Sa Pa - A Two Day Cultural Trek With A Homestay

It was quite a spooky scenery when we started our trek,

but soon we were beneath the clouds and could see the valley and the way forward.

The hands of the Hmong women following us never stopped working, and we were given gifts of nature on the way - they were very creative!

Creativity from natural materials

We walked through a school in Y Linh Ho village, and it was fun to see the children playing like we used to.

Playing the good old way

The Hmong build their own houses of materials found in the area such as wood, bamboo, rattan and rock, as it is abundant. They don't have sawmills, so all the wooden beams are cut and smoothed using hand tools and carried out of the mountains by 2 people, often over distances of 20 km or more. Lots of labour with zero cost. Sweat equity at its best! The big branch outside this house is a sign telling that outsiders are forbidden to come in because there is someone ill in the house. It is the sign that the sorcerer has driven the evil spirit out, and it can return along with the outsiders, and make the person sick again.

It takes about three years to built a house using mostly local materials.

Each house and each room has a ghost, and offerings such as pigs and chicken are made regularly, For example, if an unexpected guest turns up everyone must keep silence because the ghost would not dare to eat if hearing a strange voice. In the next 3 days the mistress has to sleep on the floor and must not sweep it to keep the ghost from running away.

The daily commute

We stopped for lunch in Lao Chai, and were quickly surrounded by women trying to sell us their goods; it was quite overwhelming, as they were very persistent. Luckily  the 2 Canadian girls from Toronto each bought something, so that got us off the hook!

'Hello, where are you from? Would you like to buy this...?'

We reached our home-stay in Ta Van village, which has a nice location by the river and overlooking the rice fields.

We stayed at the big house to the left of the trail

It was early afternoon, and we went for a walk to explore the area on own, and to check out the Charm Destiny Spa recommended by Tim, our guide. Andy had a Swedish massage, and Dorte had a facial with local products. Each massage was an hour long and cost only $20 each! Must get one more before we leave Vietnam for New Zealand!

Luxury with a heating fan!

On the way back to the home-stay we meet people coming home from work. The basket is home made woven of bamboo and rattan.

A day at work

Back at the home-stay we got put to work as we learned to make spring rolls!

Using banana leaves as a plate

This is the kitchen at even though the conditions are primitive compared to our kitchens, the food was great. 

Our guide was also educated as a Chef

Our host barbecuing pork

The 'boys' had several rounds of toast as is local custom, with 35% homemade apple and rice wine. Andy had a smoke from the bamboo pipe, and the tobacco was very strong. 

Cough, Cough, Cough!!

They are cultivating rice, barley, vegetables and corn, and they corn is drying inside the house.

Home decoration by nature. Real homemade popcorn anyone!

We had great fun playing with the son of the house.

Very cute with a great imagination!

The following day we hiked through rice fields; admittedly we were not as impressed (becoming spoiled!) as we had  already seen them in Nepal!

A slippery slope (foreshadowing-see 2nd pic below)!

But the bamboo forest was a new adventure for us, and interesting to walk through.

Happy hiker

Ouch!

This boy below is trying to make a fire, maybe to impress his girlfriend! Look at the way he is crouched into the rocks! Asian have amazing flexibility!

Determination at work

These two Hmong women had walked with us all day. They often helped Dorte down the slippery muddy steep hills, and didn't leave her alone after her fall. They spoke English quite well. As we were not interested in buying anything from them, we asked to have a picture taken with them, and paid them for it - they were very pleased, even though you wouldn't know!

The Team

We were driven back to Sa Pa by minibus, and were happy to find a place which served hot wine, and a fire to warm us up.

A taste of Christmas

A Visit To Cat Cat Village, Sa Pa.

Sa Pa is located 350 km northwest of Hanoi, very close to the Chinese border, and it took 11 hours by sleeper train to get there. We had a 4 berth to ourselves, and it was nice to be vertical, but we didn't get much sleep due the bumping and rolling of the train! This is Andy at 6:40 am!

