Birthday celebration on the top of Fansipan

Afternoon !

A week ago, after my little camping trip at Ha Long Bay, I met up with my mum in Hanoi and we headed to Sa Pa. Sa Pa is a small town near the boarder of China, 8 h train ride north from Ha Noi inhabited by tribes such as the Hmong people. From a friend's recommendation we decided to travel via a sleeper train. Seat61.com provides great service for international train tickets at decent prices.

The train was quite comfortable and morning come we were in Sa Pa. It was too early for us to check in so we headed out for my birthday breakfast and my mum's first Vietnamese meal. Watching the morning spread across the vales and fields from the village was beautiful. My mum immediately fell in love with Vietnamese traditional coffee like I had so many months before.

We were promised a free upgrade at the hotel if we waited for a little bit longer so we decided to head to Fansipan for the morning. Fansipan is a 3 143 meters high mountain towering over the Sa Pa town as the highest mountain in Indochina. It is possible to hike to the top, however, this is illegal without a guide which costs 120 USD per person. The hike takes a full day and there is a camping site near the top. Another way to reach the top is the Fansipan Legend cable car costing 25 dollars each and taking about half an hour. The cable car is super modern and the views from the box are stunning. Below you you can see a cable system that transports goods between houses that live underneath the mountain.

I was wearing a top and shorts, the Vietnamese people and other tourists were wearing rain coats and winter clothes. I guess it is true that Finnish people have a little warmer blood than the rest. Watching me jump up and down the rocks barely dressed was a huge amusement to the other people. From the cable car station there is still a good thousand steps to walk to the actual top of the mountain. The peak is so high that it is often covered in clouds and you won't be able to see the villages spreading below you.

Daily, there are small Hmong markets around the town as well as plenty of people walking around selling bags and other small ornaments. The town is quite touristy, filled with restaurants from around the world. The Hmong are not even to be compared with other Vietnamese people. They are delightful and happy, speak better English than Vietnamese and represent their cultural heritage with pride. They are hardcore sellers and hagglers and will walk around after you and make you love them so much you cannot help but to buy something. They are very eager to take you to their villages and to show you around and talk about Sa Pa. Forget any guide, go with a Hmong.

We rented a motorbike to head to the famous waterfalls; Silver Line and Love waterfalls. My mum had never even been on a motorbike before so it was fun to get her on one. Driving slow and safe for her, we had a good chance to check out the scenery. The waterfalls are 12 km out of town, on the route past Fansipan. They were not overly crowded with tourists which was pleasant. There is a small entrance fee for access. Pictures coming up !

We spent a day exploring around the Hmong villages, hiking up and down their hills and fields, drinking more coffee and tasting the local flavours. We visited the Golden waterfall in the Cat Cat village and saw a traditional dance performance. It was magical; the ancient music echoing around the vales and the roar of the waterfall in the background.

Very different kind of birthday than I have had in the past but it was once in a lifetime experience. Barely in touch with the rest of the world just in amiss between the untouched, endless fields and slopes. A place where you can easily find your inner peace and experience something out of this world.


Peace,

Mira

What happened in Pai

Finally getting around the write what really happened during my Pai getaway. 

I had done some research on Pai in Chiang Mai as I only had three days in the town, I wanted to make sure I'll see the best of it. I found this article online, standard ''ten best things to do in Pai'', and I decided to go with it. http://www.jonesaroundtheworld.com/10-amazing-things-to-do-in-pai-thailand/ 

I had booked myself into a very nice resort with a pool and a private rooftop as I felt like I earned some peace, quiet and luxury. 

The first day was spent scrambling around, scouting for good places and getting myself settled, motorbike and all that. The sunset was magical and the people in Pai are such sweethearts, I had reached my happy place. 

The second day I took my new ''Bob'' out for a ride. I went to greet the big white Buddha and cruised around the river. I drove up to the Chinese village to look over Pai from the view point. It was great though the hills on the way up nearly killed my bike. There is a small cafe on top and a good 360 view over the Pai and the hills surrounding it. On the way back to town I stopped by a waterfall. It was dry season so there wasn't as much water as there normally would be. 

Pai is a small place but there are great things surrounding it so I would definitely recommend renting a motorbike, makes getting around so much easier and allows you to find fantastic hidden places where tours won't take you. We had agreed to fast the afternoon so that we could stuff ourselves full with the night market food. Which is super yummy by the way. 

