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Sapa Images 8 images Created 18 Dec 2008

Sapa is an incredibly picturesque village that lies in the Hoang Lien Son mountain range near the Chinese border in northwestern Vietnam, known as "the Tonkinese Alps". Sapa and its surrounding region is host to many hill tribes, as well as rice terraces. The local hill tribes rotate from village to village on certain days of the week, staging colorful and intriguing markets.
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  • French Colonial Architecture in Sapa - In order to make French colonists feel more at home and to reflect its vision of imperial grandeur, the French colonial government set about rebuilding  Vietnamese towns such as Sapa according to European specifications.
    french-colonial-sapa-4.jpg
  • Some of the rice terraces such as those found at Ta Van are 2000 years old. They were carved into the mountains by local inhabitants - lacking flat plains to plant their crops. It is thought that the terraces were built largely by hand. They are fed by an ancient irrigation system from rainforests above the terraces. Locals to this day still plant rice and vegetables on the terraces, although more and more young Vietnamese and hilltribes do not find farming as appealing as work in the cities. The result is the gradual erosion of the steps which need constant care.
    sapa-rice-terraces-3.jpg
  • Black H'mong Tribal Women - The ters Hmong refers to an Asian ethnic group in the mountainous regions of southeast Asia.  Hmong groups gradually migrated southward due to political unrest and to find more arable land.  As a result, Hmong live in several countries in Southeast Asia, including northern Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and Burma.  There are various types of Hmong throughout Asia, including the Black Hmong and Flower Hmong, named after the styles of their clothing and costumes.
    black-hmong-2.jpg
  • Ta Van Rice Terraces, Some of the rice terraces in the Sapa area are over 2 thousand years old, carved into the mountains by local inhabitants, lacking flat plains to plant their crops.
    sapa.jpg
  • The red dzao or dao people are a branch of the hilltribe of the Yao people, descending from China.  The red dzao or dao are characterized by their red scarfs, hats or headgear and are frequently seen on market days in the Sapa area and small villages in the northern montagnard areas of Vietnam.
    red-dzao-2.jpg
  • Ochre colored French Colonial Architecture in Sapa - the French colonial government built Vietnamese towns and cities such as Sapa according to European styles and specifications. Many of these structures still stand, converted into cafes, hotels and restaurants.
    french-colonial-sapa-2.jpg
  • Some of the rice terraces in the Sapa area are 2000 years old.  They were carved into the mountains by local inhabitants, as they are lacking in flat plains to plant their crops. It is believed that the terraces were built by hand and are fed by an ancient irrigation system from rainforests above the terraces.
    sapa-rice-terraces-7.jpg
  • Flower Hmong girls with a bouquet of yellow roses.  Hmong groups began a gradual southward migration from China due to unrest and to find more arable land - as a result  Hmong now live in several countries in Southeast Asia including Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and Burma.  There are various types of Hmong throughout Southeast Asia, including the Flower Hmong shown here, named after the styles of their clothing and costumes.
    flower-hmong-2.jpg