From Paddy Fields to Chinese Lanterns

Vietnam continues to delight, and none more so than on the trip to Sapa.  We arrived on a sleeper bus, but unlike the rickety ones in India, this was a bus with reclining seats, business class aeroplane-style.  Very comfortable and relaxing, although some of the more rural roads can still be a little bumpy.

Sapa is up in the north of Vietnam, next to the Chinese border.  It is quite a subsistence area, although big corporations have moved in to build large hotels for the Chinese and built a “Disneyland style” visitor attraction at the top of the local mountain.  However, on leaving the town for a trek, all this is immediately left behind.

Trekking through the rough tracks the locals use, you come across rolling hills of terraced paddy fields and other crops.  It is quite rugged, and can be tough climbing down some of the tracks, but the views are worth it.  Everywhere are amazing green paddy fields, seemingly impossible to access and farm, and some were just starting to turn a lovely yellow as the rice starts to ripen.

The seven mile trek took us through villages and farms, where people still carry out ancient crafts like weaving and dying clothes.  There are various hill tribes, who emirate from the Chinese population, and all have wonderful clothes and headdresses, making the children especially cute.

After the trek we hired mopeds again and went up to the highest pass in Vietnam as it passes into the next valley.  With views of the highest views in Indochina, it was well worth the visit.  We had to hire two mopeds in the end though, as they are so underpowered, we couldnt get one up the hills with both of us on it!

After Sapa, we passed through Hanoi to fly to Hue.  This is a town in the centre of Vietnam which is famous for its emperors who ruled from 1810 to 1945.  Permitted by the French rulsers, they built an enormous fortified palace complex in the city.  On the second day we hired mopeds to explore the unusual and grand tombs and residences they built in the area.  All very unique.

Our next experience was perhaps the best.  We joined a convoy of mopeds and motorbikes who travelled the ninety miles from Hue to Hoi An.  We had drivers, but from the back of the bikes we were able to see the fantastic views on the high pass.  We stopped for a swim and lunch, and drove through paddy fields, past a floating village, aand through Danang.  It was a wonderfully, exhilarating way to travel between two destinations.

Hoi An is perhaps the best preserved old town in Vietnam.  Whilst much of Vietnam is changing fast, with Dubai looking to become a new Dubai, this oasis by the sea is magical.  By day it is wonderful with lots of well-kept boutique shops, cafes and restaurants, but at night it is transformed.  All the streets are lit by Chinese lanterns, and lots of people take trips on the rivers with boats lit up.  It is a lovely place to spend a few days, whilst we also had the chance to relax on the beach during the day, before moving onto the south of the country.