Next morning we decided to expand our radius, I taught my company how to ride a motorbike, and tick of a few things from our ''ten things to do'' list. We started off with The Om Garden Cafe. The best food I have eaten in 10 months. I cannot even describe it, absolutely mouthwatering and delicious. You HAVE TO go there if you ever go to Pai. Then, with our bellies full, we headed out to the Pai canyon. The canyon is not huge but it is fun, you can climb on the rocks and jump around. It's great for photos, just remember to wear good shoes. We also stopped by the Land Split. A crack between two rock caused by two tiny earthquakes in 2009 and 2011, truly nothing to see there. 

On the way back to town we found of the locations from the list I had not been able to find online; the Container cafe. It's a cafe on the side of the big main road half way to the Pai canyon where you can sit in huge nest chairs and look over the vale. We sat there for ages enjoying nice, cold, matcha tea and taking awesome colourful photos (by now you will understand that I took thousands of photos, perks of finally having someone to travel with for real). 

We decided to go enjoy the sunset at the big Buddha. I would say best place to see it in Pai. They do daily trips to the canyon for sunset, which is lovely, but the view from the sanctuary is better. 

The next day we went for a hunt for a secret waterfall by some river, a few local friends were suppose to show us where it was but they were too hungover. Of course, we failed to find it but ended up finding another waterfall where a Thai family was having a day out. I don't even know how many kids were in that pool, they just kept on popping up from everywhere and jumping off the cliffs. It was amazing, the joy in them is indescribably. They didn't mind us at all, only more targets in their water fight so we had a great time unleashing our inner children. 

In the afternoon we had a serious talk, check up our ticket prices again, decided to miss our transport on the morning after and stay in Pai for another three days. We looked up an accommodation for both of us and moved into a lovely resort by the river. 

We finally managed to stay up long enough to go have a night out at the Don't Cry reggae bar (another thing on the list). The vibe was chilled and the music was amazing, nothing to complain about. Sums up Pai quite well. 

We decided to lazy up as we now had loads more time and spent the following day by the Fluid Pool (also recommended online). The place is cool; 60 k for entering for the day, a big pool and a bar that also serves food. It's quite popular among the tourists and the expats but the vibe still remains good. We had yoga plans at the Buddha at sunrise so the night was short. 

Woke up at six am, drove to the Buddha and waited for the sun to come up. No one else was out there so it was very peaceful and quiet. Completed our yoga and drove to the Om Garden Cafe again. you might not have realised but we did eat there every single day. I'm not joking, the food was out of this world. It was healing for my little vegetarian hippie soul. Our final day mostly rotated around food and chilling in different reggae places loving life. 

My feelings on Pai; absolutely fantastic, small but so filled little hippie place in the middle of what seems to be nowhere. Gorgeous food and fabulous people. I got the rest I so desperately needed and I got a reminder of how lucky and blessed I actually am. I met my kind of people who are keen on caring about the environment, their health and what they put in their bodies. 

Zen out, 

Mira 

Ha Long Bay adventures

Ha Long Bay !

What an extraordinary, beautiful place. Without a doubt the place well earns its World Heritage Destination title.

After returning from my trip to Thailand, I headed to Ha Long and Hai Phong to say good byes to my friends and to pick up my motorbike again. I met up with a friend from home and we drove to Cat Ba together. The plan was to rent kayaks for three days and head onto some hidden beaches in the bay. We stayed in Cat Ba one night and started hunting for kayaks and a tent early next morning. Turns out that there are absolutely no camping shops on Cat Ba and no one rents tents, contrary to what we had been told. For future adventurists, I would recommend booking early. A few places rent kayaks over night; Blue Swimmers and Woodstock Beach Camp. The Asia Outdoors at the Good Bar is a very helpful place as well.

Eventually, we managed to get kayaks and two hammocks so off we went. We got a boat ride deeper into the bay where our kayaks were waiting. From there we navigated towards the open sea where we had heard of a secret beach. The tide was very high and the sea quite wild so we ended up getting soaked before we were able to find any beaches. Luckily, found one before it got dark and hung up our hammocks and made a fire. It was fantastic to be in the middle of nowhere grilling food on an open fire while fishermen boats were lighting the horizon. Sleeping in itself didn't go so well; we were ambushed by millions of mosquitoes. I ended up having more than a hundred stings in my back alone.

We woke up to a beautiful, quiet morning. The boats had already left their nightly parking and the eagles were flying near by. The tide was very low so we could see many more beaches near by. Sadly, the locals don't really take care of the cleanness of the bay and the waves carry loads of trash on the sands. Our happiness lasted about an hour when the biggest thunderstorm I have been in hit us. So we sat shaking in our hammocks, soaked in the water. Luckily, the storms travel fast so it was over soon. We had to wait some time for the tide to raise in order for us to carry on. We had hoped to stay for another night on another beach but it didn't seem sensible any more at that point, it wouldn't have been possible to light another bonfire, our main warm clothes were wet and we had lost most of our camping spirit.

