Let's continue this journey by motorbike through the mountains of northern Vietnam. We are still in Sapa, and on this foggy morning, we were first going to take a stroll around the Sapa market before hitting the road again towards our next stop, Bac Ha, a short stage of just 100 km.
Sapa Ethnic Market
It was under a morning fog that we got up that morning in Sapa. If The market starts at 6am in the morning (and lasts until early afternoon around 14 p.m.), it was only after our leisurely breakfast around 9 a.m. that we decided to go for a walk to the Sapa market.
Early in the morning, in addition to meeting trekkers already leaving with their Hmong guide for the day, we were able to see a procession that morning for what we thought was a funeral... a nice way to start the day!
My know-it-all Wikipedia buddy even tells me that the city's covered market was set up by the colonial administration in order to to promote trade between mountain people, who from then on came once a week to exchange products in Sapa, the colony, for its part, gained by taxing the goods.
Although we will not go into the covered area, but will stay outside and wander through the foggy streets, the market is nonetheless a melting pot of mountain ethnic groups among which the black Hmong, the red Hmong (called Dao or Dzao) and others whose names I don't necessarily know (I'm not a specialist...)
We will stay there for a good hour, wandering through the streets surrounding Sapa ChurchThe atmosphere is rather relaxed, contact with the locals is mostly based on smiles, some even laugh among themselves.
A Red Hmong (or Dao) woman from whom Jitima will buy a pair of pants.
A little Hmong girl has her little brother (or sister) put on her back.
It's a great time at the market!
The difference with the Vietnamese from Hanoi, for example, who come here for the weekend to get some fresh air, is obvious. Both in dress and behavior. These are Vietnamese women "from the cities" who we will hear bickering about I don't know what when we arrive at the ticket office allowing us to visit the gardens of Sapa (this had already happened in Sapa during our previous stay in Vietnam, see here, at the end of the article).
By the way, the gardens are located high up and overlooking the city, personally, we will not visit, due to lack of time and the price seemed too high anyway.
Vietnamese women from cities, easily recognizable!
On the way to Bac Ha
After this morning stroll in the Sapa market, we returned to the hotel to have brunch before hitting the road shortly before noon, direction Bac Ha.
The idea is to arrive the day before the famous ethnic market of Bac Ha, which takes place every Sunday. In all, a route of approximately 100 km.
First, it was necessary go back down from Sapa to Lao Cai, not without stopping a few times to admire the landscape while taking photo breaks.
We also came across some work in a valley between two mountains... A dam... I think the landscape is going to change a lot in the years to come...
Throughout our trip, we will see several dams being built like this one.
Once back in Lao Cai, we had our lunch break in a restaurant facing a square, not far from the station where we had arrived the day before.
The Nest, a possible restaurant choice if you pass through Lao Cai.
A street in Lao Cai
View of Lao Cai and the river crossing it.
Then we still had about sixty kilometers before reaching the small mountain town of Bac Ha.
We were going along the border with China, which was just there on our left. It always does something to me to think that there, because the history of humanity is made like that, borders exist, and while I am walking along this great road in Vietnam, there, right next to it, is a foreign land…
On the left is China.
Over 40 km, it is a rather easy road because it follows the valley, then we only climb for the last 25 km.
It is on this last portion that we will begin to get a glimpse of what the mountains of northern Vietnam can offer in terms of landscape.
Arrived in Bac Ha, without electricity
Yes, we didn't know it yet, but the city regularly suffers from blackout which can last several hours.
When we arrived, we went straight to one of the hotels listed in the guide. We went up to see the room and given the price, we decided to stay there, at the Sunday Hotel (300 Dong per night, but apparently it no longer exists...)
Arrival in Bac Ha.
It was there, once we had landed and wanted to recharge the batteries (of the devices, not ourselves 😉 ) that we realized that there was no more electricity.
Sunday Hotel in Bac Ha.
Our room at the Sunday Hotel.
View from the bedroom.
Another view from the bedroom.
Night was starting to fall and our stomachs were demanding their due for the evening. We walked right across the square next to the hotel, and headed towards a restaurant, where we could see light from candles, and where there were quite a few people (mainly tourists).
It was okay but not exceptional. We stayed a little while to enjoy this soft light while a heavy downpour started, dripping down the walls that were clearly poorly insulated... (despite everything, the restaurant looks clean and even seems to have benefited from a facelift recently, so go there without fear!)
At the restaurant (I don't have a good memory for names...)
When we returned to the hotel, there was still no electricity, but as is usual here, there were candles available in our room.
Shortly after putting them in place, the electricity came back, then it would cut out again and come back, 2 more times playing "will it happen, won't it happen" and it would finally come back for good, when it was time for us to go to bed, because the next day we had to get up early to go to the market.
Just like old times!
