Can Cau Market

Can Cau market is one of the most fascinating open-air markets in the region, specialising in livestock. It's 20km North of Bac Ha and just 9km south of the Chinese border. Visitors are generally H'mong groups from highland villages

Can Cau market is one of the most fascinating open-air markets in the region, specialising in livestock. It's 20km North of Bac Ha and just 9km south of the Chinese border. Visitors are generally H'mong groups from highland villages. The local H'mong are the famous variegated or Flower H'mong due to the intricate and colourful nature of their costumes, and their colourful dresses makes is a beautiful sight. Almost every Saturday around 8 different minorities are represented at the market. Travel is often made by horseback as a way of carrying the heavy loads to and from market. Can Cau also attracts a large number of Chinese traders, evidenced by the booming dog trade here

Source: www.traveltosapa.com

Hoang Lien National Park

Hoang Lien National Park Hoang Lien National Park, just outside Sapa town, is unique for experiencing nature at close hand. The Park encompasses approximately 30 km2 of scenic mountainous landscape, including Vietnam s highest peak, Fansipan (3143m). The Park contains temperate and sub-temperate forests which cover the Hoang Lien mountain range. The forest and surrounding vegetation provides habitats for a variety of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and insects. Many of these are found only in north-west Vietnam and are of great biological significance. Hoang Lien National Park Hoang Lien National Park is located in the Hoang Lien mountain range belonging to Sapa and Than Uyen districts, Lao Cai Province and includes Vietnam s highest peak, Mount Fansipan (3,143 m). The park supports a wide variety of habitat types: elevations below 1,800m support lower montage evergreen forest; elevations between 1,800 and 2,500m support upper montage evergreen forest, elevations between 2,500 and 2,800m support sub-alpine forest, while the vegetation above 2,800m is dominated by stands of dwarf bamboo with scattered, stunted trees. Below 1,000m, the forest has been almost entirely cleared and replaced with anthropogenic habitats, including secondary grassland, scrub and cultivation. Secondary habitats are also found at higher elevations. The park supports a high diversity of animal groups. 347 bird species have been recorded in and around the nature reserve, including 49 species that are restricted in Viet Nam to north-west Tonkin. The park also supports approximately one third of Viet Nam s known amphibian species, the highest recorded amphibian species richness of any protected area in Viet Nam. Several amphibian species are currently known only from the site, and around 10% of the national park s amphibian species are globally threatened. Invertebrate diversity is also very high, and many species of invertebrate discovered at the site are known from nowhere else in the world

Source: www.traveltosapa.com

Lao Cai History

In the 19th century, the Lao Cai area served as fighting ground for various armed groups, among which the famous Black Pavilions and White Pavilions. These gangs of plunderers had taken refuge in the mountains of Vietnam after the Taiping rebellion in China.

A little history In the 19th century, the Lao Cai area served as fighting ground for various armed groups, among which the famous Black Pavilions and White Pavilions. These gangs of plunderers had taken refuge in the mountains of Vietnam after the Taiping rebellion in China. Their main purpose was to control the shipping trade on the Red River. Sea salt from Vietnam, opium from the Yunnan province, new rice, fabrics, manufactured goods were to be their primary objectives. Between 1850 and 1886, the town of Lao Cai was taken, destroyed and fortified several times by different groups. On March 30th, 1886, Colonel de Maussion and his troops arrived in Lao Cai. Their objective was to pacify the area in order to create a stable border with China and to open a trade route to China via the Yunnan province. The French wanted to be the first to reach Yunnan before the British managed to open a trade route starting from Burma. At the time, the French thought that Burma would be a new eldorado, especially because of its luxury silks and ore reserves. As of the 1910s, Lao Cai made it possible to control the opium trade, from which the colony derived the best part of its resources. For this purpose, the Foreign Legion set up military posts in Bat Xat, Muong Khuong and Bac Hà and militias were created in the villages. Until 1945, then again from 1947 to 1950, the town was administered by a French resident. Traditionally, the shipping trade on the Red River has always been done by sampans capable of carrying up to 12 to 15 tons of goods, which sailed from Hanoi to Lao Cai in 35 days. In 1898, China granted the French government the right to build the Yunnan railway. The first works started in 1901 and the railway track reached Lao Cai in April 1906. The overall cost of the project was 78 million gold francs for 384 kilometres. The railway line cost the lives of 12.000 Chinese and Vietnamese workers and 80 Europeans. In 1913, the road from Lao Cai to Cha Pa was but a mule track, only practicable on foot or on horseback. Today’s paved road was not marked out until 1924. As of 1925, the connection was established between the road and railway networks. At 9:00 p.m., the traveller could board the train in Hanoi and got off nine hours later in Lao Cai, after which a two hours’ drive took him to Cha Pa. The trip back was just as easy: leaving Cha Pa at 5 :00 p.m. one was back in Lao Cai at 7 :00 p.m., in time for a meal at the Hôtel de la Gare before boarding the night train at 8:30 p.m.

