After we left Laos we flew to Vietnam. We decided to just visit northern Vietnam, because even on a year-long trip you just can't see everything.
I had been comfortable enough in jeans in Thailand, but when we arrived in Vietnam it was actually cold enough to need jeans!
Hanoi was our base and we took a few short trips out of the city during our stay.
At the airport, we had to get our visa. To get a visa in Vietnam, you have to either go to the consulate in the US ahead of time or have a travel agency write a letter of invitation for you. Not wanting to spend one of our precious days at home in a consulate office, we opted for the letter. At the airport the directions are vague and you're not really sure what forms you need and the line is more of a group of people. Eventually, we worked our way up to the counter where you hand your passport over to someone who doesn't really speak English and then you move to the next group of people and hope you get your passport back. After a few minutes, they held up our passports and we continued on through immigration with our visas. What looked like something that could be a mess went quite smoothly.
Taking the shuttle into town was more work. We waited in the shuttle with a few other people for a long time, although we were repeatedly told we'd leave soon. After about an hour, we banded together and told the driver we needed to go. His response was additional money to make up for those empty seats. I understand he wanted a full van (when we returned to the airport a few weeks later, it was so full they had extra stools for people to sit on), but no one was coming! Finally, when we began to get out of the van, he agreed and we were on our way. After a few loops around the airport which I'm not really sure what their purpose was, we made it to the Old Quarter of Hanoi.
We spent the next day wandering around the streets (we got very good at navigating the constant stream of motorcycles and mopeds- every street crossing was an adventure.) We ate an incredibly delicious meal that was fresh and light. This was the first thing I liked about Vietnam- fresh, tasty meals. Vietnamese food isn't quite as spicy as Matt likes it, but I think it's perfect.
We looked at a handicraft store which got me pretty excited for our next couple destinations- textiles galore!
That evening we had tickets on an overnight train to take us to Sapa. It is a town in the Vietnamese mountains with many ethnic minority villages surrounding it. We planned on going there for a few days, then on to the less touristy town of Bac Ha.
We had sleepers on the train and eventually found out we had the whole berth to ourselves! Which was very exciting to us- it felt very elite, probably because there was a little lamp on the table. Before going to sleep, I got my down jacket and scarf ready because I had a feeling that getting off in the mountains would be cold.
Around 5:00 in the morning, we disembarked and I was grateful for that down. The train only goes to Lo Cai, from there we took a minibus to Sapa. We drove up a mountain road for about an hour when we arrived before the sunrise. We walked down the empty, hilly streets to our hotel, which was still dark. So, we went into the next place with a light on and warmed up with hot chocolate before going back to our hotel.
Our room was fortunately ready for us as soon as the hotel opened, so we went up for a rest. The room was so cold! I didn't know how we were going to survive! Extra blankets and a check on the heater helped. Eventually it was comfortable enough, although the room was never toasty.
But the view (or the potential of the view) made up for it. Our room looked out over the valley, which was covered in dense fog. But, as the day warmed up the green hills became visible and it was beautiful.
We decided to explore, so we headed out. We went on a short run down the hill (Matt ran back up, I walked). Then we went into town. It's just narrow streets perched on the side of these hills. Women dressed in beautifully embroidered dresses and colorful scarves walk to you as soon as they see you trying to sell their wares. One stuck with us, so Matt got some language lessons before we bought a scarf. I think she lived teaching Matt those phrases. We found another delicious meal and made plans for our time.
One of the best ways to see the area is to hire a guide to take you on a trek. While they offer overnight treks we just wanted a good day hike. They take you through the hills to waterfalls and various villages. It sounded amazing, so we signed up and looked forward to our walk the next day.
I just love seeing the way people in the highest of hinterlands live their lives- and to know that they've lived that way for generations is incredible. There was something about it that was reminiscent of people in Nepal. Of course, each group has unique characteristics and traditions, but there always seems to be this thread of familiarity. Sometimes it's obvious, sometimes it just feels familiar. From houses to diet to jewelry. I just love thinking about these people living high in the mountains and another group, far away, but just as high living similar lives. I don't know what it is exactly, but I like thinking about this invisible, but collective, connection.
Anyways, once we reached Sapa, I decided I loved Vietnam. In fact, I was ready to call it, Vietnam may be my favorite Asian country.
Out hotel offered free cooking classes then you could eat for dinner whatever you made. Obviously, we signed up for that- we like cooking and we're frugal, so it was perfect. It was more of a cooking demonstration, but we did get a big bowl of noodles that night.
