The Journey to Hoáng Su Phì (To Vietnam's Rice Terraces) 4: Beyond Exhaustion

Yes, our lodging in Hoàng Su Phì, Hà Giang Province, which we finally reached after nearly 24 hours from Ho Chi Minh. It was a journey of patience and endurance. To begin with, since we deliberately took a long detour and traveled along some terrible roads,

It just never seems to arrive, so my behind is aching no matter what. And it's not only my behind — my inner thighs, too. Bracing myself so I won't fall and trying to keep my balance means putting effort into all sorts of places, you see. My husband, who was driving, worked so hard braking on the rough road, keeping the vehicle balanced, making sure the wheels weren't yanked away and that we didn't skid. The road was fairly wide, but passing oncoming cars and trucks was nerve-wracking, and if you let your guard down even a little, there were plenty of spots where just past the curve was a cliff. And finding a natural spot for a toilet is a real challenge too, lol. Anyway, right about when my behind had gotten thoroughly sore, someone at a rest stop told us, "The road's going to get better pretty soon~," and suddenly I was full of energy again.

If you keep going without pushing yourself too hard, taking breaks again and again, you'll come across scenes like straw spread out on the road to dry, water buffalo taking walks is completely normal, and chickens roam free too, walking around leading lots of chicks. There are plenty of dogs and cats as well. None of them make a sound—they just quietly slip by and go on their way. Just when the inn was almost within reach, we stopped to refuel with gasoline.

This super compact gas station also has a penny-candy shop attached. Under the guise of taking a little break... a little party has ended up getting started.

Since there's cold beer, well, I only meant to have just one bottle, but... You haven't tried this old-fashioned candy before, have you~

We've got Karamucho~ and more

Snacking away and gulping it down, glug glug glug. I drank about 11, no, maybe 12 bottles lol. And yet... the total came to 180,000 VND. Just a little over 1,000 yen. Huh, what's going on with this math? Thank you so much~. By a real stroke of luck it didn't rain and the weather was clear, but I was on the bike for about 10 hours. By the time I reached the inn I was completely worn out, but once I saw these rice terraces...

Even the fatigue fades away. Looking forward to a meal at the inn, but first

We were shown the wood-fired stove. Hehehe, the best part is yet to come. Actually, this bungalow has a medicinal herbal bath. It's a natural herb bath made with lemongrass, cinnamon, and all sorts of leaves, branches, roots, and more.

Dad adjusts the temperature by adding firewood to the fire. The water is drawn from the mountain, so there's plenty of it, gushing out endlessly! You can relax and unwind in the wooden tubs — I think there were four bathrooms in all. Honestly, it really melts your fatigue away. I've been soaking in it every day. Having arrived safely, I can finally breathe a sigh of relief. Migrant-life ranking