Source: www.traveltosapa.com

H'Mong Ethnic Minority

History: The Black Hmong immigrated from China approximately 300 years ago.  Language: The spoken language belongs to the Hmong - Dao language family.  The Hmong writing was romanized in 1961 but is not widely used today. Costume: The Black Hmong women are famous for making cloth from hemp and dying it a deep indigo blue. They wear long blouses decorated with batik flowers over short trousers, and wrap long scarves around their legs. They wrap their long hair around their head and wear a blue turban. The men wear long jackets with shirts and a long waist coat embroidered at the collar, and a small hat. Today some Hmong wear Viet or western clothes. Social organisation: Hmong women are respected in their community as being equal with Hmong men.  Husbands and wives are very affectionate and do many of their tasks together like going to the market, working on the field and visiting relatives. In this way, they help each other to develop a strong community life.  Marriage: For the Black Hmong it is important that a girl knows how to embroider and work well in the field. These skills are more important than her beauty. Boys and girls are allowed to get to know each other before they get married. They go to the love market where they eat and sing songs together. After this time, the boy can propose marriage and if the girl agrees, she goes to live in his house.  She is put in a small room and visited by the boy’s mother and sisters who give her food to persuade her to accept the marriage.  The boy must give the bride s family silver coins, pigs, chicken and rice wine for the wedding ceremony.  The bride has some time to decide if she accepts the marriage - even after living with her husband for a few days, she can choose to break their agreement. If the boy doesn’t have a dowry to give to the girl’s family, he lives in her house until he is able to marry her.  Funeral: When there is a death in the family, the deceased’s children fire a gun to let everyone in the area know.  People in the village come to deceased s house with anything they have -  chicken, rice, a small pig or rice wine -  to help the family.  Everybody sings and eats until the deceased is wrapped in a mat and carried to a grave by one group, while a coffin, which has been kept in a cave somewhere near the grave, is carried by another. Both groups have to run very fast to meet at the grave to make the deceased forget the way home. If the deceased’s family is not able to supervise the funeral rituals, they can wait for a few years before organising a special one called ma kho. They invite people in the village to a place by the grave for the funeral for a celebration, at which they sing and dance. Beliefs: Many places are reserved for worshipping in a Hmong house – there s a place for ancestors, for the house spirit, for the kitchen spirit, even the door spirit. There are different rituals which forbid people to walk into the Hmong house or their villages.  For example, a green tree branch on the front door indicates that entrance is forbidden.  Artistic activities: The Black Hmong are very good at making agricultural tools, wooden furniture, musical instruments and jewelry. They are also famous for their handicraft and embroidery.  They generally only make such items to meet their own needs, but other minorities in the area buy their produce because of its high quality.  Since the advent of tourism in Sapa, many Hmong women make decorated cloth to sell on the town s main streets. Festivals: Like the other minorities, the Black Hmong have lots of different festivals during the year. They ensure that there is always time for community activities, which play an important role in their life. One of the most important festivals is the New Year, which they celebrate for an entire month. It happens about one month earlier than Vietnamese Tet. During this time, boys play flutes and girls play an instrument made from two leaves. They all spend time together playing traditional games.  The Blue Hmong minority The Blue Hmong share the same origin as the Black Hmong.  Most of their rites and rituals are the same -  only their clothes are different. The Blue Hmong women wear long skirts over long trousers, with a blue bib worn over the top.

