Bac Ha and the Rain

Last night we tried to visit the love market but to no avail we missed it. So instead we had a nice bottle of Australian red and some pancakes.

Today we are in Bac Ha and it is raining heavily as we meander through the markets. Many wonderful and colourful things are on offer. We haven't bought too much! But thankfully we did find a silk sleeping bag for our train trip back to Hanoi. (not entirely looking forward to that bit)
The village people are just lovely-not the hard sell like the ladies in Sapa. They make the most beautiful hand embroidered bags, hats, quilts and wall hangings. They come to market on Saturday and Sunday and they spend the rest of the week sewing. Some of the loads they carry to and from the market are incredibly heavy. They have to walk several hours just to get there.

On our way back to Sapa we stopped at Lau Cai and had a look at the Chinese border and a buddhist ceremony, very impressive. When we arrived back at Sapa the whole village was covered in mist which made the car ride back very interesting. They like to overtake anywhere, anytime.