Sapa, Vietnam: Another wonderful thing about Sapa has been the ethnic minorities who live in the area and who are named after the varied and eccentric dress that they sport. For example, the Black H’mong - who boast the largest population in Sapa - get their name from their pretty cool black* clothing and headdresses, while the Red Dzay wear (kind of funny looking) santa-like red scarfs on top of their head. The tribes make their money from rice farming, selling fruits and vegetables, or making and selling charming hand-sewn goods such as hats, scarves, bags, and headbands. The one thing they all unfortunately have in common is absolutely terrible oral hygiene and there were times when we considered handing out the disposable toothbrushes we had in our bag from our hotel. We really enjoyed their company and, when they weren’t aggressively trying to sell us bracelets or pillowcases, we found them to be absolutely lovely people.
*The name is a bit of a misnomer since they clothes are technically dark indigo - made using the indigo plant that grows in the area. To demonstrate that the plant the guide pointed out on our trek was in fact indigo, Z took some leaves and spent a few minutes rubbing them around on his hands. They are still blue. That was three days ago.
recent comments