The first few days I spent in Sapa we had rain rain rain! I met a psych nurse from England and we used the weather as an excuse for staying snuggled up in our beds chatting and reading. It was a nice rest, but I was determined to get some hiking in so I asked a little girl who was selling things in town if she would take me to her village to meet her family. Her name is Chung and she is 11 years old. She has never been to school. They have a free school in their village, but her mom told her that she couldn't learn how to sew a shirt at school. The Hmong people are mainly subsistence farmers, but they supplement their living with money made from selling handicrafts to tourists. Since Chung is the oldest in her family, they need her to work on the farm, help with the younger children, and make and sell handicrafts.
Chung was funny and full of spunk and also very pretty.
We set off hiking to her village and she went straight down the highway. I thought that was funny because I had been hoping to do some more challenging trekking. The tourist groups took a different route to the village that took half a day on a dirt path. I realized as we walked down the tarmac that of course the locals will take the easiest road! After all they just want to get home! Sometimes we tourists are kind of funny, always looking for the most challenging and exciting way to do things that could be accomplished much more simply! haha