vaga #4/2 The Magic of the north

Part I

I started in the north, the magic of the north where I spent almost two months going in and out, it was an extraordinary experience, I was really immersed in another Asia, not so well known, its unique and wonderful geography as well as the possibility of closely sharing with two women and their families of the H'mong ethnic group. Seven hours by bus, north from Hanoi to Sapa. It was a pleasant surprise to arrive at a mountainous enclave, small and very beautiful, many buildings of which I took a great impression, it was the holiday centre of the French during the colony with the contradiction of classic French architecture, mixed with men, women and children in their ethnic  traditional costumes. I had already started defeating the cliché of Asia, no conical hats, no tropical climate, I literally had a light snowfall there, the rice fields were few because they were in the mountains, they were not planted there because of the cold. There are many ethnic groups in the place; Red Dzao, Black H'mong, Thai, Tay, Muong, Nung and others, some have more than a million people, their costumes are diverse according to their ethnicity. Just as I chased the first monks in Mandalay through the streets, now I did it with the girls and young women, fascinated by their colourful clothes. I took it for granted that ethnic groups were already tinged with modernity like clothes. Theirs are complicated, some heavy when decorated, like their hats, they do not have any variety of change, they are handmade, woven on a loom, dyed, embroidered, some with many beads, all a long time production, They only change and use their fanciest  for festivities and markets, I observed the teenage girls wearing mini skirts adapted to their traditional costumes, others wore jeans under their outfits, and they wore elegant shoes.

I went to the market near Lao Cai, it was my first long motorcycle trip, it took two hours avoiding buffalo that roamed the road always going north until I got to 5 kilometres from the border with China, the last half hour was on the dirt road. That was exciting, some speed, a winding road through the mountains, zero English spoken by the driver, zero internet, I got the driver to buy me data with a tip for data, without a travel agency. I was delivered by the good of God. It was an intense experience. Arriving at that market lost in the wonderful and lush mountains, I calculated there were more than 10 ethnic groups by their clothes, about 600 people congregated. The first time I saw men selling buffalo, dozens of birds in beautiful bamboo cages, it was background music to the bustle and sounds of incomprehensible languages, at least I joyfully recognised their "chirping" that is international, obviously they are for food, as well as several skinny and sad dogs, ducks, pigs, chickens, etc…. women selling vegetables and traditional clothing. Then under the shed are second-hand western clothing and groceries alongside a boiling hot dining room. There was only one Chinese filming and myself among the 600 people, I felt very intimidated, and I took pictures secretly, half hiding. There are no tours that go there. Fascinated to be in such a remote place, unknown, even for them within their incomprehensible culture.

After two and a half hours by motorcycle I found myself at the marketplace, it is not a hamlet,  just a block at the entrance with about 5 semiformal stores, the rest were in the field.

The sale of buffaloes, plough tools, wooden yokes, and other men were dedicated to sharpening machetes, they also sell petrol for motorcycles in water bottles.

The young women gathered to talk for a long time, it was very nice to see them, it is the weekly meeting, they all live in scattered homes in the mountains and this is the only chance of socialising, there are no schools or health care only in Lao Cai, more than two hours away.

The photo on the left are a couple of old women buying cell phone minutes, the cell phone company goes to this market, and it is very curious because the saleswomen wear company clothes as if they were selling in a mall, the contrast did not leave me indifferent. The other photos are from the men's grooming service, there was a long queue.. 

Vietnam has not done anything for these groups, it recognises 52 ethnic groups, but there are many more. They are looked down upon, calling them uncivilised, illiterate. A comment that a guide from the Tai ethnic group told me (Tai as an ethnic name there are in many parts, and they are different groups) said that 2 years ago there was a landslide due to rain, and it took  5 houses, buffaloes and crops, She was so excited telling me that the military had arrived, cleaned everything up, and I think that with some help with basic materials to start over. It was the first time the country had paid attention to them. However, in all the hamlets with more than 50 houses there is a big school, made of cement with two floors, all the same. Currently, the government has changed its attitude towards ethnic groups.

I do not know if it was because it was my first encounter with these cultures, so remote in Asia that it affected me strongly and was the reason that I returned so many times to the north, I have not come across anything like it, yes many ethnic groups but only one or two when they gather in the markets. But here, there were more than ten.

It is very common to see boys carrying their siblings on their backs, something that is not common in many cultures.

The first photo was from a day when I started hiking in a thick bamboo forest, to a famous bamboo bridge, about 2 hours along a path, this old woman (about 40 years old, but as you see in picture it didn’t appear that) chased me and insisted on being my guide, I avoided her as much as I could, I wanted to walk alone, I was tired of her, because she was still behind me, after half an hour there was a fork in the road and I had no idea which one to take, she indicated the correct one, puff thanks, ... this happened on two more occasions, in addition many parts had huge puddles of mud, I didn’t have  a cane and I got stuck in one, both feet were trapped in the mud, she pulled me out ...... she took a good tip and I learned the lesson, to not trek alone. In the second photo I took a guide. , There were two very loving women from two ethnic groups one of them had shaved her head. Finally, I saw many elderly women, not men working until their last breath. 

the spectacular landscape of central and northern Vietnam, then another type of tomb in the grasslands and finally a trek that consisted of swimming inside a cave for about 500 m with a helmet and a miner's light… …it was very entertaining

I end off with a photo a repeated one because is the my summary of their culture and the impression of their clothes had on me.