First Days in Hanoi

Talk about a whirlwind first few days! 

From our smiling faces, you would think that we are having the time of life, taking in the sights, sounds and experiences of life in Hanoi…. and you would be right! 

Everyone is adjusting well and we've been maximizing our time in the city with numerous activities, meetings, and meals. Our first day was filled with sightseeing, as we cruised around Hoan Kiem lake and enjoyed a delicious meal of bun bo (noodles with beef, herbs and salad). With many photo opportunities along the way, we made sure to make our mark on this chaotic and energetic city. 

At the end of the first night, the team met up with our HOU counterparts, Ms. Que, Ms. Ly, and past student volunteer Trung, for an amazing meal at the Sen Tay Ho buffet. We were also fortunate to have a member of Vietnam's Ministry of Tourism join us for a toast. As some of the newer team members realized, Capilano University's Cross Cultural Tourism class definitely is important to our understanding of these meetings!

Tomorrow we're off to Sapa and we're spending the day gathering supplies, wrapping up some prep work and getting ready for the night train. We'll be checking in regularly over the next few weeks so please make sure to follow us along on this blog and our various social media channels.

We now have Instagram, the highly addictive photo sharing site! 

As you can see from our feed, we LOVE sharing almost every moment of our adventure :)

Follow us at http://instagram.com/cbtvietnam!

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Setting a plan, charting a course...

I have been working on the itinerary for the February trip the last couple of days. For those who are curious I will give you the Coles notes, and include a bit of info about each place that we have an opportunity to visit.

The trip begins with two days in Hanoi. A hustling, bustling city the architecture has been described to me as a blend of French Colonial and traditional Vietnamese styles. Tree lined boulevards abound and reflect Hanoi's history as the capital of French Indochina. The food sounds amazing, and reading Rachael's blog about her first pho experience had my tummy rumbling. One of my favorite things about travel is experiencing the food. I can't wait to cram in as many new dishes as possible.

It's not all play, though. There is work to be done: obtaining supplies for our modules, exchanging money at a jewellery store, meeting with the folks at Footprint Vietnam Travel to get tickets, and recovering (at least trying) from the travel are just a few of the tasks from a long list that need to be checked off to ensure that the trip is a success. We'll be doing this work with the HOU student volunteers, relying on them to help us navigate the city streets.

From Hanoi we travel by overnight train to Lao Cai. The town is located on the border with China, and is an extremely important border crossing and economic link with China. Depending on the weather we might be able to spy Hekou on the Chinese side of the border. We do not have time to linger, as we have a bus to catch to Sapa.

Sapa, I am told, is like a central hub to the smaller villages of Lao Chai, Ta Phin (both to the North), and Ta Van (South)  This link will take you to a map to provide some context. Sapa was established by the French as a hill station in 1922, although it has a history which is barely documented going back to at least the 15th century.

We will be spending two days in Sapa, and this is where the real work begins for our PATA Foundation funded project. We will be prepping for the workshops we will be running. The prep work involves: inviting the private sector operators, figuring out food, and crossing the T's and dotting the I's.

Check back for part two of this blog, where I'll get into the CBT Vietnam activities we will be engaging in in the villages of Ta Phin and Lao Chai.

Bye for now...

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Community Based Tourism Stakeholder Workshop a Success

In March, the CBT Vietnam team facilitated a Stakeholder Workshop in Sapa (Lao Cai, Vietnam). The Stakeholder Workshop saw members from the Taphin community join with private sector tourism companies and tour guides, as well as local government. The goals of the workshop were to:

- Review the activities and outcomes of the current project;

- Evaluate the successes of the last two years and identify what are ongoing; challenges;

- Enhance partnerships between tour companies and village businesses;

- And, to determine priorities for strong tourism conditions as we move forward.

The workshop that lasted just over a half-day was held at Sapa's Tourism Information Centre. The Taphin community was well represented with new and experienced homestay owners, local Sapa tour guides, and past street vendours. From private sector, Buffalo Tours, Sisters' Tours, and Footprint Vietnam Travel from Hanoi, as well as tour operators from the Sapa region (Cat Cat View hotel, Pinocchio hotel, Duc Minh, and Hoang Anh) participated in the dialogue. Sapa O'Chau and Vietnam's Responsible Travel Club rounded out the stakeholder groups representing local tourism NGOs. Sapa Sport, Trade and Tourism, Sapa Tourism Information Centre, and local government was also in attendance.

Among the results of the workshop was healthy dialogue about how to cultivate community / private sector cooperation and forming positive working partnerships. Everyone had the opportunity to voice their opinion on how to move forward towards creating better community based tourism in Taphin village and the Sapa region.

At the end of the meeting, all the participants signed a Letter of Intent symbolic of their commitment to working together. The declaration between the village members of Taphin and non-village tourism operators is step towards fostering mutually beneficial business partnerships that provide visitors to the village with quality, authentic experiences.

The tourism training project has been going on for two years. Capilano University has been facilitating tourism training in the area for nearly a decade. The Canadian university, in partnership with the PATA Foundation, believe that this is the best way forward in creating a more sustainable form of tourism development in the Sapa villages.

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