When we arrived in Sapa from a 9-hour train ride from Hanoi on Saturday morning, it was raining, foggy and muddy. After breakfast and a brief rest in our hotel, we were led by a young guide called Cu who looked like an 11 year old but was actually 17. She spoke good English, courtesy of the internet.

We then went trekking through Cat Cat village, which is inhabited by the black H'mong tribe. It was not an easy 3-km. trek because the fields were muddy and the steps were quite steep. Sometimes, it was like climbing 3 floors at a time but the mountain air is thinner, at a height of 1600 metres above sea level. I was breathing heavily and wondered how much more I could take. After reaching the waterfall, we decided shortly to take a motorbike back to our hotel.