After a quick flight from Laos and a not-so-quick overnight sleeper train, we arrived in northern Vietnam. I expected Sapa to be a sleepy little town set up in the clouds, but it was bustling. We spent the first day exploring and getting a cheap stone massage (to avoid the rain). The second day, it was time to trek through rice terraces -- the actual attraction in Sapa.
Our awesome Vietnamese guide led us through three villages and kept us entertained with jokes. Oh, and right before we stopped for lunch, we watched a water buffalo giving birth. You know, just a casual Monday in the countryside. The first half of the day was relaxing as we fell in love with the landscape while walking a flat, paved path. Then all of sudden, we were slipping and sliding down muddy hills and jumping from rock to rock to make it across little creeks. Luckily, we had the Sapa Sisters (women of the local tribes) to literally hold our hands at times. One wrong move and you could be sliding into the bamboo forest.
The trek was intense, but the views from the highest points were incredible. When I was planning this trip back in May, I looked at tons of pics of Sapa, creating mental postcards. But seeing it in person was beyond surreal. The land is groomed to support a certain agricultural lifestyle, but it still appears pristine and unbothered. Sapa represents a careful balance between humans and nature, and the ability for the two to create something undeniably beautiful.
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