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The drive there was interesting... lots of rice patties (of course), green tea, cabbage, corn, etc. We did see a wedding procession... our guide said that the weddings last 2 days... on the 1st day they visit the groom's parents and on the 2nd day they visit the bride's where the actual wedding takes place. The hotel manager had told me earlier that day (she was going to a wedding) that the Vietnamese use the Chinese calendar when picking a wedding date. Later I also found out that fortune-tellers are also consulted. We passed a crew painting the lines on the road... I couldn't help but wonder why they bothered when no one actually paid attention to them! They used a machine on wheels. There was a small fire going under the machine but the machine itself was pushed by one man... very archaic looking but I guess it beats doing it by hand! Many hilltribe people walking on the road and men working in the fields. As we descended from Sapa we saw that the rice fields had new growth and plenty of water whereas Sapa was dry and they had not yet planted the rice. Saw children on the road... many with no pants and many children with babies strapped to their backs... likely in charge of looking after a younger sibling.
The market was fun... it is frequented by the Flower H'mong tribe who dress in colourful and vibrant clothes. You'll find them selling clothes, tools, food, water buffalo, horses, chickens, and dogs.
After the market we went to a local village... it was a bit awkward watching all these tourists trekking through people's homes and I wondered how much money the village is given by the tour operators.
In the village we came upon two young girls who had picked some flowers... I stopped to smell the handful that the younger girl had and she broke one off and gave it to me... so sweet.
On the way home to Sapa we stopped in Lao Cai and took photos of the Chinese border across the river.
That evening I had supper with Lee (from Korea) who was on our tour bus to the market today. He speaks little English but we managed ok... he said this is really the 1st time he's ever used it! He used to be a teacher but now owns a tea shop. I asked if he was married and he hung his head and told me he was divorced. He seemed very ashamed and I tried to reassure him it was ok... such a culture difference. I asked him if he had kids and he quietly told me he had 2 grown children and seemed very sad about it. He seemed like such a nice man... I wondered what the story was but between his reluctance to talk about it and our limited communicating abilities, I didn't ask.
After supper I met Jana for a drink and her new friend Basile (from Switzerland) also joined us. They both commented that I 'speak very good English' which I thought was so funny... I think they meant I speak clearly so it was easy for them to understand me.
Things I mostly remember about this day:
* People working in the water filled rice patties
* The many doors and windows we passed that I wished I could photograph
* Colourful skirts hanging on clothes lines
* Children playing on the side of the road
* Babies looking after babies
* A man giving a piggyback ride to a bottomless child
* The worn faces of the Flower H'mong women in the market
* Dogs in crates waiting to be sold... their fate unknown...
source: travelpod.com
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