I’ve been blown away by the incredibly beautiful and diverse landscapes in Vietnam. My next two locations (as I continued north on my way through the country) transported me to two of my “happy places” hanging out in caves and hiking. The area around Dong Hoi is known for caving and Sa Pa (bumping up on the border with China) for its rice fields and trekking through hill tribe villages. It was tough to capture the scale of my surroundings in my pictures and videos (especially the Caves – they were MASSIVE!).
Paradise Cave and Phong Nha Cave
Some of you know that my summer job in high school was giving tours through caves in my home town (shout out to the Bonnechere Caves 😊). Since that time, I have always loved to explore and see caves in all parts of the world. Well it turns out that Vietnam in home to the biggest and some of the best cave systems in the world!! Lucky me!! I will tell you that Paradise Cave is the most amazing cave I have ever seen – it is truly mind blowing – with caverns the size of football fields. Phong Nha Cave has a dramatic entrance, you have to drive in by boat!
Sa Pa: Mt Fansipan & Trekking Along Rice Terraces
My time in Sa Pa included some significant milestones – the first time I had to wear a jacket to stay warm and the first time I needed to turn on the heat in a hotel room. I know…please don’t hate me if you are reading this while enduring nasty winter weather in Canada 😂. The evenings got down to about 8 Celsius. Brrrrr. Sa Pa is home to Mt Fansipan – Vietnam’s highest peak at 3,143m (over 10,000 ft). I let the cable car take me most of the distance – but climbed another 600 stairs to get to the top. I also hired a local guide for a day long trek along the rice terraces and through local villages. The views were breathtaking!
Love the photo 600 steps up. It was worth every foot forward.
And at that altitude…I felt every step 😂
So beautiful Becki!