North Loop, Vietnam (second part)

We escaped from the fog of Sa Pa, hoping for a few rays of sunshine. Unfortunately, this hope was shattered again when we left the hotel. It was pouring rain. So we had to put on our complete rain gear again before getting on the motorbike. With a few overnight stays included, we set off towards Ha Giang, where one of the highlights of a motorcycle tour through Vietnam starts. On the way, we also visited the Can Cau Market on the Chinese border. The market is mainly for the residents of the mountain villages so they can do their shopping. There is simply no supermarket nearby. You can buy clothes, pots, knives, shovels, smartphones, medication, but also animals like oxen, chickens, and geese.

Most of the time we stayed in great homestays with communal dinners or in cheap anonymous hotels.

On the way, we had many great encounters with the locals. Since their lives take place outside, you can see children playing everywhere or on their way to school, and adults working or discussing over green tea and their tobacco pipes. Some encounters were less voluntary, because I had a flat tire or a problem with the electrical system of my motorbike. But nothing that couldn't be fixed in half an hour.

The Ha Giang Loop was truly an impressive and beautiful route, along rivers and the striking limestone cliffs, over passes and through valleys.

Unfortunately, it was probably very foggy again at the most beautiful part of the route, over a pass. So you could only partly imagine how beautiful the view could be.

After the loop, our next stage goal was Cat Ba Island in Ha Long Bay. It's a bit more touristy there and should be a bit warmer, which is nice after two weeks in the north. The idea is to take a few days off from riding the motorbike. There are certain body parts that start to hurt when you sit on the motorbike for 5 hours daily. ;-)

Actually, it got warmer and warmer the closer we got.

When we arrived at the ferry at 3:30 pm to go to the island, we realized that the last ferry departs at 3 pm. Fortunately, we weren't the only ones. Two Germans and one Frenchman had the same fate. So we looked for accommodation together and then went back to the ferry the next day.

Text by Oli

Image processing by Rahel