Sapa, where the land meets the sky

Sa Pa is a highland town, also is a famous resort of Sapa district, Lao Cai province, Viet Nam. Its contain many hidden wonders of nature, landscape, natural terrain of mountains, green forests make up the picture, lay out harmony with the romantic scenery. Especially, this is the only region have snow in Viet Nam

I. THE INTRODUCTION SAPA

Sa Pa is a highland town, also is a

famous resort of Sapa district, Lao Cai

province, Viet Nam It's contain many

hidden wonders of nature, landscape,

natural terrain of mountains, green

forests make up the picture, lay out

harmony with the romantic scenery

Especially, this is the only region have

snow in Viet Nam

1. History

Sa Pa is a frontier township and

capital of Sa Pa District in Lao Cai

Province in northwest Vietnam It was

first inhabited by people we know

nothing about They left in the entire

valley hundreds of petroglyphs, mostly

composed of lines, which experts think date from the 15th century and represent local cadastres Then came the highland minorities of the Hmong and Yao The township is one

of the main market ones in the area, where several ethnic minority groups such as Hmong, Dao (Yao), Giáy, Pho Lu, and Tay live groups, as well as by smaller numbers of Tày and Giay These are the four main minority groups still present in Sa Pa district today The Kinh (lowland Vietnamese) never originally colonised this highest of Việt Nam’s valleys, which lies in the shadow of Phan-Xi-Pǎng (Fansipan, 3143 m), the highest peak in the country

It was only when the French debarked in highland Tonkin in the late 1880s that Sa Pa,

or Chapa (from Chinese Xa Pa, the "sandy place"), as the French called it, began to appear on the national map In the following decade, the future site of Sa Pa township

started to see military parties as well as missionaries from the Société des Missions

Etrangères de Paris (MEP) visit The French military marched from the Red River Delta into the northern mountainous regions as part of Tonkin's

‘pacification’ In 1894-96 the border between China and Tonkin was formally agreed upon and the Sa Pa area, just to the south of this frontier, was placed under French authority From 1891 the entire Lào Cai region, including Sa Pa, came under direct colonial military administration so as to curtail banditry and political resistance on the sensitive northern frontier

The first permanent French civilian resident arrived in Sa Pa in 1909 With its attractive continental climate, health authorities believed the site had potential By 1912 a military sanatorium for ailing officers had been erected along with a fully fledged military garrison Then, from the 1920s onwards, several wealthy professionals with enough financial capital also had a number of private villas built in the vicinity

At the end of the Second World War a long period of hostilities began in Tonkin that was

to last until 1954 In the process, nearly all of the 200 or so colonial buildings in or around Sa Pa were destroyed, either by Việt Minh sympathisers in the late 1940s or in the early 1950s by French air raids The vast majority of the Viet population fled for their lives, and the former township entered a prolonged sleep

In the early 1960s, thanks to the New Economic Zones migration scheme set up by the new Socialist regime, new inhabitants from the lowlands started to migrate to the region The short 1979 occupation of the northern border region by Chinese troops had

for a month In 1993 the last obstacle to Sa Pa's full rebirth as a prominent holiday destination was lifted as the decision was made to open the door fully to international tourism Sa Pa was back on the tourist trail again, this time for a newly emerging local elite tourist crowd, as well as international tourists Sa Pa is now in full economic boom, mainly from the thousands of tourists who come every year to walk the hundreds of miles

of trekking trails between and around the villages of Dao villages of Ta Van and Ta Phin

In 2006, the Chairman of The People's Committee of Sa Pa Province was elected to The

Communist Party Central Committee as the youngest ever member (born in 1973)

of the Himalayas This range includes Vietnam's highest mountain, Fan Si Pan,

at a height of 3143 m above sea level The town of Sa Pa lies at an altitude of about 1500 meters (4921 feet) above sea level The climate is moderate and rainy in summer (May—August), and foggy and cold with occasional snowfalls in winter

The geographical location of the area makes it a truly unique place for many interesting plants and animals, allowing it to support many inhabitants Many very rare or

even endemic species have been recorded in the region The scenery of the Sa Pa region

in large part reflects the relationship between the minority people and nature This is seen especially in the paddy fields carpeting the rolling lower slopes of the Hoang Lien Mountains The impressive physical landscape which underlies this has resulted from the work of the elements over thousands of years, wearing away the underlying rock On a clear day, the imposing peak of Fan Si Pan comes into view The last major peak in the Himalayan chain, Fan Si Pan offers a real challenge to even the keenest walker, the opportunity of staggering views, and a rare glimpse of some of the last remaining primary rain forest in Vietnam