Source:  www.traveltosapa.com

Red Dao Ethnic Minority

History: The origin of the Red Dao is uncertain. It has been surmised that they arrived not long before the Hmong during the 18th Century. Language: The Red Dao spoken language belongs to the Hmong - Dao language family. Their writing is based on Chinese characters adjusted to accommodate their own spelling. Costume: Red Dao women usually wear a long blouse over trousers. Their clothes are colorfully embroidered with designs that appear on both sides of the material.  The men typically wear a short shirt with long trousers, and a head-scarf.  Both men and women have a square piece of fabric on the back of their shirts which represents that they are children of God.  They wear similar hairstyles - long on top, with the rest smoothly shaved.  Many women shave their eyebrows as well.  Women also wear a distinctive red triangular shaped turban decorated with silver coins and red tassels. Social organization: The Red Dao men play a dominant role in the family, community and the economy.  They also play a major role in ceremonies such as marriages, funerals, and building new houses. The Dao people have many different family names. Each lineage has its own system of different middle names to distinguish people of different generations. Birth: The Red Dao women usually give birth in their bedroom with help of their mother and sisters. The new born is given a bath with hot water. The family hangs green tree branches or banana flowers in front of the door to prevent evil spirits from bringing harm and wickedness to the baby. When the baby is three days old, they celebrate a ritual in honour of the mother. Marriage: Parents select partners for their sons.  When a boy is fourteen or fifteen years old, his father takes him to have a look at a girl he thinks is fit and healthy and can help  with the housework.  The couple chosen to be married then have to consult a diviner who judges their compatibility based in a ritual using a chicken leg, and their horoscopes. The girl s value is shown by how many silver coins, chickens, pigs and jars of rice wine the boy s family have to give her family. During the marriage ceremony, it is customary to stretch a piece of string in front of the procession.  The groom carries the bride on his back, and she must step over a blessed pair of scissors to cross the threshold into his house. When a family has no son, the parents can buy a groom who will live happily with his bride s family.  However, if a boy is so poor that his family can’t afford a dowry,  he has to live in his bride s house - which causes him great shame. Funerals: When there is a death in the family, the deceased s children have to invite a man called thay tao to supervise the rituals and find the right piece of land for a grave. The deceased is wrapped in a mat, placed in a coffin inside their house and carried to a grave built of stones.  In the past, if the deceased was over 12 years old the body was cremated. The funeral rituals celebrated ensure that the deceased rests in peace. The ceremony, which lasts for three days, usually coincides with initiation rites for Red Dao boys.  The first day liberates the spirit of the deceased, the second day is a time to worship the deceased in the home, and the third day is the boy’s initiation rite. The boy has to sit on a throne at the highest place in the village until he falls into hammocks hanging below him.  This represents him falling down from the sky to be born on earth, another symbol of the Dao belief that they are the direct descendants of God. Housing: The Dao ritual to select land for a new house is very important  At night, the household digs a bowl sized hole and fill it with rice grains that represent people, cows, buffalo, money and property.  The family will know where to build the house based on the dreams that follow during the night.  In the morning, the family inspects the hole to see if the rice remains - if not, the house will be built elsewhere.   Beliefs: Dao religion has elements of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism.  They worship the ancestors of the family together with the legendary holy man Ban Vuong, who is considered the earliest ancestor of the Dao people.