So, we went to bed looking forward to our trek the next morning. Very early that morning Matt woke up and was horribly sick. He was so sick he couldn't even diagnose himself (he loves doing that) he could just moan. Later that morning, I cancelled our trek and got ready to spend the day in. I opened the window and not a cloud was in sight, the valley was bright green and full of light. I sat out on our terrace just taking in the warm sun.
Matt was sick though the day, later in the evening he seemed to start to come back to life, which was a relief. And by the next morning, though he was weak, he had pulled through.
Sapa is small, so the brief time we explored the town was enough. On our last morning, we walked through town to the church and got on a minibus back to Lo Cai. After an un eventful ride, we got off the bus, walked down the street to the main bus stop and jumped on the Bac Ha bus just as it was leaving. We were initially impressed with our timing. Then, the bus ride got eventful. We drove all over town, down really random roads, picking up people and mostly boxes. They rearranged our seats a couple times- I think Matt sat in four different spots. They pushed bags under seats, they made piles in the aisle, they piled them up in the front row. I've never seen anything like it. It was Saturday, so we think it may have been for the weekend markets in the hills, though we're not sure. Before leaving town they stopped again and decided to move some of the boxes to the roof. Finally, we got going up the mountains. As we passed small towns they would occasionally stop and people would get on or off climbing over everything in the bus. Finally, we stopped and they started maneuvering something else on the bus. A motorcycle. They fit a motorcycle on to the minibus!
Something about minibuses- they are often bizarre and entertaining.
When we reached Bac Ha, we climbed over the motorcycle and got off. Bac Ha is a small town with just a couple hotels. Usually, when we book hotels in potentially moist locations, I like to get something a little nicer. I think we were at the nicest hotel in town- it was simple, but comfortable. Not many tourists have reached Bac Ha yet, which is why a friend recommended coming here. I wouldn't have wanted to come here instead of Sapa, but I'm glad we came in addition to it.
We walked around the little town. I found a tailor to fix my beloved denim shirt which had holes in both the elbows, which I had already fixed twice. We also found the palace and walked around it, with the help of a few girls doing an English practicum.
On Sunday, we got up early to go to the Sunday Market. I loved it. We could have come home with lots of blankets and skirts and dresses had self control not been used. My favorite part was the clothes section. You are always seeing women in their beautiful traditional clothing and you wonder if they make it or buy it or what. Well, they buy it-at the Sunday Market! It was so fun seeing them shop.
We decided to try a trek here in Bac Ha. Matt was feeling much better so we arranged to have a guide and went exploring. It felt so good to walk. There were trails criss-crossing the hills. We visited a couple homes and some schools. Many of the classrooms were pre-kindergarten age, but we also peeked into a room that seemed to be about 2nd grade. They sat quietly at their desks reading to themselves or their partner, while thenteacher worked alone at her desk. So different from home. At 11:00, the students were done for the day. I do not know how they get everything done in that time!
At one school, we arrived just before recess, so as we approached the students were released and ran out chanting hello to us. They all wanted high fives and they were adorable. I can't imagine working at a remote school like that, but it certainly seemed interesting.
Once we reached the highest point we stopped for a picnic lunch and enjoyed the view. We could see where we had hiked from that morning. It was beautiful scenery and warm. It was so enjoyable spending the day in the hills.
That evening we took a much less crowded bus back to the train station to return to Hanoi.
We spent a few days in Hanoi, just wandering. I wanted to get some pants made because I had read about how easy it is to have clothing made. So, we searched for a tailor (the word fixated may have been used), it was an experience, that, unfortunately, did not result in pants. I think I'll stick to pre-made clothing from now on.
We ate some more tasty meals, which included a couple of Indian restaurants. We went on runs. We went to a beautiful concert of traditional music.
Then, we packed up and headed to Halong Bay. We had arranged an overnight cruise. So, off we sailed. The itinerary was packed: we visited a cave, hiked to the top of an island, opted not to swim, learned how to make spring rolls, enjoyed the view, skipped tai chi at sunrise (it was foggy), went kayaking, visited a floating village, then returned to Hanoi.
Though we did not get to see the bay in it sunny, turquoise glory, it was still beautiful in the mist and it always feels good to be on the water.
When we returned to Hanoi, we had a short visit before flying on to our next destination.
For our last meal, we had extra money left to splurge. We decided on a European restaurant (as much as I liked Vietnamese food, I will always choose cheese). We had tapas with a salad that had goat cheese on the bread. Goat cheese! Oh my goodness, that was a good meal.
So, Vietnam was an interesting place. I admit I had been somewhat ambivalent about visiting, but I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I would come back to Vietnam, I would explore this land some more.