At Lao Cai station we were met by a guide, and driven the 35 km up to Sa Pa, located at 1650m above sea level. Unfortunately, the city was covered in clouds and it was misty and raining, and it stayed like that during the 4 days we were there. We had a nice welcome at the Casablanca Hotel, and after breakfast our guide talked to us about the program for the next 3 days. 

As soon as we left the hotel we were surrounded by local women greeting us, and asking where we were from. They were not trying to sell us anything (yet). Our guide, Tim took us through the local market where you can by some for us unusual things. Worms for dinner anybody?

and interesting medicinal drinks......

Yes, they do eat dog meat in Vietnam. No, you won't see a picture!

Followed by the Hmong women we walked down the valley to Cat Cat village, which is inhabited by the Black Hmong minority. There are around 800,000 Hmong people in Vietnam, and they have successfully preserved their language an many cultural traits, both physical and non-physical, defying changing environmental and social conditions.

They are really living off the land, and hard working people. They take the bark of the hemp tree and also uses flax fibre, and twist it by hand into thin strings used for weaving. Along the way, many of the local women following us were spinning flax fibre as they walked. Flax clothes is 3-4 times more durable than cotton.

They pick leaves from the indigo tree, and colour the cloth over many times to give it the blue colour. Andy bravely tested the colouring of the leaves, and had a memory of it for several days after!

To make patterns, they use melted bees wax to draw their chosen pattern on white flax clothes, which they then dye many times to get the desired colour. Then they dip the cloth in hot water to melt the wax, which leaves patterns on the cloth.

The Black Hmong sow colourful patterns on string of clothes and sow it on their clothes. Every time we took a break on the hike, some women pulled out their embroidery and got to work. 

The animal and the children roam free.

Primary and secondary school are free for the minority children, and they learn their mother tongue, Vietnamese and English in school. They will have to pay for going to university. We were pleased to see so many schools in this area.

We then continued further down the valley to see a waterfall, and then made our way back up to Sa Pa in the clouds. 

An enlightening day.

A Day In The Vietnamese Countryside

We drove 60km southwest of Hanoi, to the township of My Duc, where we boarded a small rowing boat, and headed down the river among the limestone cliffs.

There are no roads leading to this UNESCO World Heritage site, so the river is well sign posted, and even has street lamps!

A local fisherman at work.

We had lunch, and then we hiked up a lot of stone steps to the pagoda.

Many Buddhist pilgrims come here during a festival in March, which is probably a fun, but very busy time to be there. There we only a fre people at the stalls tyring to get us to buy their things, which was a relief. There are many pagodas here, but we only visited the Huong Tich Chu - the Pagoda of the Perfumed Vestige, which is located in a huge cave.

We took the cable car back down to the river, as the many steps wouldn't have been good for our knees.

A nice day in the country side of northern Vietnam.

Hanoi - A Blend of Parisian Grace and Asian Pace

A few weeks ago, Vietnam welcomed citizen number 90 million. Vietnam was a very poor and war-wounded country, but it has now transformed itself into a stable, prospering nation through industriousness, ingenuity and ambition. The over-all standard of living is good, but corruption remains systemic, and undermines the growth of the economy. The Communist Party is the sole source of power, and we have heard propaganda in the streets, and on the train to Sa Pa (in English). The North has never forgiven the South, for siding with the Americans against their own people, and the South has never forgiven the North for bulldozing their war cemeteries, and imposing communism, but luckily, the new generation seems to have less interest in the country's history.

We flew directly from Bangkok to Hanoi, and opted for the hotel to pick us up. Hanoi is a very graceful city, with it sweeping boulevards, tree-fringed lakes and ancient pagodas. We walked around Hoan Kiem Lake, which is said to house a 100 year turtle.

There are 7 million people, and 4 million motorbikes in Hanoi, and they ebb and flow through the bustling city. It takes courage to cross the road, as neither the bikes nor the cars stop for pedestrians, and there are very few traffic lights. We stayed in the Old Quarter, which is pulsating with life, plenty of street kitchens, and exotic scents.

