Sapa, Vietnam: Wild Game Food in the Mountains

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 Sapa, one of the most northerly towns in Vietnam, almost bordering China, has a cool climate, and beautiful mountain scenery. But what I like best about the town is the food and the hill tribes that inhabit the surrounding areas. Many restaurants in the town serve food caught by the hilltribes.  All over the world, throughout history, mountain peoples without access to refrigeration have smoked and dried their meat to last through the winter. Sausages are also common in all cultures, whether European or Asian. Here the  smoked and dried foodstuff of the Vietnamese hill tribes like the Hmong, Dau and Yao are quite similar to the longanisas, dinakdakan and etag of the Filipino Igorots and other mountain people.

A restaurant signboard showing the types of meat and vegetables on the menu

Water Buffalo Meat with Glutinous Rice

 Me and Hmong Woman

Hmong smoked sausages
Hmong smoked Black Pig


Bringing a pair of freshly caught wild ducks to sell at the market


Freshwater fish (Sturgeon family) available in restaurant menu 


The Sapa Mountains


A view of the terraced rice fields


Lakeside view. Like Lake Como Italy?

A beautiful roadside cafe like in the European Alps




 





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