Sapa and Surrounds
From Sapa, we took a day trip West up over a mountain pass and down into the valley on the western side of the range. The journey through the mountain pass road was interjected by a few hours waiting for road works and watching bulldozers push enormous boulders over the road edge into the valley below. Typically safe Vietnamese working practices.
Down in the valley we visited a number of different community and villages and got to experience how these people lived and the difference that was seen compared to the farmers back in Sapa. Some of these villagers chewed a black type of seed that turned their teeth black. It is a cultural thing that is unique to some of the tribes in this particular area.
To add to the adventures, the van we were travelling in became bogged in a soggy dirt lane, so out we hopped and pushed the car out. There were a lot of amused local villagers there watching too.
Dog Butcher
Along the way, we needed to have a toilet spot and the only place that was available was a dirty toilet out the back of a Dog butcher. So whilst there, we took a look at this cultural difference that would not be thought of in Australia.
Dog being butchered.
Cages where dogs were kept and grown.
Whether you agree or disagree with this practice, it is part of Vietnamese culture and it is something I wanted to see when we visited the country. It is a source of food for these poor villagers and the dogs that are butchered are specifically bred for meat purposes.
