The train from Hanoi was, to put it mildly, very good. A little noisy and bumpy sometimes but really one of the best sleepers I have ever been in.
When we arrived at the town nearest to Sapa things started to go wrong. The driver was reluctant to leave and eventually the Germans on board started to get irate and we left. Within minutes my name was held up and I said that’s me. A phone was handed to me and I was told it was the office in Hanoi. They explained to me that there had been an accident and the road was blocked, if we all paid 130,000 dong the driver would take us the 100km detour- the Germans said we have paid and we should pay no more, so I was told the driver would just take us the normal way and we would wait. The driver then had another thought we could walk past the accident and he would organize another bus from the other side, cost 30,000, about £1. I said that sounds a good idea - the Germans said we shouldn’t pay until we reach Sapa, if we pay at all the one beside me said. I said I thought the driver was trying his best, I was given to understand that they thought he was a scammer. That was until we hit a 10km traffic jam.
Everyone seemed to stop blaming the driver but it was too late for a detour and too far to walk! It actually ended up not too bad and we arrived only an hour late.
It was incredibly misty and in some ways that added to a fabulous trek through the mountains.
The home stay is more like a hotel and the evening ended with music and happy water.