The Journey of a Lifetime Continues!

 After 3 days in the busy capital of Hanoi, the CBT Vietnam team has finally arrived in SaPa!

With all of our supplies, luggage, and filming equipment, we hopped on an overnight train from Hanoi to Lao Cai. We all forgot about the rough 10 hour ride once we woke up with breathtaking views, cool weather, and refreshing smell of the mountainous area of Northern Vietnam.  What a change from the humidity of overcrowded Hanoi!

Once we arrived in the town, we checked into the beautiful SaPa Eden Hotel. While we waited for our rooms to be ready, the team headed to the rooftop restaurant for breakfast. It also gave us the chance to finally snap our own photos of this magical landscape!

For the next 10 days, the team will be staying in TaPhin and Lao Chai working on different projects, including homestay training, product development, and environmental training for kids.

We are all very eager to connect with the community and deliver the training we have been working on these past few months. Everyone is excited to stay in the homestays and build lifetime memories with the locals.

Did you know the project now has Instagram? Follow us at http://instagram.com/cbtvietnam!

Stay tuned with the CBT Vietnam blog and social media channels for more details on our work in the villages!

One week to go!!

Wow! After weeks of preparation and hard work, the team is now one week away from departure. We have spent the summer meeting weekly, sharing meals and laughter, planning our itinerary and putting together some exciting new ideas. We are now in the final stages, assembling our packing lists and brushing up on some Vietnamese phrases. Personally, this will be my first trip to Asia and I have never been more excited! I am thrilled to not only be part of an amazing and cohesive team, working on an inspiring project, but also to be travelling to a beautiful and interesting part of the world. 

One of the new ideas we have for the project is the creation of an environmental youth group in the Sapa region. This idea fits in well with the project's aims to reduce impacts in an environmentally  sensitive area and builds on the rich human capital found in the villages. Together with Sapa O'Chau, we will be facilitating meetings for passionate young people to learn more about how to maintain the natural environment in the region, particularly as this is one of the most noted features for many visitors. Sapa O'Chau aims to create a positive space for local H'mong to gain English language skills, particularly so that they can participate in the growing tourism industry as trekking and tour guides. Successful environmental stewardship is a long (and often winding) road but we know that we will be working with enough dedicated individuals to bring about some powerful change in the region. 

We look forward to sharing more about our adventure and we hope you'll check back regularly over the next few weeks. The team will be posting photos and updates to our blog and social media channels, so stay tuned and be sure to share with your friends!