Andy had a street haircut, which was OK, but not as good at Thomas' in Turkey. Thomas is the fiancee of Dorte's daughter, Stephanie.

We saw a water puppet show, which originated with the rice farmers who worked the flooded fields, and who saw the potential of the water as a dynamic stage, and the art form is at least 1000 years old. The farmers carved the puppets from water-resistant fig tree timber in forms modelled on the villagers themselves, on their animals and fanciful mythical creatures such as dragons. The 'stage' in the theatre is a square tank of water, and the puppets are attached to long poles operated by the puppeteers behind a curtain. Even though we didn't understand a word, it was very funny and entertaining.

We also visited the Hoa Lo Prison Museum, which is a thought-provoking site with the remains of the former prison, ironically nicknamed 'Hanoi Hilton' by prisoners of war from the United States. You easily get an impression of how awful the conditions were for the prisoners.

The Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is only open in the morning, and you have to follow strict rules and regulations to get in, as this is the holiest of the holies for many Vietnamese. We walked and walked to find the entrance, and the signs just kept encouraging us to keep going...

Contrary to Ho Chi Minh's wish for a simple creation, his frail, pale body can be seen in a glass sarcophagus deep in the bowls of the building. Guards in snowy-white military uniforms are posted at intervals of five paces, giving an authoritarian aspect to the slightly macabre spectacle of the body with its wispy white hair.

Within the complex is also Ho Chi Minh's humble stilt house, where he lived for the last ten years of his life.

The Temple of Literature was founded in 1070, and it Vietnam's first university. The temple is dedicated to Confucius, and honors Vietnam's first scholars and men of literary accomplishment.

We wanted to rent bicycles to bike the 13km around Tay Ho Lake, but couldn't find the bike rental place, so we just walked part of it. It was a calm, residential area, and we were the only tourists around.

We used Hanoi as our base for the trips to the Perfume Pergoda, Sa Pa and Ha Long Bay, and it worked really well. We kept coming back to stay at the Hanoi Rendezvous Hotel, as they gave great service, the rooms were nice and clean, and it was a convenient location in the Old Quarter.

A Taste of Thailand

We were not 'good tourists' in Thailand the 9 days we were there......

BANGKOK

We flew from Kathmandu to Bangkok, and used Starwood points for 3 days of luxury at the Royal Orchid Sheraton Hotel by the river. What a treat after 4 months of travelling and staying in many 

budget hotels, and under some very simple conditions.

Bangkok is the capital of Thailand and has over 8 million inhabitants, so it is a vey busy city. It is quite modern, has an abundance of massage parlours and restaurants, and an efficient train system. We had never seen this sign before in an above ground subway, ironically fot Vancouverites it was also called SKYTRAIN!

N

We slept in, enjoyed the pool, 

shopped for Christmas presents for the family and relaxed. The only sightseeing we did was from a public boat going up the river. This is Wat Arun, Temple of Dawn, a Buddhist temple. 

We walked the streets, but didn't visit any temples or other landmarks. Dorte has been to Bangkok before, and Andy was 'templed out'.

PHUKET

As we had not made any reservations for the rest of our trip, we were 'free' to go wherever we 

wanted from Bangkok, and as we both love the ocean and hadn't seen one for 5 weeks, we found 

a good deal with Air Asia, and flew to Phuket for 6 days. Phuket is an island paradise in the south-western part of Thailand on the Indian Ocean; sandy beaches, crystal clear waters and sunny tropical climate.

We stayed at Patong beach in a budget hotel in the northern end of town, and were pleased that 

we were well away from the main tourist area, the go-go bars and other 'temptations'! We found our 'own' beach, Kalim beach, which was small and away from the main beach and with no trinket 

sellers, no jet-skis and not many other people.

We spent the days sleeping in (we must have been very tired still!), writing on the blog, researching Vietnam, swimming in the 29C ocean, and reading.

You can buy gazillions for your scooter at little stalls all over town - life is simple.

We enjoyed dinner, drinks and sunsets from a beach restaurant, and walked the beach after dinner enjoying the occasional fireworks and the many beautiful fire-lanterns launched by tourists. 

