Tag Archives: sapa

SEA: Day 59 – Travel to Phong Nha

Posted on by under Travel

Lately, before I leave the apartment, I’ve been making sure to a.) take a cold water dip in the pool and b.) write this blog. Normally I wake up around 7ish and can get these two things done along with a few other things off my checklist. I’m leaning on calling these “checklist items” my Actions List for one reason or another.

Well, today was daylight saving time. I did not know and woke up naturally at 7:30am, which is actually 8:30 now. This kind of threw my day off since it’s Sunday and I like to make it to the 9:15am service at Tapestry. I actually got into the pool within 10 minutes of waking up. Think that’s the fastest I ever made it. I decided I’d write this piece at church so I could make service.

I can’t recall being worried about daylight saving time while in Asia. Why does the United States, and societies in general, stick with outdated practices? I suppose as humans, we may like to stick with what we know, what is comfortable, what is routine. We don’t like change once the dust has settled. I believe this can become dangerous as “routine” becomes boring and dull. Our minds need stimulation to continue to function. And maybe that’s why some people, once they get stagnant in life, work, relationship, etc., decide on something drastic. Travel, quit, break up, move, … everything I have done, and other things I haven’t even thought of. To go look for stimulation to break out of this routine life. I believe others don’t need this because they have found ways to keep their brains learning and active. Their “routine” includes dealing with things outside the norm, which is ironically, not routine at all.

New experiences are refreshing for the soul, whether it’s physical or mental, good or bad.

During this trip, taking buses, being somewhat lost, and not knowing exactly where we were going became my routine. At first, it was extremely uncomfortable. It was difficult for me to give up control, always projecting what I expected next. It happened abruptly the first time I had an unscheduled bus stop. Okay, unschedule stop is fine. But when it includes a stop, getting off the bus, switching busses, in the middle of the night, on the side of the road, without an explanation, can be startling. When this first happened, I didn’t know what to do. But what can you do? You can’t NOT go. So you just go. It was both terrifying and quite liberating at the same time. I had one reasonable decision to make, and I went with it. Got onto the other bus, and fell asleep. That was my bus ride back from Sapa to Hanoi.

The bus ride from Hanoi to Phong Na was equally strange. Bunch of us were shuttled from a hostel meeting point into a van, dropped off somewhere, waited around for 15 minutes, shoved onto another bus, dropped off and walked to another location, waited around, shuttled onto a bus, waited on the bus for an hour, and then the bus ride started.

A few hours in, I was dropped off at another hostel and told to wait for another bus. For real? Why can no one tell me this was supposed to happen before it happened?! Why am I the only one being dropped off? And how come the hostel looks closed?? Oh, right. Because it’s 4 in the morning. A few busses did show up, people from the hostel came out and got on, I asked the driver if I should get on, I was told no, and the bus drove off. What an uncomfortable feeling. Also, I was cold. Being cold sucks. If it was sunny and I was toasty, this wouldn’t be as bad. Instead, it was dark, foggy, and lightly raining.

An SUV eventually showed up. The driver came out and asked “are you James?” I was so happy to hear that. She got me to Chay Lap Farmstay, the starting point for the Tu Lan Cave Expedition. By the time I got settled into my room, it was 5am. I had been on the road for the past 19 hours. Once I got into the room, I did immediately what you are all thinking. Got into bed and watched Archer. I eventually fell asleep around 6:30, which was good cause I needed to be awake by 9 to head to Oxalis Shop to do some last minute paperwork for the Tu Lan expedition.

WHEW, this one was long. I had a lot to say. Here’s some pictures for your reward for making it this far. I know, it’s just pictures, but take what you can get, right?

I mentioned yesterday that my last day in Sapa was beautiful. Here’s some night/day, cloudy/sunny comparisons. It was eye opening to wake up the next day and see entire mountains where I did not see them at all before. No mountains, then mountains. Same view. Wow.

SEA: Day 58 – Fansipan Mountain

Posted on by under Travel

I’ve been in a pretty sour mood over the last few days, more so than usual. I was wondering if my present feelings impact how I write and view my past experiences. Could a potentially horrible present day ruin an amazing day in the past? Or is it possible that writing about an amazing past day make my present that much better? Honestly, and this is the shitty part, I think it depends on how you take it. You chose the path, which is extremely motivating or equally terrifying.

Let’s try both. Let’s actually try with the positive first, where I do not let today’s mood impact back then. Two years ago, I found myself in Sapa about to head up the peak of Fansipan Mountain. This peak, located near Sapa, is the highest mountain in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. It stands at 3,143 meters and is nicknamed “The Roof of Indochina.” There are several tours that you can take to hike up, but those all take several days. Recently, there was a cable car installed that took you almost to the peak. The views are supposed to be incredible, but the day I went it was really, really cloudy. See Exhibit 1 below.

Exhibit 1. Views were awesome. Look at those cable lines.

Every once in awhile though, the clouds would open and I’d stare out in awe forgetting to breath.

When the cable car arrived at the top, it felt like I was just walking through a cloud. You couldn’t see far at all, but it made the sights more intriguing.

Now, I could have complained back then about the horrible weather situation. However, I didn’t think of it that way. I thought how amazing and eerie and incredible the mountains looked in cloud and fog. I remember the strange feelings of being completely alone on a mountain top because I couldn’t see another person around me. I remember walking up stairs without being able to see too far ahead. It was an experience I’ve never felt. And I enjoyed every second of it. In fact, once I got to the top, I live streamed on instagram for the first time. Was afraid no one would join, but 3 of my homies from back home, HY, Andy, and Steve, were some of the firsts to jump on! It was really cool to connect with them live on top of a mountain on the other side of the world.

