Foot and Fire

In this photo, I am with Mr. Vudao, a former tour guide and now the bubbly owner of a bookstore with English books in Sa Pa Valley. He accepts swaps of books too. I bought the bio of Ho Chi Minh and Vietnamese Folktales, and he gave me discounts. This is his first time to meet Filipinos... He said he will still be in that bookstore when we get back... and even after a thousand more years, he added... His email add is vudaosapa@gmail.com. ***             My friend Bernadette sitting beside Peter Thoung of Peter Coffeeshop  and now the recently opened Sapa Backpackers.. This makeshift coffee corner is facing the small classroom where minority children were taught basic English so they can communicate with tourists. Tourism is one source of income for the minorities in SaPa Valley. More information on Sapa Backpackers  here . *** We added our Philippine Flag and Mabuhay greetings on the wall of the classroom. **...

We freely roamed the park in the middle of SaPa Valley and had a great time with the tripod and our poses. We love the relaxing atmosphere of SaPa, despite the fact that Vietnamese walk fast as in brisk walking for us. We also love the maintenance of the plants in the park...  ****  A Catholic Church in Sapa is near the market where the tribal people are selling their goods from bags to dresses to peaches. *** We passed by a stall roasting Lechon de leche... *** By the lake of the Sapa Park. *** Sorry, I have no flashy flash. I just got this hazy photo. But this is for your bird's eyeview of Sapa at night only. *** The intricately designed plant at the park. *** By the garden in the park. Nice flowers. Pretty ladies. *** Click, click before she breezes through me, lol. At the lake. In the morning, one can ride in their duck boat for sure. ***

Please like this Facebook page of SAPA BACKPACKERS . We met Peter Thuong in SaPa valley, north of vietnam last year in his SaPa Coffee Corner, a non-profit org dedicated to teach English to street children in Sapa Valley, where one source of livelihood there is tourism. They now have Sapa Backpackers and Peters Coffee Corner, a Non-Profit Organisation supporting Minority Kids with Food, Shelter and free English-Classes where children can now sleep and learn. Also they can accommodate (Page says at 3$ a night) tourists as well as volunteers. If you happen to go to Hanoi this year, make it a point to go to Sapa too! *** Here are some of our photos when we passed by Peter Coffee Corner in SaPa when we had our vacation last July 2012. We stopped by and were offered the Vietnamese Mountain Tea which is bitter but has a surprising nice taste. My friend Bernadette sitting beside Peter. This makeshift coffee corner is facing the small classroom where minority children...