Source: www.traveltosapa.com

Minority in general

There are 54 ethnic groups in Vietnam. The resultant diversity in culture and history of these minorities has created one of the most complex human environments in South East Asia. The main ethic group, the Kinh (Viet), accounts for approximately 87% of the population. The remaining 13%, some 8.5 million people, occupy a variety of midland, upland and highland areas, though are mainly concentrated in the western part of the country where they inhabit two-thirds of the border areas. The ethnic groups vary in size, ranging from over 1 million to less than 200 persons. The ten major groups account for about 85% of the ethnic population. Most minorities are found in equal or greater numbers in southern China, Laos, Cambodia, northern Thailand and Burma. Facts regarding the origin, distribution, subdivisions and cultural character of the minorities remain uncertain. The classification of ethnic groups varies, in a number of cases Vietnamese, Chinese, French and British designate the same people by different names. The distinction between ethnic groups is made on the basis of linguistic criteria. The minorities are divided into three major language families: Austro-Asiatic, Austronesian and Sino-Tibetan. However, the 54 ethnic groups included many local groups of different denomination with a multitude of dialects. Also, minority groups who share the same language often have distinct thought and behaviour patterns. Thus, a system of classification based on language alone would be imprecise. Groups may be sub-divided by differences in dialect relationships geographical position, altitude of settlement, socio-political structure and traditional dress. Political & administrative history Before the French rule (1859-1954) many minorities had developed patterns of social organisation, either living as rural communes or under a feudal system where one minority often dominated another. Under French rule most minorities were required to carry out unpaid labour and were subject to heavy taxes. As with many minorities, the ethnic groups in Sapa were actively opposed to the colonialists, and immigration into Vietnam, particularly of Hmong, continued between 1864 to 1892 to augment guerilla forces made up of mixed minority groups. During the 40 years preceding the 1945 August Revolution the French faced at least seven minority revolts. Between 1945 and 1975 the government of Vietnam aimed to achieve the co-operation of ethnic groups in the war of reunification. This was attempted by granting them constitutional rights equal to those of the Kinh majority. In the mid 1960s relations between the government and northern minorities improved due to the introduction of an official policy based on the principle of self-government centred on Soviet communist practice for ethnic groups. The government established two Autonomous Regions in the north and north-west of the country led by a People s Council and its administrative body, on which the various minorities in the region were proportionally represented. These Autonomous Regions were abolished in the post-reunification period. Minority participation in the two Indo-China wars contributed to their integration in to the political, economic and life of the country. This is reflected in the delineation of their political and civil fights as written in the 1981 constitution. The present government approach to the minorities is through a settlement programme aimed at further integration the minorities into national life. Ethnic groups are represented at a country level by the National Assembly.  In 1987, 14% of members were minority peoples, in-line with their proportion of the total population. Other political legislative and executive bodies exist for and with the participation of minorities, such as the State Committee for Ethnic Affairs and civil committees at provincial and district level. Ethnic minorities in the Sapa district Excluding the Kinh people or ethnic Vietnamese, eight different ethnic groups are found in Sapa; Hmong, Dao (pronounced Zao), Tay, Giay (pronounced Zai), Muong, Thai, Hoa (ethnic Chinese) and Xa Pho (a denomination of the Phu La minority group). However, the last four groups comprise less than 500 people in total. The population of the district is estimated at 31,652 (1993) of which 52% are Hmong, 25% are Dao, 15% are Kinh, 5% are Tay and 2% are Giay. Around 3,300 people live in Sapa town, the remainder are peasant farmers distributed unevenly throughout the district. The minorities are governed under the same legal and administrative systems as the Kinh majority. Each province is sub-divided in to a number of districts which hold a degree of autonomy in local government. The district is further divided in to communes which have an elected president and small committee responsible for agricultural and legal issues, amongst other thing. There are 18 communes in the Sapa district, with populations of between 970 and 4,500. These communes are made up of between two and six villages, each with an elected leader. Education and Health Education and health care are supplied free to the minorities by the state. Every commune in Vietnam is supposed to have a primary school, and each of the 550 districts typically has at least one upper secondary school. However, in Sapa not every commune has a primary school and school attendance rates by minority child are low since formal education is not a traditional part of minority culture. Primary schools provide classes in Vietnamese, basic arithmetic and Vietnamese culture. These classes are held between three and six mornings each week and are attended by less than 