We took an overnight train to Lao Cai from
Hanoi, arriving before dawn, and then took a bus from Lao Cai to Sapa. The scenery, like so many places in Vietnam, was beautiful. When we arrived at our hotel, the Chau Long Sapa Hotel, it was misty, very cold, and the power wasn’t working. We took a short nap before meeting our guide at about 10AM. The power did come on shortly after we arrived, but we were told that the heat was not going to be turned on because it was not cold enough. We didn’t have a thermometer, so we didn’t know exactly how cold it was, but we were shivering in jackets at night. So, we decided to upgrade to a room with a fireplace. Once the fire burned for a while, our room was so filled with smoke that our eyes were burning. We had to open the windows to let the smoke out, and our room quickly became even colder!
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There are a large number of H’mong people in Sapa, the women wearing traditional clothing. These were the first hilltribe people we had seen in Vietnam, and we were fascinated by their dress and customs. We took a walk to a nearby Black H’mong village with our guide, and talked with both children and adults. The older H’mong women came to sell us traditional fabrics, and the younger girls brought out handmade “silver” bracelets. Of course it was necessary to buy a few of these items!
The town of Sapa is not very large, and in 2002 there were not many restaurants. We ate a couple of times at another Hoa Sua café in Sapa, which like the one in Hanoi, employs disadvantaged street kids. We chose to leave Sapa and miss the Saturday market, to see the Saturday Flower H’mong market in
Can Cau instead, which is further off the beaten path.
For information on Hotels, Tours, Flights, and Books on Vietnam, check out the pages below:
Hotels in Vietnam - Recommended hotels in Vietnam.
Tours in Vietnam - Recommended tour companies in Vietnam.
Flights to Vietnam - Includes information about our experiences on different airlines we've taken to and from Vietnam.
Books on Vietnam - Excellent books on Vietnam's history, people, and travel.
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