The Indian Contractor visits Vietnam and China on a Shoestring

As the title says, this was a real disaster. Now, the lonely planet guide says that Thac bac (Silver waterfall)is 8 km from Sapa. But from what we walked(yes, we walked) it seemed like almost double that distance. But let me organise my thoughts and present a clearer picture of this disastrous trek.

First started off when a few village girls(11 to 12yrs old) waited for us at our hotel in the hope that we'd buy something from them. They talked to us the previous night and followed us back to the hotel. Something I normally disapprove off, but my buddy was really close to them already. So we thought why not just let them tag along, since they said they're gonna follow us. After my directions went totally wrong they pointed us to the right way and we started walking. The first part of the journey was very nice and the shaded pathway was cool and comforting. As we reached the main road that goes to Lai Chau, the winds grew fiercer and the views of the Fansiphan were breathtaking! Fansipan is the tallest peak in Vietnam measuring at 3143m. The clouds were something like a crown on the kings head. The winds were very strong and helped produce some nice pictures like the one u see here.

After a while it dawned on me that we were the only people walking along the road. As trucks, cars and motorbikes whizzed past us I wonder why no one else walked the route. The little girls plucked berries from trees and offered us some. They were sweet(the berries i mean). The walk was pleasant so far. But it was getting tiring as the sun went up higher. The road started getting dusty creating a plume of dust and smoke every time a vehicle passed us. As the day passed the vehicle numbers grew and so did the dust. But we carried on. then we ran into a series of construction sites that increased the pollution even more.
It seams they are trying to broaden the road and all the cutting of the mountain was making a mess of everything. A few workers waved to me and asked to take their picture. I complied and here they are looking victorious!

We then moved from the dusty road to the wet and dirty road. At one point we were walking through a gravy of water and mud that gave our footwear a new coat of mud! But it was either that or a 600m drop to the bottome of the mountains. So we dragged our feet through the soggy floor and everytime a vehicle passed by we would race to the corners of the road to escape the mud shower. We finally reached the drier part of the road and washed our feet at a nearby waterfall. Only to have them get soggy again a while later. The going was slow and dirty and we felt like a bunch of goofs who took the walking path when everyone else was taking vehicular transport! The heat was getting to us and thac bac was no where in sight. Finally we saw a milestone that read "thac Bac 8km". Our hearts sank. We should have walked atleast 6 km already.We decided to stop at the next roadside shop we saw. It came about a km later. Only one of the three girls followed us this far. We bought her a bottle of water and gave her the bus fare for the journey back to sapa.

The shop we stopped was actually a motorbike repair centre which sold sundries like water and chips. I am sure the owner was getting good business as long as the road continued to be this bad. Here we met a Briton and an American who had overtaken us earlier. The american was injured from a fall and the briton had a flat tyre. They were riding the Russian Minsk motorbikes that looked really cool but battered. They were waiting for their bikes to get fixed while we were waiting for a miracle of nature to repair our tired bodies. As we gulped down the water and prepared to leave, they offered us a lift. We politely refused and told them that if they ran into us as we walked further we might take the lift. They had their fair share of problems (the american fell down and injured himself earlier) and we did not want to make it difficult for them, so we walked on.

But it became an uphill battle as we tried avoiding all the mud gravy pools and walking on the edge of the roads with huge Kamaz and Hyundai trucks honking and speeding past us. About two km before the falls the bikers met us again. It was just after this pic that they saw us.

We took the lift. My buddy went with the briton who was a more experienced biker while I went with the American who was a first timer and had already fallen off once. Its strange how I trust people but this guy was really a nice guy and he offered me a spare helmet too!

Now, I dont know if it was me, but the moment I got on the bike the engine sputtered and we got stuck in another mud gravy pool. We got off and managed to push the bike out too. But it would'nt start. Even if it did, it would stop the moment I got on and we started moving.

I told him I was jinxed and walked a bit further away from his bike and asked him to get the bike going for sure first. He mandaged to do so and we got going. He actually did very well for a first time biker as he managed to avoid many of the nasty potholes onthe road even at that speed. Better still, we managed to introduce ourselves to each other in all this chaos. He was from St Louis and had been workingin Japan for 6 years. It was easier for me to tell him about myself as I was sitting at the back. He had yell out his words so I could hear them on top of the roaring engine and winds. And he was a backpaker like us who had plans to visit India and other places too. I wish him good. We passed by the falls thinking the actual falls(which appeared bigger in pictures) were further down. We realised that the one we had passed was the actual falls only after seeing my buddy return with the briton a few minutes later.

And only after we stopped at the falls did we realise how big it was. We payed the entrance fee (VND 5000 i think) and climbed up the stairaway leading to the upper part of the falls. It was beautiful, majestic and mighty! We dropped our bags and I dipped my head in the cold water. I was amazed at how relaxed I became in just one instant. The water seemed to have some "magical" power in it. Even the israeli guy who spoke to me just before I dunked my head told me the same thing. I removed my wet T shirt and cleaned myself with the cool water. By then I was attracting unwanted attention from the locals nearby. It might sound girlish, but it feels weird when everyone stares at you as if you just stepped down from a UFO. So I put on my T shirt and bandana and got back to dry land and took a few pictures of the waterfalls.

Then we walked down once again. The bikers asked us if we would wanna ride back. We really did'nt want to trouble them anymore so we politely refused. But I do thank them sincerely for that lift, as it made things a lot easier for us. I wish them good again.

Then nature called and I looked around for a toilet. There was none so I walked to a temporary shelter about 400m away and asked the people inside for a toilet. They stared at me blankly. Then I made a very crude gesture that was pretty self explanatory. The guy in the house smiled and pointed me to the back of the house. I relieved myself and went back to the falls.

I heard my stomach growl in spite of all the noise the waterfall made. So i walked around to see if there was any greens for me to eat. The only vegetables I found was a vendor heating a corn on a charcoal fire. I bought the corn for VND5000 and munched on it while my buddy settled for a stick of bamboo rice and pork satay(basically pork meat pieces on a stick).

After the meal we looked around for transport. We found a minibus with a dozing driver. We asked him if he could bring us back to Sapa. He agreed and asked for VND20000 per person. We agreed and waited for the bus to depart. It did so in 15 minutes. The ride back was bumpy but it was a relief from the heat and dust outside.

And we had a big meal when we reached Sapa before heading to the hotel. We decided to go to Ta Phin the next day as neither of us were in any position to walk.

We did however leave the hotel for dinner and some small shopping. My buddy bought a bag and I bought a shawl for my mum. The rest was routine. Hotel, shower and sleep.