The Journey to Hoàng Su Phì (To Vietnam's Rice Terraces) 15 The Real Joy of Travel

【Notes & Photos to Remember the Journey】 From the back seat of the motorbike, wedged between the luggage and my husband who's holding the handlebars, the scenery I gaze at is truly something special. The views my husband asked me to capture, the expressions that were born in that moment, the "wow~"s and "whoa~"s and "woo-hoo~"s—I'm recording all those scenes where I couldn't help but press the shutter.

You know, it was delicious every single day. The plastic container I'm holding isn't water. It's homemade shochu lol

How to use a natural umbrella correctly

A quick break between workation sessions

Because I love moss... trying to bring some home, which kind is best

Carefully selected, opens up wide and cute lol

Handling calls from the site while trekking. Work anywhere with wifi

Bundling rice stalks and leaning them against the roadside to dry? A scene like that is probably something you only see during the rice harvest season. Banana trees, hibiscus, and bundles of rice — this kind of mix is truly something you'd only find in Vietnam~

Makes you want to take a deep breath

Clarity ~ Shimmer of the Marsh ~

Do not drink. Just wash your hands, just wash your face~

Is it because they store rice? There seem to be a lot of raised-floor buildings. Similar to Japan, yet not quite the same. The rough roads on the bike gave me no breathing room, so I couldn't take a single photo, but—a natural toilet break!

When the road clears—can't resist a photo moment

A rushing mountain stream ~ the force of the water ~ When it comes time to take a break, I find myself wanting to pick weeds and wild mountain plants. Feeling as though I've become Tomitaro Makino, I start fiddling about with this and that.

I knew about it, but the way this [Mimosa / "bashful plant"] bows is different from the Japanese variety... It's not just that the leaves close up — the stem joints snap and crack, folding one after another like it's doing a breakdance...

No way?!" — the two of them are absolutely stunned. Just before heading into the mountainous area, we passed through a landscape where scene after scene showed tons of boards left out to dry.

Not just the little plaza, but along the road too

The man is leaning them one by one against the mountainside

What on earth could this be?????, I wondered, feeling puzzled, while my husband, who works in construction, was full of curiosity... Could this possibly be... plywood veneer? When I asked a local person, ding ding — right on the money! It's layered into plywood and turned into building material. And what's more, they say it gets exported to China to be made into products.

This might be an important local industry around here. The view from the room was also exceptional. In the morning, I woke up to the chirping of little birds.

As time passes, the drifting of the clouds and the quality of the light change, and just watching it never gets boring. Rather than clear skies, the way the clouds well up and fade away — it's a theater of nature unfolding right before your eyes.

Right behind the bungalows there are flower fields and terraced rice paddies, and there's a lady holding a sickle — weeding? Gathering wild vegetables? Picking herbs? Anyway, everyone's walking around carrying sickles!

Small plants and flowers, rice ears bowing their heads

Person picking fresh cinnamon leaves for a souvenir

Just eat, just eat, they kept saying, so I eat some kind of root

A morning delighting in matching Vietnamese vintage fabric

Lately I think it looks more tasty than cute, this is bad lol

A dog doesn't overthink—it just wakes up early for a walk

Herbal bath to soothe fatigue

Dad's on kettle duty. He tends the fire, adding firewood to adjust the flames

A bungalow where motorcycle riders gather. All the rough roads we conquered blow away together with the scenery, but the pain in my butt is the only thing that lingers...

Come to think of it, we re-tied the luggage in the middle of that rough road, didn't we? The three of us relying on brute strength. We were a bit short on wisdom at that time lol

Hugging a 82-year-old grandma

The view from the outdoor toilet at the bungalow. Just a window frame with no glass — such an open feeling. It's strangely calming.

Household tools, easy to reach in their usual spot

It seems he got bitten by a mountain blackfly when we went deep into the trail during our trekking. The symptoms started to appear on the way back... and honestly, they got worse after we got home. I was completely covered up, so I was fine, but my husband — oh, he got absolutely eaten alive.

Between my under-tights and my socks — close to 100 of them on both legs combined... It's awful. Even after two weeks, the itching just won't stop. From now on, insect repellent spray, long sleeves, and long pants are a must.

Well, a lot happened along the way, but I made it back safe and sound — I'm so glad, so glad. To everyone who took such good care of me, thank you so very much~~~ Relocation Life Ranking