From volunteer (Nguyen Minh Hanh) during her first summer workcamp in Sapa!

31/7: Day for meeting the members and orientation

Today I went to the VFCD office for the interview and orientation day to meet the other volunteers who will be my companions on the trip. The road to the office was a little challenging but I arrived safely and the office was quite nice. While waiting for the orientation to begin I chatted with Ngan, Them and Linh about the trip, the interview and the orientation turned out to be a pleasant experience. I was then given a schedule of activities for the week and the times that we would be teaching English to the village children. We also had extra activities that we would do on our free time, it all sounded exciting and attractive to me. The time with the others was so good we all wanted to linger but we had to go our separate ways and prepare for the trip, there was so much I wanted to take including small gifts for my future students.

1/8: Starting Day

Last night I was so excited I hardly slept at all but now I needed to prepare for the time ahead. Our train was scheduled to leave at 8.35pm so at 8pm we all gathered together at the railway station with backpacks in tow and plenty of time to meet all the members of the group. The group had nine volunteers made up of 5 Vietnamese people, 2 Polish students, and an American couple who now lived in Dubai. The train was an overnight sleeper and I slept peacefully to the motion and sound of the train.

2/8: On the road

Our first destination and the end of the train line was Lao Cai City that welcomed us with a slightly chilly dawn and dew laying on the grass, so different to the heat and stuffy conditions of Hanoi. It was also a little hard to believe that just one kilometer from the railway station Vietnam becomes China. One hour ride on a bus gets us to Sapa, the breathtaking scenery with its terraced mountains and picturesque valleys really opens your eyes to what lays ahead. Although this is the second time I have been to Sapa town I still feel surprised with the multicultural nature of this town. It seems to be half westernized with modern hotels and bars that have flower balconies and signboards in English and other foreign languages. The other half is the minority ethnic people with their colorful clothing and their cheerful smiles that bring the true mountainous lifestyle to this busy little tourist town.

After breakfast the group started our 11 kilometer trek to the Ta Van village were we would be staying for the next 13 nights. The walk takes us along the Muong Hoa Valley which is a natural treasure for both amateur and professional photographers. It’s rugged mountainous and yet serene landscape, waterfalls, valleys, and streams are awe inspiring. Ta Van village is inhabited by the Giay people who are even more shy than the ethnic minority H’Mong people. You can also travel to the villages by “xe om” (motorbike taxi) but the walk allows you to see so much more and brings so much peace to your spirit.

Our home-stay looked like a house on stilts but gave us the feeling of an oasis after a long trek in the sunny and warm weather of the day. It is said Sapa will experience four seasons on any given day so I guess this was the summer time of this particular day. After a delicious lunch we rested a little and then in the late afternoon visited the stream that runs through the village.

At the end of this wonderful day we were treated to a performance by ethnic singers and dancers around the campfire and enjoyed “ruou can”, their special wine, we then slept with memories of a special day and night deep in our hearts

3/8: Greeting the local people and authority and visiting the neighborhood.

We had a day to visit the local authority department and deliver some small gifts to 12 poor families. Thanks to the guiding and knowledge of the head of the village we understood how poor these families really were, after flood, soil erosion, and in some cases the death of the breadwinner left them with very little. Our material gifts seemed not big enough compared to their loss.

I love the night atmosphere here, so quiet and peaceful. The young students are sitting at the side-walk of the homestay under the warm light of the red paper-lanterns, chatting about many interesting topics and the differences between the 2 Cultures, Vietnamese and Polish. After this night we understood more about our friends and many things were really new to me.

4,5,6/8: Teaching and outdoor activities:

We taught and played games with kids in the morning. They were so cute and passionate and willing to participate in our activities. Some of them even went to classroom (our homestay) before the class starting time and would patiently wait for us. I was in charge of the smallest of the three classes. I helped them draw and color the pictures involved with the topic that would also be the content of a song of the day. From my point of view, some of them revealed a talent to be great artists in the future. I still remember Dinh, a shy little girl with bright eyes, and Tra a true little model with a beautiful face and warm smile.

In the afternoon, we helped a poor family build a pathway from their house to the main alley to save them going through the way of their neighbors. Physical work made us stronger day by day and I think my parents will surely see the big change in their small and weak girl when I arrive back home.

We also had an afternoon going around the village and picking up trash with our students. They were eager to join with us and really enjoyed protecting their environment. “ Pick up trash! Put it into the bin, We love our water, we love our land, we love our village...”. The lyric of a song ( or maybe a poem ) that Mr. Kenon and Ms Lisa, the American couple composed was still in my mind. That lesson is not only meaningful for the children there but for all of us as we try to protect what nature has given us.

Teaching and working shortened our days and we were all hungry come mealtime. The fulfilling and delicious meals that Hoa (our host) called “tiny” always surprised us by their abundance and delicate flavors, they truly satisfied our nutritional needs during our time with them.

8/8: Farewell to Lisa and Kenon:

We visited Ban Ho Village another small hamlet close by that also attracts many tourists. The waterfall is named Silver and the view as it cascades over the mighty rocks below is beautiful. We had our last lunch with Lisa and Kenon there and I know we will miss this humorous and kind couple.

9,10/8: The time for us:

We had the weekend free and full of extra activities. After a day travelling to Ta Phin Village riding motorbikes along the mountainside and exploring a long, tough and dark cave we decided the 7 of us would go trekking the next day. With the guiding of “the path finder”_the Polish guy named Mateusz_ we finally succeeded after finding a big mistake in the trekking map. Our strength, as well as patience and durability were challenged, but this just made it all so much more adventurous and happy. The view from the top of the mountain was deserving all of our efforts,even much more than that.

11,12/8: A new week: work is more fun than fun!

The children were still cute and lovely and seemed even more so now that we had spent a week building friendships. The number of students rose day by day which made us create some more activities like cutting and making decorations from colorful paper to be sure they were all happy and learning. We repeated the activity of picking up trash and also did this at the village next to us which caught the attention of many tourists as they trekked on their way. “Mr. Bin” is the nickname that was given to one member of our group after the activity, I am sure he is proud of this name J

We celebrated a birthday party for our “path finder” with gateau and grind cuttle-fish, not mixed of course. We were also joined by two Malaysian tourists who stayed for a night, we all drank and danced  in Malaysian style. What a fun night it was and so special to me!

13/8: The most unwanted day: the day we were going back Hanoi

We had a farewell party with our students. I didn’t realize the children would bring and give us so many flowers that they had bundled by themselves skillfully and beautifully. We exchanged wishes and gave phone numbers and one of them called me right after we arrived back in Hanoi “ Teacher, I miss you a lot...” I could not tell her how much I miss her and the time we shared both in and outside the class.

Sapa workcamp ended, leaving us with satisfaction, happiness, new friendships, beautiful memories as fresh as a wind, as warm as early sunshine and as sweet as a hug. Some day, we will find these things somewhere again, maybe in another work-camp, maybe, but nothing can erase these feelings about Ta Van and Sapa from my heart.

“ I am a little rose in spring

I am full seventeen rose

Rose tells me a truthful love

Rose separates farewell and depart

Rose tells us the life story of a lady”.

( A souvenir from Ta Van Village)