We did not do any tours here either, just relaxed, and we didn't feel guilty at all.........

Nepal - A Country of Contrasts.

We spent five weeks in Nepal, covering a wide range of activities and seeing a small part of this exciting country.

 

The poverty touched us the most. Nepal has a somewhat large group of very wealthy people, a very small middle class, and a lot of poor people. This might be because of the dominant caste system, which contributes to a strictly defined system of hierarchy. Everybody in the family has a clearly defined rank. The Nepali language has half a dozen words for 'you', each of which conveys varying shades of respect.

EDUCATION

Dorte is a member of the Advisory Board of Meaningful Journney, which among other things arranges volunteering experiences in India and Nepal. While in Kathmandu we visited two of the projects. The government school has students from kindergarden till grade 8, and they learn Nepali, English, Math Science, and Social Studies. This is the entrance to the school.

The children come from villages 8 to 10 hours away, and this is the only way they can get an education. They move to Kathmandu with their parents and siblings, and live in one big room close to the school. One of the parents might be lucky to get a job during the years they are there. 

The school seemed well managed, and there was a good atmosphere. On their wish list is a library with books in Nepali and English. The children would then be able to borrow them to practice their reading and language skills, as well as to learn to use books as a tool for getting information. They have the room for the library, they 'just' need the shelves and the books.

We also visited an orphanage/seniors home. During the ten year civil war a lot of children were orphaned. There is no support system for children in Nepal. These days the children primarily come to the orphanage via the hospital or the police. The children were all in school when we visited, which was good to see. It cost $150 a year to sponsor education for one child. The seniors living there primarily come because they have no family to look after them. If they only have daughters, the daughters go to live with their husband's family, and her parents are not welcome. The seniors capable help looking after the children, but often it is the other way around, we were told. This place in only run by donation, and the conditions were poor. Each person has a bed, and a little space around the bed for belongings.

This is the kitchen, and they mainly live on rice and vegetables.

"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world"

- Nelson Mandela

WOMEN IN NEPAL

Life is not easy for Nepali women. Their mortality rates are higher than men's, and women generally work harder and longer than men, for less reward. We saw women working in construction of houses carrying brick up tiny bamboo ladders, shovelling sand through a huge sift, and moving baskets with stone - we would never see women doing this kind of hard physical work in the Western world. Women only gain status when they give birth to a son, and a man can take a second wife if the first hasn't had a child after ten years. Nepal has a strong patriarchal society, and thus boys are favoured over girls, who are the last to eat and the first to be pulled out of school during financial difficulties. Nepal's literacy rate is 49%, with the rate among women being 35%. Abortion was legalized in 2002, and since 2005 women have been allowed to apply for a passport without their husbands or parent's permission. Since 2005, it has also been illegal to banish women to a cowshed for four days during their period. The annual festival of Teej is the biggest for women, though ironically it honours their husbands!

FOOD

The staple meal of Nepal is daal bhaat, which is lentil soup, rice, curried vegetables, spicy pickle and bread. It came in many different variations depending on where in the country we were, but it was always good.

Another favourite was momos, which are dumplings filled with either spinach, chicken or vegetables. It took us a little while to get used to the prices on the menu; 100 rupee is $1.

MONEY

We learned the value of the rupees by looking at the animals on the notes.

The front of each banknote features a picture of Mount Everest but no picture of the queen or king, or their children (notice the blank spot on the right of each bill). This change took place due to the 2001 massacre of the entire royal family by a distraught crown prince, and the 2008 abolishment of the monarchy by democratic vote. The abolishment, was one of the conditions of the Maoists, to end the civil war that raged for ten years.

As you might have seen in our blog, the scenery here is amazing; wedged between the high wall of the Himalaya and the steamy jungles of the Indian plains, Nepal is a land of snow peaks and Sherpas, yaks and yetis, monasteries and mantras.

We both loved the warm and friendly Nepali people. We sincerely wish that life gets better for them.