everyone else on the train look like they had suffered similarly. As we got off the train we walked along a platform that seemed to be headed NOWHERE. It resembled something you may have seen in and old WW2 movie depiction of Poland or Germany. Hundreds of people walking along in the cold dark early morning with all their belongings having no clue where they were headed. Eventually we made it out of the train station. Another hour on a bus up a mountain saw us arrive in SaPa.
SaPa is a stunningly beautiful town in the northern highlands of Vietnam near the Chinese border. People come here to trek through the terraced rice paddies, visit the villages of the hilltribes that inhabit the area and for the the very fit and adventurous climb Vietnam’s highest peak Mt Fansipan.
The hilltribes consist of two distinct groups. The H’mong and Dzao people. They bring their incredible handcrafts and silver jewellery to Sapa to sell everyday. We’ve only had a quick look so far but I expect I will be sending quite a few things home from here. I love everything I see.
