What’s Sapa-ning?

As my time in Vietnam was coming to an end, I made my way north to Sapa, a picturesque hill station high in the mountains and a remnant of the French colonial era. The area is very popular with nature and trekking enthusiasts, as it is famous for both its fine, rugged scenery and also for its rich cultural diversity. Sapa and its surrounding regions are home to a multitude of ethnic minorities, the majority of which are the Hmong (pronounced Mong). I had previously heard other travelers often raving about their experience in Sapa and their “authentic home-stay experience” with the local hill-tribe people (I say this in quotation marks because I cringe every time I hear the word “authentic”, or even worse, “off-the-beaten-path”). The first time I heard about Sapa was on my second day in Vietnam. A fellow traveler told me about the vast rice terraces, lush vegetation, and Fansipan, the highest peak in Vietnam. Truthfully I wasn’t too keen, since I had just come from the Philippines, where I had done a 3 day trek through the rice terraces of Banaue (often referred to as the Eighth Wonder of the World), and before that did a 3 day trek up the 3,700 meter high volcano of Mount Rinjani in Indonesia. However, with the rave reviews at the back of my mind, a couple of days left to my visa and the discovery that I can cross from Sapa to Laos (and probably most importantly because I wasn’t ready to leave Vietnam), I decided to go for it. Lucky for me, on the overnight bus from Hanoi I ran into the lovely English girls that I had met a couple of weeks before in Nha Trang. As soon as we got off the bus in Sapa we were swarmed by a sea of Hmong sisters, all dressed in black with colorful embroideries and accessorized with silver jewelry and a fez-like headpiece.

   

The girls and I found Mama Chu, who greeted us with bracelets and took us to get some breakfast before starting the 10km hike to her village. Even though the weather was quite cloudy, the landscapes and views were absolutely astounding.

                           

                      

It started to pour as soon as we got to Mama’s, but we were finally home sweet home! We settled in while Mama and her daughters made us dinner in one pan over a small fire. After enjoying the delicious meal all together (consisting of spring rolls, fried morning glory, pork and rice), Mama showed us the different jewelry she had for sale, and gave us each another gift to thank us for staying with her.

The next morning we started our trek back to Sapa after a breakfast of thick rice pancakes and bananas. About halfway through it started to rain very hard, so we got lifts back to town on motorbikes. The girls were heading back to Hanoi on the evening bus, so we said our goodbyes and I ventured out to find a hostel in the rain (this was just the beginning of my constant struggle with the rain in Sapa).

  

I ended up at Mountain View Hostel,  a newly opened hostel in the same family of the Vietnam Backpacker Hostel. I was planning on staying for 2 nights and then getting the bus to Luang Prabang in Laos. It’s funny how plans can change so much. On the day my bus was supposed to leave, I was informed that the road to Laos was “broken” (that’s literally what I was told by the lady at the bus company). So I took some time to figure out what my options were, and somehow ended up staying in Sapa for one week. Between free beers on Sundays, happy hour with 2 for 1 beers everyday, all you can eat and drink ricewine at Mama’s for $2, and obviously the amazing staff, no wonder I got stuck in Hotel California. If you happen to be there when it’s not raining 24/7 there’s plenty to do around Sapa besides the trekking. There is a small market not far from the center and a couple of waterfalls you can motorbike or take a taxi to. You will see Hmong sisters scattered around the town selling trinkets and souvenirs all day. If you’re not used to it they might seem pushy, and when you say no thanks they’ll probably swear at you in Hmong, but they are just as charming and good-humored as they are business savvy. All in all, I had a great time in Sapa and wouldn’t change a thing! Lucky for me, the weather was beautiful on my last day and I got to explore the beautiful town and its surroundings on motorbike, enjoying views of the beautiful rice terrace laden mountains and the valley below.

   

Next stop: Laos!

Mellow Yellow rating : 💛 💛 💛 💛 💛

Traveler’s tips : There are many agencies in Hanoi that will book your Sapa home-stay experience for you, but be warned that they are charging you double or even triple and are pocketing the difference. The best thing you can do is find a Hmong sister yourself when you get off the bus, that way you know exactly where your money is going. Also VBH will book a ticket to Laos for you from Hanoi – if you want to leave directly from Sapa (shorter journey but roads are in worse condition) you can book a ticket at the store selling trekking gear with a picture of a bus on the sign, it’s right next to Mountain View Hostel (next door to the bakery).

Manila and the Eighth Wonder of the World

The solo adventure begins! After a cry-fest goodbye with Fred at the airport in Bali, I headed off to Manila on my own. After checking in at the hostel, I discovered that the hostel offered free walking tours of the city, and that it happened to be Independence Day, so there would be a lot happening around the city. We did the Intramuros tour (San Agustín Church, Casa Manila and Fort Santiago) and walked through Rizal Park. We ended the day with some beers by the harbour at sunset, where I discovered Red Horse Extra Strong beer, a welcomed change after a month of Bintang Pilsner beer.   At night we did a sort of pubcrawl where we ended the night at a bar 71 storeys high, and here I discovered that Manila is the most densely populated city in the world.

 

After a short stint in Manila it was time to move on elsewhere. As keen as I was to return to the beach, I decided to take an overnight bus up to the north, to a town called Banaue. I heard about the lush 2,000 year old rice terraces that were carved into the mountains of Ifugao by ancestors of the indigenous people. I figured I could spend a couple days there, trekking and exploring the north before eventually heading to the beaches in the south. Once arrived in Banaue, I found a group of three people inquiring about guides for a 3 day hike, and so I tagged along. We wanted to take it easy that day since we were embarking on a 3 day trek the next day, so we went to the nearby hot and cold springs.

On the first day of our trek we walked through the famous Banaue rice terraces (often referred to as the Eighth Wonder of the World) and all the way to another village called Cambulo (18km, 9hrs).

The next morning we visited a nearby elementary school where we got to take some pictures with the kids. We hiked down to a 30 meter high waterfall and then spent the night in Batad (7km, 4 hrs).

On our final day we climbed what seemed like a million steps and walked through the rice terraces once last time before heading back to Banaue (7km, 4hrs).

 

Our next stop was in Sagada (north of Banaue) where we did a 3 hour hike through the Sumaguing Cave and then walked through Echo Valley to see the hanging coffins. We were explained that the hanging coffins were used in order to avoid occupying land that could be used for farming and because the people “believe in the light”, or to bring them closer to heaven.

 

Next stop: El Nido, Palawan!

MellowYellow rating: 💛💛💛💛💛

Travelers tips: I stayed at OMP (Our Melting Pot) in Manila, really enjoyed my stay and the staff are super helpful (free walking tours, pub crawls, helped me reserve my bus to Banaue). We stayed at Banaue Homestay and booked the guide with them, highly recommended. In Sagada we stayed at Sagada Homestay, nice place as well.