A day in Meo Vac

A river the wrong shade of green. From the top of Ma Pi Leng the river below runs a green you will not believe until you are standing over it. By afternoon you are on it, in a boat, with the cliffs going straight up on both sides. The river photo is ours, taken from the top of the pass on our own ride.

Morning

The van takes Ma Pi Leng Pass slowly, and at the top the family gets out and stays out. Nora gets it from every angle.

A short cliff path leads off the pass for the ones who want it. Nora and Ben go. Mark and Elena take the café at the top, which has the same view and a chair.

Afternoon

Down to the river for the boat. This is Ben's stop. A slow boat through the gorge with the cliffs going straight up on both sides, and a fifteen-year-old finally impressed by something. Tonight's lodge runs the boat trips itself, so the timing is theirs to manage, not ours. Life jackets for everyone. We check that before booking, not on the dock.

We skip a second viewpoint after the pass. The river is the afternoon, and the view does not get better from the next pull-off.

Then Meo Vac. If the day lands on a Sunday, the market is the reason to be here: Hmong families down from the villages, livestock, textiles, food. Elena will not leave quickly. Any other day, a walk through town and a coffee for Mark.

Evening

Meo Vac Clay House, in the Hmong village of Pa Vi below the pass. Dinner at the lodge restaurant is the table in the photo: omelet, fries, morning glory, tofu in tomato, spring rolls, grilled chicken, rice. There is something on the table for everyone, including the vegetarian and the picky eater.

Where you sleep

Meo Vac Clay House. Rooms built with traditional earthen walls, balconies facing the mountains, family rooms so the four of you are together, and a sauna Mark will use after two days of mountain roads. It is the most comfortable night on the loop, which is why it comes last. We ask about the stairs and the bathroom before booking, because Mark's back needs to know. Tomorrow is the long drive back to Ha Giang city, in daylight, with a stop whenever anyone asks.