No Fixed Abode: Farewell to our (un)trusty steeds

Sun 10 Apr 2016 - Motorbike tour day 6, Bac Ha market returning to Sapa

Every Sunday Bac Ha holds its market, one of the biggest and most well known in North Vietnam with the several minority tribes people turning up their highly colourful and ornate traditional clothing. As it’s a 3 hour ride away we had to be on our way by 7am to have a chance of seeing the real market before the tourists turned up. The boys opened up the throttle and enjoyed riding the main route, a biker's dream getting us there in just under the 3 hours. They stayed to look after the bikes as we followed the noise to find the market in full swing. Livestock, wares, rice wine, fruit/veg, ploughs and the kitchen sink are sold here. For tourists it’s not a place for shopping but it is a great location to people watch and take in the energy and vibrancy of the occasion. We saw many different ethnic groups buying and selling their products and most locals paid little attention to us, rather choosing to focus on their business and the short Sunday window of opportunity. We watched and listened to shouts, bargaining, laughing, animal noises, the place was fascinating and a photographers dream.

We met up with the boys for our last meal with them and Flower did his best to cater for us with chicken, beef, pork, shrimps, vegetables and a few crinkly cut chips, which we decided not to eat following our previous encounter.

We were now back on the bikes for our last ride to the border town of Lao Cai for us to pick up the bus back to Sapa and the boys to organise putting their bikes on the overnight train back to Hanoi. But not before we had an incredible 2 hour ride along several back roads and tracks passing through the small hamlets,terraced rice fields and plantations we love to ride through. Once again Jin and Yvonne’s bike played up on several sections of the road home, cutting out several times and with Yvonne pushing it uphill to help jump start it she couldn’t help thinking they’d run out of fuel. The bikes need to be empty for the train carriage. Flower decided on the final leg of the route to take over this bike and he and Glenn rode back 20kms without any issues at all. Half way back we stopped at a high bridge peering over the sides to see plenty of local people swimming and playing the the river in their clothes.

As we entered Lao Cai, Flower took a short detour and parked up by the border control administration. We suddenly realised this was a major border crossing in to China. Following Flower he led us to a small park right on the edge of the Red River and we watched people crossing over the bridge with specially adapted bicycles stacked high with goods bought in China and coming into Vietnam. Back on track we arrived at the bus station, all enjoyed a celebratory beer for a brilliant 6 days and Flower put us safely on the bus back to Sapa.

On the way back we snoozed wearily in the bus reflecting on six spectacular days in the mountains, nursing our bruised and battered bottoms, which need a couple of days R&R before sitting for hours on an airplane.