The Train to Sapa

After getting off the bus in Hano from Halong bay, it was time to try and book a trip the Northern Mountains of Vietnam, mainly Sapa and the surrounding villages that are home to the numerous hill tribes of Vietnam. I was hoping to leave that night on a over-night train, as that would give me time for three days of hiking, and still allow me to make it back to Hanoi for Tet. The first place walked into told me there was no way they could get me on a train until the 1st of February. Well Fuck, there goes that schedule. It doubly sucked, as with Tet approaching, the train to Hue or Hoi An would also be pretty full. So it looked like I was stuck in Hanoi for another week, which wasn't good considering I had pretty much seen everything I wanted to see.

Dejected I walked back to the Hanoi Backpackers Hostel, and told Barry at the desk my plight. He was quickly on the phone with the train station checking availability. Turns out he could book me a trip leaving the next night and returning the mourning of Tet eve. Perfect. It also turned out that there was another backpacker heading to Sapa on a two-day trek, and I could join him if I wished. So perfect. Not only would I get the trip to Sapa that I wanted, but I'd also have company. It seemed almost too good....

The next day as the time for departure drew closer, there was still no sign of the other guy.He had been on a tour of Halong Bay, but was scheduled to return around 4pm, and it was almost 8pm. By 9pm, there was still no sign of him, and I had to get to the train station, so it looked like I was going to Sapa alone. This also put the Hostel in a awkward position as, normally the trip would be more expensive singly, and they had already got the other guys train ticket. Luckily, since it was not my fault, the hostel decided not to charge me extra, and I was soon motoring to the train station. I was booked on a hard sleeper as opposed to a soft sleeper which meant the mattress was thinner and there were two more people (6 in total) in the cabin with you. I eventually found my cabin, and saw 4 pair of Asian eyes staring at me. Damn, I thought, this is going to be one long quiet train ride. Once again my fears were proved to be pointless, as one of the ladies spoke English. It turned out her and her friend were from Singapore, and while her friend only spoke mandarin, she could speak both. The other two people were young Vietnamese boys returning home to Sapa for Tet. The Boys left to go walking around the train, and me and the Singapore ladies started chatting and we shared a few beers. The lady had just had a few bad experiences dealing with the Vietnamese, so she was a little bitter and was glad I was there as she was a little leary of staying in the cabin with the boys.

Eventually the boys came back and we soon found out that one of the kids was studying in China, and knew Mandarin, so it turns out we could all communicate pretty well. With mandarin being the main language, and the boy translating for his friend, and Helen Translating for me. It actually turned out to be quite fun, although I did feel bad for the boys since Helen and Lois spent a lot of the time teasing the boys about studying hard and avoiding the ladies, so as not to waste the parents money. I tried to tell them to go for the girls, but then I think you all know where my priorities lie.

So all and all it was quite the fun train ride, and I met some interesting people that I wouldn't normally have met. Helen even offered to let me stay at her place in Singapore!