High on my list of to-dos in Vietnam was getting into the mountains in the north. We chose Mai Chao as it’s a bit more accessible than other options. We were able to witness ethnic villages still fully functioning today as they had years ago as every family is allotted a certain number of acres to farm rice, primarily for personal consumption as everyone lives off the land in these parts. We did both bike & trekking tours of the surrounding villages & mountains led by Hoi, our adorable young host who is from the area so we were able to interact w the locals.
The afternoon spent biking was fairly easy while the trekking involved hiking on tiny dirt trails up & down mountains, the same trails used by locals to travel bw villages. We were busy concentrating on our sneakered foot placement while climbing over big boulders & staying on tiny path (bc it falls off on one side) when these 3 older tiny women, some barefoot some in flip flops, come briskly walking towards us balancing w 2 hands, atop a cushion constructed from jungle greens on their heads, a massive amount of wood or bamboo cuttings. Hysterical.
We stopped at a local stilt house & the little old woman invited us in. She couldn’t speak a lick of English but was very welcoming as she gave us homemade tea in plastic cups that looked as if they hadn’t been washed in months. She commented, via our guide, that we were very beautiful bc we have white skin. That’s the thing over here. Everyone wants to have white skin (while I keep getting tanner)… It’s a sign of affluence so people strive for it, bundling up in long sleeves, pants & sunhat while outside in the hot sun & buying “skin whitening” suntan lotion, moisturizer & deodorant. It’s very interesting. She was cooking lunch in her kitchen & for a bit, I was afraid we were going to eat there as she seemed to be grilling a rat impaled on a stick so I was preparing myself. We didn’t & instead left after the tea & a photo. The guide explained later the rat is a welcoming gesture for guests and a signal that good food will be served. Yeah, real welcoming. The guide did say the Vietnamese eat everything & let nothing go to waste.
We had yet another transportation snafu on the trekking tour as our driver picked us up to head to lunch after a hike down mountain only to find that a 25 ton truck broke its axle trying to turn around on the only single lane road that leads in/out of this tiny village as he was clearly lost. It was blocking the entire road & our driver couldn’t get around. All of the townspeople were coming to see what happened. Women carrying babies would look & just start laughing. The men seemed to be having more stern conversations w the driver. Hoi later explained they were cursing & calling him a “stupid driver” & “bad driver”. Given no other options, Hoi led us walking another 10km to lunch (after 10km+ that morning) while the townspeople sorted out the obstacle. We made it halfway there before a friend of Hoi’s rode by on his motorbike & agreed to take us, one at a time, to lunch. Amy went first so Hoi & I kept walking. After a bit, we were pleasantly surprised to find our driver honking wildly behind us so he scooped us & took us the remainder of the way. I was afraid our driver would be stuck there overnight & be unable to drive us back to Hanoi, that’s how bad the situation seemed, but in 1.5 hours, those resourceful people cut down trees & built a bridge of bamboo & wood over a nearby stream, sturdy enough for cars, while that truck sat still under the watchful eye of its “stupid driver”. We had lunch at a local family’s home who host home stays. Amazing food cooked & served right in their home while they went about living their daily lives. I joked to Amy they sure went out of their way to create an authentic experience for us as they even washed a baby in a basin for us.
We opted for the shorter 3km hike in the afternoon past the glorious tiered rice paddies over the 10km full hike due to the delay & complications over lunch as our feet were tired & we had 5pm massage appointments. The rice paddies were just stunning & made the whole trip worthwhile.