3% of each commune. Children attending school are able to participate in household chores or agricultural work during the afternoon. In the summer months some communes offer similar classes to adults during the evenings. There is a secondary school in Sapa attended by about 120 minority children. Pupils board on a full-time or part-time basis depending on family commitments. Few communes have trained health staff and most refer serious cases of diseases such as malaria, dysentery and measles to the hospital in Sapa. Traditional herbal remedies are primarily used by the minorities, comprising medicinal plants gathered in the forest. A traditional medicine garden is located near the bus station in Sapa. This is supported by the Institute for Medicine in Hanoi and most of the plants are used in Hanoi. Other traditional gardens exist within province, for example at Lao Cai, for use by local people. There are very basic water treatment, sewage or waste disposal facilities in the district, and many communes have no means of dealing with their waste. It is therefore important that visitors take sensible health precautions, particularly regarding drinking water. Similarly, it is important not to increase the existing burden the environment by adding to the waste disposal problem. Minimize the effects of your visit by disposing of rubbish sensibly and re-use plastic bottles by sterilizing drinking water if possible.  Many locally produced drinks come in glass bottles which are recycled. Agriculture The majority of people in Sapa are subsistence farmers in forest areas with some traditional practicing “swidden” agriculture (slash & burn) which has led to much forest clearance. The annual calendar of events is centred around agriculture. Rice cultivation is the main economic activity, though production is limited to one crop per year due to the winter climate being unsuitable for optimal rice growth. Between March and May, depending on the weather and the number of fields to be cultivated, rice is planted in the terraced paddy fields. Before planting the fields are ploughed using buffalo as draught animals. In July weeding of the rice crops takes place.  Between September and October the rice is harvested.  Between February and March maize is planted and crops are harvested between June and August. As a result of population growth there is high pressure on existing land. As rice is limited to only one crop per year and there is limited scope for expansion of agricultural land the ethnic minorities in Sapa face an annual deficit in food production. This shortage varies between families but most can only produce enough to provide for between four and eight months. The poorest families in each village receive rice provided by the government, usually surplus stock from the Mekong Delta. Livestock is reared to provide food during periods of rice shortage or on special occasions and also for sale to enable basic necessities to be bought. Livestock kept by local people includes cattle, water buffalo, pot-bellied pigs, goats, ducks and chickens. The minorities also gather natural produce from the forest, both to supplement their income and for domestic use. These include dead wood for fuel and building materials, mushrooms, bamboo shoots and ginger. Men from the ethnic groups are skilled hunters using homemade flintlock rifles, traps, crossbows, knives and dogs to catch animals in the forest. Hunting is now illegal though animals such as monkeys are still trapped if they are raiding crops. Opium cultivation exists in the north-western provinces of Lao Cai, Ha Giang, Tuyen Quang, Lai Chau and Son La. Addiction in minorities has been reported, as has the use of opium for medicinal purposes. Opium farming war banned in Vietnam in 1954, though cultivation for personal use was permitted. In 1986 all cultivation and possession for sale or personal use became illegal. Punishment includes fines and prison sentences for re-offenders. To discourage opium cultivation in Sapa the Hmong have been permitted to cultivate Panax Pseudo-ginseng within the remaining forest areas. This cash crop is sold to the Chinese for use in traditional medicines.  There is no traditional delineation of work between the sexes. Each member of the family carries out jobs to which they are suited. Men are responsible for heavy work including ploughing, threshing, building, repairing the house and making agricultural implements. Women are responsible for planting, weeding, harvesting, food preparation and making clothes. Children are responsible for tending buffalo, and they, together with the elderly, help with lighter work and household chores. Tree Planting Tree planting programmers exist in Sapa to provide alternative sources of wood for fuel and building materials. This alleviates pressure on the remaining natural forest. These reforestation projects are supported by the Vietnamese government. A number of foreign aid and development agencies are also contributing to tree planting efforts as an integrated approach to raising the standard of the ethnic groups. Protective forest legislation acts as a disincentive to "swidden" agriculturalists, and those clearing land for cultivation are fined. Economic lumber species such as Fokienia hodginsii are used in furniture production and command high prices in Lao Cai ($400/m3) and China ($900/m3) for furniture production. The trees are cut by local people, though they are only paid a small fraction of the commercial value of the wood.  Economic timber species are included in the tree planting programmes to reduce the incidence of illegal logging and provide an alternative source of income to the district.