The rain begun again on our way back to the pier so we got soaked again. Back into the city and straight into the nearest hotel to get a warm shower and food. Most of the day was spent napping, evening strolling around the Cat Ba town. Cat Ba town is nice, plenty of local seafood restaurants by the Bay and some nice hidden beaches with ice cream stalls. Cat Ba town isn't big, most of the island is covered by a green bush that has hidden trails and caves, and funky animals. The only practical way to get around is with a motorbike, luckily, the roads are wide and easy to drive even for a beginner.

We decided to move out of town to the Woodstock Beach Camp for our final two nights. We booked a tent on the beached and stayed there. Once again we were a little unluckily with the rain but overall the camp was very chilled and cozy. We spent our days driving around the island, visiting the caves and the national park, eating plenty of ice cream and relaxing by the beach. The caves are quite different to others in Vietnam; Cat Ba was used a lot during the war - there is a hospital cave and some storing caves as well as a cannon hill. All well worth visiting.

On our final day we took the kayaks out again to go visit the Monkey Island. I have to say that the monkeys are quite aggressive, probably been subjected to bad treatment, and will definitely steal anything they can get their hands on. This time it was a coke, fruits and a pair of sunglasses. The island itself is gorgeous as well as the surrounding area. It is an easy, short kayak journey away from the pier. We managed to find another island with a high observation deck that we climbed on. It was fantastic- eagles flying right by our side, clouds reflecting from the calm turquoise water.

Regardless of the weather being against us, the trip was amazing. Only in the forests in Finland have I ever seen that kind of untouched, undiscovered, drop dead gorgeous nature. The scenery is just different shades of blue and green.  It was great to go explore by ourselves and get some good exercise going.

Pictures coming up next to fill in the gaps that words only cannot.


Love,

Mira

Time to unload

Hello,


Time to talk about the events of the last three weeks. This time, I can say that so much has happened and I haven't always know what was going on, it has been impossible to blog until now.

Things started happening when I went to Hanoi one Tuesday to get my passport from the Chinese Embassy. I was unlucky and managed to cause myself a heatstroke the next day, running around Hanoi on the first warm days. Worst two and a half hour bus ride back to Hai Phong, busy holding my breath so I wouldn't present my breakfast for the whole bus. I made it home and spent the next two days in my cold, dark room shaking in fever.

As usual, it wasn't possible to for me stay in bed another day so off to work on Friday morning I went. I will not be describing how I was holding onto the teachers' table, trying to stay on my feet throughout the classes or how even the local teachers were looking at my struggles with empathy from the back of the class. I was literally shaking so much when I left, having not been able to keep any food down since the weekend, that I had to gather myself before I was able to drive.

This and a late payment of my salary, once again, led into some very rude and inappropriate messaged from my boss. As you may have read between the lines before, I have long struggled to enjoy my job and have not really been able to appreciate my experience in Vietnam. There are many underlying reasons for this that I will not analyse now. However, on Friday, feeling sick and tired both emotionally and physically, I had had enough. I felt trapped and just couldn't imagine myself going on any further down this path. I booked my tickets to Bangkok and called my mum. The following weekend was spent packing and organising things as well as in my friend's 30th birthday pool party.

I was lucky how things turned out; I got to see most of my friends before leaving, my friends from Thailand who I visited in Ho Chi Minh came to see me, and I had a chance to say goodbyes to the only class that was truly mine from the start of the year. I didn't want to abandon my position, nor had I long masterminded this escape. I feel sad that I couldn't finish what I started but I saw no other option. My farewells to my class were beautiful. The students were aware that the two following weeks would be cancelled so I didn't have to provide them with further information. We played some games, they won more than 2,5 kg of candy from me, we took some pictures and they sang songs for me. My favourite students came to hug me and talk to me. I could have never imagined that I could teach and form these kinds of relationships with my students, I adored teaching some of my classes and I learned a lot. Looking back at it even now, I am happy I did it.

I have no regrets.


Best wishes,


Mira

Busy bee

Hello,


It has been a relief that my students have been busy with their speaking tests. Social events and other commitments have completely filled my time. We have celebrated a few birthdays and had some lovely gatherings. Work has still been quite hectic, it is quite visible in the students and the staff that we are approaching the end of the year and final examinations. My time has also been very occupied by my travel plans.

