There seems to be some pride here, maybe the motorbike is a new acquisition,
for these youths near Vinh Quang This page continues from the road where the last page left off, returning back round to the south and east of Xín Mần, passing Vinh Quang and then following the river River Chảy west towards Xín Mần. The theme is terracing. Steep valleys turned into giant staircases, although often with curves around the contours that give them almost animal form. Many of the houses still have the pleasing red pantile roofs. The Jeep makes an appearance below, but most of the photographs date from previous journeys on a motorbike. At that time the road was appalling! And progress painfully [sic] slow. The final photograph on the page shows the bridge, just on the outskirts of Xín Mần, which tells of the change, and the dramatic upgrading
of this road.
The boulders of the River Chảy, just below the road, seem unremarkable...
In other places the river cuts a deep defile
...until a figure gives them scale
Vinh Quang Town offers rest for our venerable Jeep...
...and places to eat for its occupants
A vista of this area where terraces, trees and hills mix
Houses are few; this one has built a pool with a view...
...A pool which is appreciated for its coolness, rather than the view, by these water buffalo,
and accompanying ducks
Terracing becomes more insistent along the valley
In places it is turning green by early April
...While elsewhere the hard lines of...
... the plant-less terraces still seem cold to the eye
But once the paddy gets going, the green seems almost too insistent
Above, a tongue of terraced earth protrudes into the green of the valley.
Left, houses along the 'main' road with pantiles and satellite dishes.
Below left, a restaurant where we had lunch - in this room which overhangs the river.
Below, a track curves around fertile terraces to a footbridge.
The house sits comfortably amid its terraces...
...that house seen closer
A shelter hut surrounded by young paddy...
...that hut in context
Looking down on a new small suspension bridge for light vehicles on a
River Chảy tributary...
...the dot was a woman on the bridge, can here be seen as a woman with her burden
The plaque commemorating the new large Cốc Pài Bridge bridge, and its Japanese investors, just outside Xín Mần...
...which resulted in a dramatic road improvement, allowing the traveller from Xín Mần to Hà Giang to enjoy the beautiful countryside, without having their teeth extracted by the so called 'road' that used to run this route. The bridge has been in use since 2016
Trailers...
The next Picture Posting
page is to take you to the area south of Xín Mần and its rock markings.
Ruminations,
a new Section of the website, starts this week with an Introduction.
Or go to the contents for previous pages of the then Mosaic Section.
The last page's photos were from south east of Xín Mần in Hà Giang Province
To a hill with rather different markings in southern Scotland
...guide to this site