Geology, climate and human activity have combined to produce a range of very distinct habitats around Sa Pa Especially important is Sa Pa's geographic position, at the convergence of the world's 14 “biomes” (distinct biographic areas), producing an assemblage of plant and animal species unique in the world In 2014, Sa Pa ranked 9 in the top 10 rice terrace destinations of the world by Spot Cool Stuff

3. The people

Sa Pa is a quiet mountain town and home to a great diversity of ethnic minority peoples The total population of 36,000 consists mostly of minority groups Besides the Kinh (Viet) people (15%) there are mainly 5 ethnic groups in Sa Pa: Hmong 52%, Dao 25%, Tay 5%, Giay 2% and a small number of Xa Pho Approximately 7,000 live in Sa

Pa, the other 36,000 being scattered in small communes throughout the district

Most of the ethnic minority

people work their land on sloping

terraces since the vast majority of

the land is mountainous Their

staple foods are rice and corn Rice,

by its very nature of being a

labour-intensive crop, makes the daily fight

for survival paramount The unique

climate in Sa Pa has a major

influence on the ethnic minorities who live in the area With sub-tropical summers, temperate winters and 160 days of mist annually, the influence on agricultural yields and health related issues is significant Many older women make items such as ethnic-style clothes and blankets, to sell to tourists Striking up a conversation with them can be very rewarding and their spoken English is impressive Visitors to Sa Pa will meet many of these women both in the market, and along the paths and roads during daily treks up and down the valleys

Children from these ethnic minorities often begin to support their families financially

by selling trinkets to tourists Do not encourage this by buying from children - Buy from adults They peddle small metal or silver trinkets, embroidered pillow cases and friendship bands in the main town, and often walk for several hours from their surrounding villages to reach the town At the end of the day, some take a motorbike ride back to their village, some walk home and some sleep in the market

4. Ecological life

The Hoang Lien Mountains are home to a rich variety of plants, birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles and insects, many only found in northwestern Vietnam For this reason, the Hoang Lien Nature Reserve was made a National Park in 2006, and covers much of the mountain range to the immediate south of Sa Pa

Forest type and quality change with increasing altitude At 2000 meters the natural, undisturbed forest begins to be seen Above 2500 meters dwarf conifers and rhododendrons predominate in the harsh “elfin forest”, so called because a lack of topsoil and nutrients means that fully mature trees grow to measure only a few meters in height Higher still, only the hardiest of plant species are found At over 3000 meters, Fan Si Pan's summit can only support dwarf bamboo

II. TOURIST SITES IN SAPA

1. Love flowers valley

Sapa Rose Valley Referred to as "a beautiful flower garden in Sapa tourism" It is becoming an exciting destination of localand foreign tourists the opportunity to visit the resort in Sapa

No need to go to the country of Bulgaria distant land of love flowers, where the plains, valleys teemed with multicolored roses Now just come to commission Sapa valley visitors can also see firsthand the brilliant roses, inhaling the scent of flowers

charming love in white fluffy clouds Rose Valley is arranged into several areas

to create a new and attractive tourist area

of over 20 thousand visitors With hectares, lies the peaceful foothills of the majestic Fansipan, surrounded by a forest, the clouds, the valley smog commission has embellished poetic scenery for Sa Pa Located in the valley full seasons fluffy white clouds created by two Ham Rong Mountain and Hoang Lien Son This is an important point in the painting of SaPa tourism

Flowering season lasts from March 11 to the valley roses this season will immerse visitors in the world of flowers: roses just blossoming, the blooming flowers spread, cotton, it has to meet the all radiate out to an ecstatic charming fragrance

From the rose garden, panoramic away, guests will admire the grandeur of the "roof

of Indochina" -top Fanxipan Looking down the valley, the Muong Hoa like a beautiful brocade painting fresh with a warm roof is peace in the white cloud mountain Further, rolling green mountains

untouched eye With the

advantage lies at the cross

roads leading to the minority

villages from where tourists

will visit Cat Cat, Sin Chai, Ta

Phin, O Quy Ho, Ta Van, Lao

Chai, Thanh Phu to learn life

and as unique culture of ethnic

Hmong, Dao, the Xa Pho, Tay visited natural attractions such as Ham Rong Mountain, Ancient Stone, Silver Falls – Heaven Gate