The panic has hit me that I only have another six weeks to see the rest of Vietnam. Luckily, I have a few days off coming up ! I am hoping to make it to Hoi An and Da Nang in central Vietnam. When my mother comes for a visit, we will go see Sapa in the north. I have been to Cat Ba before but the national park on the island is yet to be conquered. It feels weird to panic over such things; even though I am leaving Vietnam and Asia soon, it doesn't mean that I wouldn't be able to come back in the future and explore them more.

I am already thinking about the lessons I have learned in Vietnam and the experiences I get to walk away with. I have definitely met some of the most amazing people during my travels and I have made friends for life. Without a doubt these final weeks will be the cherry on the cake. This weekend we are heading to Do Son beach for a day out and a farewell party. Next week it's time for the annual pool party and my friend's big 30th birthday !

On another note, I have finally managed to find and organise the shipping of some of my property back to Europe. I looked into multiple options before but I have now chosen to use FedEx. My friends have good experiences from sending letters through the Vietnamese post but I wouldn't trust it with my belongings. The shipping has been a little tricky to organise because of the long list of regulations regarding the matter, which obviously boosts up the price with most companies into outrageous figures. So not to worry sister; your weasel poo coffee is on it's way in a few days !


That's all for now from Vietnam ! Have a lovely week.


M

Request for tips !

Dear Readers,

I am currently planning my road trip through southern China. I am heading there at the end of May. The plan is to go through Nanning, Guilin and Guangzhou on my way to Hong Kong. I am super duper excited about this trip and am trying to find out all the best things to do ! If you have any tips for me, I would be very interested to hear; mira.luoma@hotmail.fi

Later I will be heading back to South Africa, my former home country and my ultimate favourite. I will be blogging about this once the time comes so stay tuned for amazing tips and stories about Cape Town. Plan is to do the common tourist things; Table mountain, Robben island, Stellenbosch vineyards, Bo Kaap, Clifton beach.. Long with this I am looking to go scuba diving and diving with the sharks, hopefully bungee jump!

Sincerely yours,


Mira

The amazing Holi- festival

I headed to Hanoi last weekend. I am traveling to China at the end of my contract and had to make a run to the Embassy so I took up the opportunity to spend some extra time in Hanoi. I arrived Saturday afternoon and checked into the Downtown Backpackers' Hostel. Most backpackers stay in the old quarter around the Ma May street. This is a great place to see some more western people and enjoy western food. I wouldn't enjoy staying there for a long time but it is a more than welcome option after being in Hai Phong for so long.

On Saturday night I headed to a rooftop trance/ house party. The party was outside with a view over Hanoi, it was filled with different kinds of fantastic art work.  My friends had helped to organise it so I got to meet a lot of new people through them. Seemed like a super European night out and I really enjoyed it. We headed back to the old quarter for a little after party. Stuffed four people on a motorbike and drive down to The Rastaman to dance some reggaeton.

The Holi-festival took place on Sunday in the Kinder park in Hanoi. Woke up, drank my coffee and put on my white shirt. Off we went. The festival was amazing. Indian music is really catching and the joy of the people was just wonderful to witness. I even learned some traditional dance moves. I was rather surprised how many Indian people were in Hanoi. With just the entry fee, you could access an open bar and buffet. Absolutely tasty, authentic Indian food. At first, I was little scared that I wouldn't get enough colour on me but I can assure you, that was not a problem at all. I received so many heartfelt blessings from the people (rubbing some colour powder on your cheeks), it was beautiful. The festival took place right next to an amusement park so we had to test out their roller coaster. It was such a joyful, free spirited morning and afternoon spent dancing and laughing with so many happy faces. There was so much colour and so many different colours, I looked a little bit like a clown at the end but it was all well worth it. I did gather loads of stares on my way to my hostel but mostly people were just laughing, I did manage to make one child jump when I got out of my taxi.

Sunday night was spent dancing away with my girls. Backpackers feel no weekdays. Monday morning I hit the Embassy. Note to travels; if you are looking to go to China, the Embassy requires you to inform them about all the hotels you are planning on staying in. I was hoping to do my trip in a road trip style but in order to get the visa, this was not possible. For me, (besides the hotels) there was nothing extraordinary in the visa application. I was often warned about the long procedure, which is why I am so early with my application, but I was promised my visa within four days. I would however, recommend  you to apply for the visa 3-1 months before your journey.

This week has been full of speaking tests and trying to catch up with sleep.

I hope you had a lovely week so far and enjoy your weekend !


Love,


M