Some Sapa Sights

Sapa is really beautiful and our photos really can't do it justice, but here are a few snaps from our time there to give you a flavour.

First, here are four pics of the mountains.

This pic shows some of the extensive rice terraces which were built approximately 100 years ago. We'd hate to think how many man hours of labour went into the construction!



And here are some sights from around the Sapa region.

Here's a woman from the Red Dzao tribe

Some kids gathering (and selling!) on one of the many precarious hairpin corners on the road between the villages

And some older women doing the same

The next three pics are from Lao Chai Village. The first is a little difficult to make out. The pic was taken from inside a home/'shop' by the river. The running water is used to power a small wooden small rice mill which pummels a small bowl rice (foreground). In the background, through the hole in the wall, two village women are walking.

Here an old man is washing in the stream next to the rice terraces.

It's not unusual to see thatched huts with satellite dishes! They are usually powered with hydro-electricity generated by the running creek water (only one of the villages has 'proper' electricity)... Our guide told us that people first dream of buying a motorbike, and then a satellite dish (or three!)

The next two pics are from a bakery in Sapa called Baguette & Chocolat. This bakery/restaurant/ mini-hotel is run by Hoa Sua - a Vietnamese non-profit organization which trains and employs disadvantaged Vietnamese youths in hospitality/tourism and then helps place them in external employment. Hoa Sua runs cafes and training schools in Hanoi and Sapa. You can read more about them here. By all accounts they do a fantastic job - the 3000 (so far) 'graduates' have a near-100% success rate in terms of getting placed in desirable jobs in the hospitality industry, and the establishments run by Hos Sua all come very highly recommended. Everybody in Sapa loves Baguette & Chocolat - including us (we were there at least 5 times in four days.) They also have a great business in packaging picnic lunches for hikers and other day-trippers to pick up lunch in the morning before they leave Sapa town for the day.

This pic of a local woman resting on the steps with her baby is taken from the outdoor eating area at Baguette & Chocolat.


You can read more about Baguette and Choclat at the Hoa Sua website here.