Source: www.traveltosapa.com

Handicrafts in Sapa

Handicrafts in Sapa Until the 1980s, most of the mountain populations in Vietnam used to produce nearly all their everyday life objects. Clothes, basketwork, metal and wooden objects, jewellery, pottery, etc. were made locally according to techniques that were often specific to an area or an ethnic group. These objects are still made today for family use and occasionally offered for sale. Fibres: hemp, cotton and silk dyed with natural dyes : The Tày grow cotton, spin it, weave it, and dye it to make the traditional blankets for the wedding dowries. The Hmong grow hemp and use its strong fibres to make their clothes, which they dye with indigo. In certain villages, people raise silkworms to make the beautiful silk thread they use to embroider their clothes. The Dao (Mien) women and the Hmong make veritable pictures with their incredibly precise embroideries. Lots of traditional fabrics can be found in the Sa Pa and Bac Hà ethnic markets. Most of the patterns embroidered by the Hmong and the Dao or woven by the Tay and the Thai carry a meaning. They often symbolise a baby, a tree, a bird, a snail, the moon, etc. Basketwork: from forest to kitchen : Rattan and bamboo are the raw materials used for basketwork. Each ethnic group and each area has its own techniques and own patterns. The Tays’ are square-shaped, often decorated with floral patterns, while the Dao’s (Mien) and the Lao’s are raised designs with colour strokes. For their domestic use, the Nung and the Tay make very fine baskets for sorting rice or legumes. In order to protect them, they store them over the wood fire where the smoke makes them more resistant. The Vietnamese shoulder piece is the most popular carrying device in the lowlands, while the back-basket is found everywhere in the mountains. Wood, steel and silver: traditional skills, still unrecognized : Thanks to the wide diversity of wood species and to the carpenters and joiners’ know-how, the houses, furniture and all the wooden objects are still made locally. One of the most famous wood species in the Lao Cai area is peumou (Fokienia Hodginsii), a species of slow-growing cypress whose wood is rot-proof. Chinese buyers have been paying a heavy price for it for over a century. Using reclaimed materials, blacksmiths used to make ploughshares, knives and trivets. Despite the competition of industrial products, the high-quality knives and pruning knives made by the Hmong are still much sought-after by farmers from all ethnic groups. Silver jewelery is still made by numerous ethnic groups. The Hmong from Sa Pa and the Dao are renowned for their necklaces consisting of several silver circles put together – the weight of the jewel is also a wealth and status symbol as silver metal used to be one of the main ways of hoarding wealth. The Tày from Van Bàn make beautiful silver bangles. Depending on the area and on the subgroups they belong to, the Hmong and the Dao are distinguished by the shape of their earrings. Incense : Virtually all ethnic groups produce their own particular sort of incense. The Tày from Van Ban (Van Bàn), use powdered cinnamon bark to make a brown incense with a warm, sweet fragrance. The Pa Zi from Muong Khuong make pale green incense out of powdered wild leaves, whose fragrance is greener and a little sharp. The Hmong from Bac Hà gather tree bark to make ochre-coloured incense with a powerful scent.

Source: www.traveltosapa.com

Sapa Travel Gear

Some advice when you want to do a homestay tour in Sapa. There are some villages near to Sapa where you can do a homestay. If you have 2, 3 days in Sapa and have a tour guide, the first day you will have a long trek for about 5 or 6 hours along small village trails. Here is some advice and information for your trip. You should take drinking water or you can buy it along the way. You should wear good shoes, bring a rain coat because of the changing weather. When it rains the trekking road will be muddy, you"d better have a walking pole. Having knives is quite convenient when you cut something. Bringing a map or books of the area so you can note the places where you already lay your feet. Having a camera is very useful so you can record your trips. Sapa is close to the sun so you need to take suncream, insect repellent and a change of clothes. The temperature gets cooler in the evening so you should have a jacket with you. To carry everything above you  ought to choose a suitable backpack. You do not need to bring a sleeping bag or food because in the hill tribe peoples house you would be provided with a lot of food, and there are good conditions for bathing and warm places for sleeping. You need a flashlight when going out at night. For the people who would like to do a homestay for 4 days, apart from the things above you should have more warm clothes for changing in winter and normal clothes in summer. For the people who do the tour by themselves, you need to bring some food such as bread, snacks and soft drink for lunch. When arriving in the village you will see some houses with eye-catching signs like: homestay, local house for staying; you can go in and ask them if it is okay to stay with them. They will prepare food, and a place for sleeping and of couse you have to pay for everything. What do you need to conquer Fansipan : the highest peak of Indochina in Sapa, Vietnam. To reach the top of Fansipan you need to have some fitness and good health. You should wear the best mountain shoes possible and have boots in case of rain. Wearing glasses prevent your eyes from insect. It will be more interesting when you have a GPS so you can know  exactly where you are. If you have a tour guide and a porter you do not have to carry anything except rain coat and drinking water. You should take clothes to change yourself in summer time, and warm clothes in winter time. You need to have some snacks whenever you are hungry, because along the long trek you may loose your energy. You do not have to mind about the food and sleeping places because the tour guide and porter will take care of these.  It is convenient to have a caming lamp, a flashlight because there is no electricity in the mountain. You should have solar-cream and insect repellant with you.  If you travel alone with a porter that doesn"t speak English, it will be difficult for you to communicate.

Source:: www.traveltosapa.com