Roads of Asia: Sapa in Northern Vietnam

North Vietnam is home to most of the ethnic minorities of Vietnam. They represent as much of 14 % of the total population. One of the most numerous are the H'mongs who emigrated from South China. Ethnic minorities belong to the lower social class. Some have been pushed to the Highlands to cultivate rice and corn in very difficult areas. Viets control the lowlands and the rich valleys. There are sometimes tensions between minorities and the government.
In Sapa, what strikes you first are the colorful H'mong women wanting to sell you handicrafts. They can be quite aggressive and it is the first time in Asia where we felt so much pressure. We came to the North for the mountains, the hikes in a stunning scenery but we couldn't help being surprised by the poverty of these people.

So we decided to do one hike with an association created by H'mong people themselves and not managed by Viets. We trekked for one day with a young H'mong guy whose English was basic but whose enthusiasm was amazing. We crossed H'mong and Red Dao villages, rice fields, mountains, rivers....being with a guide help to avoid the hassle, fair enough.
Countryside was not as pure as in Philippines. It is hard to find natural landscapes as Vietnam is developing very fast, building roads and houses, exploiting resources. And Viets do not have yet a strong care for the environment. To find wilder spaces would have required a good motorbike, lot of patience and time even us didn't have..