2. Hoang Lien National Park

Hoang Lien National Park - one of the important special-use forests of Vietnam with

a total area of 29 845 ha core area, including a high mountain system of Hoang Lien Son range, including high Fansipan peak 3.143mand an area of 38,724 ha buffer zone, including the town of Sa Pa, some communes in Sa Pa district

Hoang Lien National Park mainly primary forest vegetation with an evergreen tropical mountain forest fauna and a rich and diverse

The scene Hoang Lien National Park

About flora forest, where there are more than 2,000 species of plants with typical wood such as military service, linden, rhododendron, alpine-mu, plum forest , of which about 66 species are listed in Vietnam Red Book as: blue cypress, set sam, through bamboo, red pine, nail spare parts chestnut , 32 rare species such as the green cypress species distribution in karst Ban Ho (Sa Pa) , red pines are found in Sa Pa, species of the Hoang Van Sam - Sam cold) distribution in the core national parks (three species are the main materials used to extract a variety of rare medicine) and hundreds of herbs such as rules, independent, Eucommia, venture

royal crow's feet, azalea, needle

With rich forest ecosystems such, the

Hoang Lien National Park is considered one

of the centers of biodiversity in our country

the most In particular, it was preserved,

keeping many traditional cultural beauty of

the ethnic communities living in the core

zone and buffer zone of the National Park; activities such as music and dance of the Hmong, Dao, Giay with instruments such as pan, flute, trumpet, herd size; the residential architecture of the nation as: The Hmong upper, lower floor and often windy an draw

materials mainly wooden houses, home

of the Tay in low areas should

normally be architectural floor, roofs

made of reeds or straw, today has been

replaced with tile

At Hoang Lien National Park,

visitors are environmentally attractive

ecotourism Here; Guests will feel the

moment spring delivery -lowered -

collection - frozen within 1 hour; see the

sunshine through every dense foliage, through the mist coming down the carpet of lush grass; been watching the dwarf bamboo clump swaying whenever the wind swept through

3. Fansipan

Fansipan is a mountain in Vietnam, the highest in Indochina (comprising Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia), at 3,143 metres (10,312 ft) It is located in the Lao Cai, 9 km southwest of Sa Pa Township in the Hoang Lien Son mountain range

Fansipan is dubbed "the Roof of Indochina"; it is to be approved as one of the very few ecotourist spots of Vietnam, with about 2,024 floral varieties and 327 faunal species

The topography of Fansipan is varied Muong Hoa Valley, at the lowest altitude (950 to

1000 metres), is created by a narrow strip of land at the base on the east side of

the mountain It can be climbed in a steep and fairly strenuous hike

Tour companies in the area will arrange hikes to the summit taking from one to three days Most will recommend taking the two- or three-day options and few guides will take tourists on the round trip in a single day

A very small village is located at around 1,500 m (4,920 ft) where accommodation and food is offered Further up, at 2,800 m (9,190 ft), is an overnight camp Most booked trips will include the use of these facilities in their price should they be required

3 Stone Cathedral Sapa

This church is located in the center of

town In front is a large stadium Every

day, ethnic heavily concentrated in this

sale, barter This is where the weekly 7th

melodious voice calling your praise of the

couple in the bazaar is full of culture

and ethnicity breath mountains

Old church, also known as stone

church or church of Our Lady of the

Rosary lies in the heart of Sapa town,

the French built in the early 20th

century Before placing the first brick

foundation for this work , the French

architect was carefully selected to build the terrain

Cathedral of Our Lady of the Rosary is located on a prime location with Ham Rong mountain behind the shield, the front area is broad, flat, can develop many cultural facilities catering for activists Assembly, standing at the four sides can be observed relics, along with two other structures built by the French villa owners Bridge (now the Hoang

Lien Hotel) and the former District Commissioner (now headquarters of the Tourist Information Centre Lao Cai) forming a symmetrical triangle with distinct architectural style of France

Stone church in SapaChoosing the direction of the church has

an important spiritual significance for Catholics: First relics returned to the east, the direction of the sunrise, the light source direction God welcome At the end of the