Figured I’d defrost a bit before heading back down, so I just rested in the cable car center. Really nice spacious areas with windows all around to show something amazing. My view was more of clouds, which I honestly, really enjoyed the feeling of sitting in the clouds.

There’s something out there. Or it’s just frosted glass and we’ve all been fooled.

Now I think if I swung negatively on this day, it could have been a really shitty few days. I spent 2 nights in Sapa and only on the third day (tomorrow) did the clouds part. Of course my bus left at 10am, but oh well. I’ll come back again when it’s sunny and experience the other side.

SEA: Day 57 – Sapa Treks

Posted on by under Travel

Early this morning, I got to Sapa Centre around 4am, meaning I probably fell asleep somewhere between 4:30 to 5. Since breakfast was part of the deal, you can’t miss out on free food. I got up at 8 to eat and was out the door to explore Sapa by 9:15. I posted often to instagram this day, so going to cheat a bit and list links back there.

  • First stop: walking around Sapa to buy warmer socks. I spent an hour looking for the perfect pair. I should have just applied the 80/20 rule here. Nothing will stay “perfect” so just find “good enough” and don’t waste an hour looking for socks. But I did enjoy walking through all the different shops along the main street. And I bought a long sleeve. Yay.
  • Next up was Notre Dame Cathedral Nhà thờ Đá Sapa, Church of Our Lady of the Rosary.
  • Orchard Garden in Ham Rong Mountain
  • Garden Center of Ham Rong Mountain
  • Horses of Ham Rong Mountain
  • Cloud Yard of Ham Rong Mountain
  • Lunch and dry feet at Sapa Centre. Perfect socks mean nothing if you don’t have the right shoes.
  • Walking towards Cat Cat
  • My dog dog companion during said walk to Cat Cat
  • Witnessing the strength of women.
  • Dinner at Little Sapa
  • Chill at Corner Pub with Chung (the owner), his wife Tu, and Khung, his brother. Along with their pack of dogs who all know how to get home by themselves. Not sure of distance, but from what I gathered, it wasn’t walkable.

Majority of my day was simply just walking around. Sapa is known for its beautiful views, which I got to experience not even a little on this day. It was rainy and super gloomy. Visibility was limited. You know what though? I enjoyed every second of it and would do it again even if I knew the conditions would be the same. It was really calming. Most times, I was completely alone since it wasn’t a popular time for tourists and no one wants to walk around in the rain.

SEA: Day 56 – Decision

Posted on by under Travel

A couple weeks ago, I had booked a caving expedition tour in Vietnam. It turns out that the week I chose was cancelled due to low participants (aka, I was the only one). I had a choice to make. I could go a week before, 2 weeks later, or the next time I come to Vietnam. The third option was definitely out and the second would have me rebooking flights. I went with the first which lead me to the next choice. Do I go to Sapa or Hanoi/Ha Long Bay? I chose Sapa. I suppose I like mountains over beaches. Ironically, that was a question on Hinge I had difficulty answering. I like both! I should have just thought back to this day.

Another input for Sapa was because I had read how Ha Long Bay had become overrun with tourists. I know, I’m just adding to that mess, but Sapa wasn’t as popular of a tourist destination, so wanted to get there before it became overrun. Plus, there were so many different tour options in Ha Long Bay. It was like looking at a restaurant that didn’t know what to sell so some genius said “put everything on the menu!” I don’t like going to these types of restaurants. It gives me anxiety just thinking about it.

Walking around Old Quarter

Sapa it was! I do not regret this decision at all, even though I’ve never gone to Ha Long Bay. The only way in 2017 to get to Sapa was via overnight bus. Once I flew into Hanoi from Singapore, I had a few hours to kill before catching this bus. I ate some food, walked around Old Quarter, luckily spoke to someone that said Sapa was cold, bought some long sleeves, a Northface puffy jacket (which I wear in LA like a pansy), ate a sweet potatoe roasted in a corn husk, then headed over to the bus station.

The bus ride was only 6 and a half hours. It departed at 9pm, which meant we got to Sapa at 3:30 in the morning. I slept most of the way and was fast asleep when we arrived. Apparently the bus driver does nothing to wake up passengers cause when I woke up, he was gone. The rest of us left on the bus tried to figure out how to open the bus door by pressing random buttons. It eventually opened and we got our luggage from the carriage and went our separate ways. Now, this doesn’t seem too bad, but Sapa is in the mountains and it was raining. Which means fog. Visibility was not great. And no one was on the street to direct us. There was a construction truck that looked like it was on, but there was no one there. A bit spooky…

But now that we have Google Maps, we can go anywhere. Whipped out my phone, looked up Sapa Centre, and off I went into the dark looking for this place.

Walk to Sapa Centre. Or it might be the building on the right, I can’t remember.

I wrote down that it took me 30 minutes from getting off the bus to checking in. I’m going to say that I don’t think it took that long. Maybe 20 minutes or so. Anyways, I found it! And the door was locked. Sweet. I did the only thing I could think of, and that was to cry.

Just kidding. I knocked and some poor guy who was sleeping near the door waiting for me woke up to let me in. Man, how nice of him. We go to the hotel counter where I see the piece of paper below. How nice of them! This place got great ratings from me.

Everything I need. Wifi and breakfast.