Vietnam - this time we headed for Sapa   among the Hoang Lien Son Mountains near the Chinese border. Taking the train from Hanoi to Lao Cai, and then a minibus up to Sapa we found ourselves in a world of steep sided valleys with lush bamboo forests and cultivated terraces.

The Ethinic Minorities who live here include the Hmong, the Dao and the Red Zao. Each tribe has a distinctive costume - some of which are shown below. They are hardy mountain people and seem to think nothing of hauling a 25 kg load in their shoulder baskets. They originally came from China and only started cultivating rice 70 years ago.