Yesterday afternoon, while sitting downstairs in the restaurant enjoying a slice of cake and some Vietnamese coffee, we noticed it had stopped raining. We decided to take advantage of the situation and do a little stroll around the city center. From looking at a map we knew there was a park and a lake nearby so we headed in that direction. As we walked it was as if a small miracle was taking place right before our eyes. Not only was it not raining, the fog lifted and there was even a tiny sliver of blue sky.
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| When I said a tiny sliver of blue sky, I really meant tiny! |
What we saw was a small park with lots of flowers and trees as well as a fairly large lake with a walking path all the way around. We also saw that Sapa really was surrounded by mountains on all sides. As advertised, Sapa really is a mountain village! Strolling around the lake we noticed that about as quickly as the surroundings were revealed, the fog was rolling back in and the scenery was disappearing. Within just a couple of minutes the brightly lit buildings across the lake had completely disappeared! A few minutes later it began to drizzle again. Oh well, it was nice while it lasted!
One thing that I left out of yesterdays blog was about education. As we walked through the villages we passed several schools. Lo May shared with us that government funded education in this region covers elementary through lower secondary (1st - 9th grade). There are no high schools here so children wishing to continue their education must go to boarding schools in larger cities like Hanoi. The boarding schools are expensive so very few children continue their education. It is Lo May's goal to give her two children the opportunity to go not only to high school but college. It's a wish we both hope comes true for her and her family.
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| The City Center Park |
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| Along the lakefront |
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| A couple of minutes later the buildings on the other side of the lake had completely disappeared The two pictures below were taken at sunrise this morning...……….10 minutes apart!   |
Hue
