7 October 2018
I was wondering if I should wake up early to catch the sunrise over Mai Chau valley on my first morning in rural Vietnam. Hearing the rooster crowing in the distance, the “photographer” in me told me to get up and go out at 6 AM.
It was a misty morning or perhaps the mornings in Mai Chau valley are always like this. Located only a few hundred metres above sea level and surrounded by hills on almost all sides, the humid air in the cool morning is sure to produce mists. Obviously, there would be no spectacular sunrise on this day but there were still plenty of subjects for a photographer to shoot.
Mist over rice paddies at Mai Chau valley
I was the only one walking around the gardens of Mai Chau Ecolodge, one the best places to stay in Mai Chau valley. Set on the slope of a hill overlooking the rice fields, the gardens within the ecolodge are also well planted.
Bird house and gardens of Mai Chau Ecolodge.
In the surrounding rice fields outside the lodge, farmers had started work on the fields and others were on bicycles and motorbikes on their way to the market or to work. In this rural part of Vietnam, the locals start early in the day while the tourists are still in bed.
Breakfast was served at the restaurant overlooking the pool at 7 AM. The best place to sit was at the few tables on the veranda where the cool morning weather could be enjoyed.
At 8.30 AM, we met our guide, Mr Long, at the bicycle sheds next to the back gate of Mai Chau Ecolodge. Guests could borrow bicycles and cycle around the countryside. After selecting our bikes, we went out from the back entrance of Mai Chau Ecolodge and straight onto the single track road that cuts through the paddy fields.
We had not been cycling for a long time, so we were a little unsteady on our bikes. Fortunately, the terrain at Mai Chau is relatively flat.
Exploring Mai Chau on bicycles allowed us to cover greater distances and explore more of the countryside. Morning is the best time for cycling as the air is cool and we get to see the village and farm activities before the midday heat chases the locals back into their stilt houses.
We stopped a few times to witness village activities. One such stop was to see a local villager constructing and assembling tables and chairs made entirely from locally sourced bamboo. The design of the furniture is similar to those tables and chairs we had used within Mai Chau valley so far. Mr Long told us a set of tables and chairs could be sold for about USD 40. They are durable and could be used for many years.
A stop to see a villager constructing and assembling tables and chairs in a village at Mai Chau.
Using bamboo to construct tables and chairs without using any nails.
Most of the houses in the villages are built on stilts. Some of the houses in the larger villages had been converted into guesthouses and homestays due to the booming tourism industry.
Handmade cross bows for sale.
We cycled past a small village market selling traditional handicrafts, including crossbows and arrows. I was tempted to buy but I doubt I could bring it across our strict customs and immigration checkpoints back home.
Most homes in the village have a weaving loom. We made another stop to watch a women performing traditional weaving using a loom. It requires hard work and skills to push the needle through the multi-coloured threads to weave intricate patterns and designs on the finished products.
Unlike Sapa, there is no one pushing us to buy anything while we were exploring the villages or countryside in Mai Chau. Although we are not the type to buy souvenirs while travelling, we bought a small handmade purse for 50,000 VND to support the local community.
Leaving the village, we pedalled slowly through the flat Mai Chau countryside lined with green and yellow paddy fields and hazy mountains as the backdrop.
It was generally safe to cycle on the narrow pathways through the peaceful countryside, although there was one short section where we had to cycle on the main road.
Since we came to Mai Chau on a weekend, we saw more Vietnamese visitors than oversea visitors. It was a little ironical that the locals were the one who borrowed or bought traditional ethnic tribal costumes to wear for selfies or photos. And they were also the ones moving around in electric-powered carts which could be a menace to bikers on the narrows pathways.
Long took us through “off-the-beaten path” routes as well. On one such bumpy road, one of us lost control of the bike and dropped an unopened bottle of mineral water into the paddy field across the bamboo fence! Mr Long tried to retrieve it unsuccessfully. A farmer would be very glad to find it on a hot day in the future.
We finished our cycling at about 10 am. By that time, our butts were hurting a bit from the cycling.
We had ample time to shower and checked out from our room. Our driver then drove us to the Pom Coong Village nearby for our lunch before making the road trip to Pu Luong Nature Reserve.
We sat beneath a stilt house for our lunch. Also having lunch at this place was another European couple (with their private tour guide/driver) and a Vietnamese family who came by their own car.
We had a multi-course lunch that was very well presented and tasty. Once again, there was just too much food for the two of us.
Our multi-course lunch at Pom Coong village, Mai Chau.
In particular, we enjoyed the chicken cooked in bamboo, spicy curry beef and salad with crunchy peanuts and tangy sauce. The green vegetable was something I had never seen before and Long told us it was some kind of local squash that grew only in Vietnam.
A whole plate of sweet local mangoes for dessert.
Last look at beautiful Mai Chau valley from our car.
We left Mai Chau after lunch and headed towards Pu Luong Nature Reserve. The journey by car would take about 2 hours. We will do some trekking in Pu Luong Nature Reserve before spending the night in Ban Hieu Village.
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