Sapa Saturday

Regular chicken and black chicken

Fido

Beef and Pork

Looking into the market

How big would you like your fish?

Fresh fish

Eggs?

Getting ready to weigh

Saturday started off with a walk up through the market.  Filled with smells, sounds and sights that just are not in the typical American grocery store.  Fresh crabs trying to climb out of their bowls, fresh fish and eels swimming in theirs.  A fish plucked from a basket and cut into pieces with the buyer saying how much they want.  Chickens, both normal colored and "black", laying legs up on the tables.  Meat laying on counters and yes "Fido" was there too.  Fresh veggies, cooking food, rice, etc all can be had with some bargining.  Everything is weighed on small scales and put into bags. Woman are culling through the plums, etc and tossing the bad into a large rather odereous trash can.  The local tribes woman and children wander through approaching everyone as potential clients:  "you buy from me", "where you from" "are you married" "how many children you have" "why you buy from her and not from me" are the constanct refrain from the moment you arrive.  After about an hour we headed back to our hotel, the Papillon Sapa hotel where a buffet breakfast was being served as they now had more guests then just us! We checked out of our rooms and our luggage was stored. 

With Mike "our tour guide", we ventured forth after a few starts and stops.  2 young women from Barcelona, Mercedes and Marianne, were added to our group.  Spanish, Vietnamese and English made for lively discussions as we headed back up into town and then down the road to Lao Chai and TaVan.  As it has been quite rainy, Mike decided we should stay on the paved road rather then tackle the clay paths that Pierce and I took 2 years ago.  This was a good decision.  After about 2 hours, walking with members of the Black Hmong tribe, we reached the top of the road down into Lao Chai and wended down through the fields.  A small shop had been set up to demonstrate making of cloth from the hemp plant and Andrea and I both bought handmade bags from them.  We crossed the bridge to our lunch restaurant destination which had quite a few tourists eating there.  After lunch, we walked along the valley from Lao Chai to TaVan passing houses, rice paddies and more small shops.  Compared to the first time I did this trek there has been an explosion of shops all competing for the tourist dollar and the Hmong and Dao tribeswoman who walk alongside you the whole way expecting you to buy something from them.  We reached our pickup point about 3:30 and went back to the hotel where welcome hot showers awaited.  Our tour package included transportation to and from the Lao Cai train station to Sapa.  This was a 16 passenger van both ways packed to the gills with people and luggage.  Once we made it over the pass back into Lao Cai, we had dinner at a small restaurant near the train station.  On the front of the menu, it asks if we liked them to please let Lonely Planet know so they would be in the next addition!  Free WiFi that worked meant the computers came out while we waited for time to pass.  At 7:30 PM we went to the train station and boarded our train.  Conversation lasted til about 830 and then the lights went out.  We arrived back into Hanoi about 445am and to the hotel where they had rooms waiting for everyone (usually only 1 room is available).  Today is a wandering lazy day.

Chilis and vegetables in the market

Patiently waiting

Selling roses

Andrea is glad her father has replenished the"bank"

Red Dao and Black Hmong woman

Sitting alone in the street

"you buy from me"