Barbara's Travel Blog

Merry Christmas to me

It’s Christmas day, and I’m celebrating by myself in Sapa, Vietnam. I was worried that I might feel lonely and sad today, but I’m pleasantly surprised to find that I’m genuinely happy. Don’t get me wrong – I miss my family – but there’s something empowering about choosing to be alone. I could have stayed home, or I could have stayed in Hanoi with my newfound friends… but I chose to venture further into the unknown, by myself. Maybe there are people for whom these kinds of choices are simple and easy, but I think for many of us it’s hard, and I’m proud of myself for overcoming my fears and challenging myself.

Sapa is absolutely gorgeous – it reminds me a lot of being in the Alps. In the daytime the temperatures get up to about 75 degrees, but at night it drops below freezing. The hotel has no heating system, so I was grateful for the fireplace and electric blanket in my room – and for the thermal underwear I remembered to pack.

Today I signed up to take a guided trek to two villages near Sapa, where the Black Hmong and Zay minority tribes live. There are 52 different minority tribes in Vietnam, most of which have distinctly different styles of dress and customs.

I was supposed to have my own tour guide today, but in the lobby I met Jeff, Linda and their daughter Kate, from Canada, who adopted me and got the hotel to group us together. It was nice to have a pseudo-family for the day, and it was amusing to watch the three of them banter and especially to watch Linda interact with the locals.

We had a great time with our guide, La-in, who is a 15-year-old from the Black Hmong tribe. Fifteen is the typical age when young women marry in Sapa, but she said she has no interest in getting married right now. She spoke amazingly good English, and was as giggly and funny as any typical teenage girl. She cracked us up in a discussion about drinking ages – in her tribe you can start drinking at 10. She was shocked to hear it’s 21 in America, and shouted out, “You can’t have asshole until you’re 21?!” She immediately realized her mistake, which we of course teased her about the rest of the day.

I also loved interacting with the kids along the hike. There were a handful of girls that joined us at the beginning and walked with us most of the day. They all were learning English and asked us many questions and seemed to simply enjoy our company. I was especially impressed with their ability to quickly navigate the rice paddies (which is harder than you’d think) in cheap plastic sandals.

The adults, on the other hand, were less interested in us and more intent on selling their wares – hand-woven purses, belts, blankets and silver earrings. Jeff, Kate and I resisted, but I’m pretty sure Linda broke the bank today.

Of course, we also saw plenty of animals along the way, and I’m sure the locals must think we tourists are crazy, taking photos of what are to them just ordinary farm animals.

It goes without saying that the scenery was gorgeous - the photos speak for themselves:

There are many more photos at http://babas.typepad.com/photos/my_gap_year/.

Tomorrow I’ll be taking a motorbike tour, since I twisted my ankle toward the end of the five-hour hike today (which, I’m disappointed to say, is feeling worse the longer I type). Then I’m on another overnight train back to Hanoi tomorrow evening.

Hope everyone back home had a wonderful Christmas!

Getting some R&R

I've been in Whistler for two days now, and so far it's living up to my expectations. The village actually reminds me a lot of Chamonix, but bigger and more Americanized (think Gap Kids and Spaghetti Factory).

I arrived Sunday night and settled into the Westin, which has been great on all fronts except one: The air conditioning. Turns out Whistler doesn't often get 90- to 100-degree highs, so the air conditioning isn't really equipped to handle that kind of heat. Thankfully, the weather cooled down to the 80s, so my thermostat has actually gone below 74 today.

I spent my first day doing strenuous things like sleeping in, doing yoga, getting a massage, laying out by the pool and napping. I did manage to drag myself out to dinner at a French restaurant called Val D’Isere, which I highly recommend. The food was fantastic, and the outdoor seating offers great people-watching.

Today, I opted for a slightly more active day, with a trip to Whistler Peak. The ride up the Gondola took at least 20 minutes, and then there was a hike and an additional chairlift ride to get to the peak, which is more than 7,000 feet above sea level. The views were gorgeous, including a slice of an actual glacier, although I have to admit the most breathtaking sight was on the very steep final leg of the chairlift.

After checking out the peak, I hiked the Harmony Lake loop, which was great going in - downhill, great views, culminating in the arrival at the beautiful Harmony Lake. As you may have deduced by now, however, the return was not so fun. A steep uphill climb the whole way back, with the sun beating down on me and mosquitos that swarmed every time I paused to catch my breath. Blech. But it was worth it for the stellar views. Which is easy to say now that it's over.

More photos at http://babas.typepad.com/photos/great_northwest/.

Grimace and Bear it

After nearly a week in Italy, I am coming to accept that my name is no longer “Ms. Grimes,” but now is “Mrs. Grimace” – at least, that’s how the Italians pronounce it. I just wish someone would introduce me to my husband!

This morning Erik, Lenore, Gnorley and I set off on the trail we normally take to town, but this time we headed uphill instead of down, to see just how far up the mountain we could go. The very steep path starts in town as about a one-lane road, narrows after about a quarter mile to the width of a sidewalk, then after our hotel goes to a narrow paved path, and finally about a mile up the mountain it becomes an unpaved trail. There are homes all along the path, right up to the end, where we found a home and a small vineyard. The homes are carved into the steep stone walls of the island (see photo for one of the coolest examples of this I’ve found so far). There are also shops in town that are similarly carved into the rock.

The town is small but has enough restaurants and shops to keep us busy for the week and a half we’re here. We’ve witnessed all kinds of interesting goings-on in town, but one of the most memorable so far was a public display of affection that exceeded all expectations. Over dinner one night, Lenore and I spied an Italian couple who were clearly smitten with each other – so much so that the woman felt it necessary to lick (yes, lick) her companion’s hand quite aggressively over a period of about 10 minutes. Now, I’m not talking a gentle lick, a dainty dab of the tongue – this was a veritable hand bath of the most thorough kind. And as if that wasn’t enough, they then started a full-on make out session right at the table, with no shortage of heavy petting. It was quite the show!

Tonight we’re headed by microtaxi (pronounced “meeeecro-taxi”) to the nearby town of Forio, to scope out new restaurants and see if there may indeed by night life on this tiny island. St. Angelo, while charming, isn’t exactly a hotbed of excitement. We’ll also see if they have a store with an appealing supply of caftanis (the cute swimsuit cover-ups all the women here seem to wear, and that Lenore and I now covet).