Mai Chau, Day 2: Pa Co

Judy. We had hoped to find some Thai textiles at the Mai Chau village, but, frankly, the shops were rather touristy. But Sunday, we headed to the Pa Co Sunday Market, where we looked forward to finding Hmong textiles, and, even better, see the Hmong dressed in their traditional clothing as they came to buy food, textiles, and, for the young people, to flirt. 

And what a delight it was! Binh made sure we left early, so when we arrived in the town of Pa Co, the only people we saw were the locals. These people wear their traditional clothing all the time, and they come to the market to buy and sell food, clothing, fabric, tools. and threads for weaving and embroidering.

A young couple head home with their treasures

This young mother carried her baby in a traditional embroidered carrier

Tradition meets modern look!

As we negotiated our way through the aisles and the locals, Binh steered us toward good quality and reasonable prices. Most of what we saw for sale were gorgeous cross stitch accents to be sewn onto clothes, or batiks in indigo and a tan color from a local tree root. We went a bit crazy. 

Binh negotiates with a seller for her embroidery work

I lost my mind with all the stunning batik

The Hmong women make beautifully detailed and colorful batik, embroidered, and patchwork skirts. Ted had seen one displayed on a wall at our hotel, so when we spotted a young woman with one she had made, we seriously considered it, despite the high price, but Binh told us to wait. 

Batik safely tucked away in Ted’s backpack, Binh led us on a walk through the Pa Co village, pausing to speak to villagers he knows from past visits and stays. As with the Thai houses, these are wood, but unlike them, they sit on the ground, not on stilts. Families, like in most of the tribes, tend to stay together. 

An old Hmong house

And a new one, complete with the ubiquitous motorbike

Hemp drying to be dyed and maybe turned into batik

Leaving Pa Co, we drove over several mountains with narrow roads. Kai, our driver, was great, taking his time and getting past oncoming cars and scooters with ease. I wasn’t sure quite where we were going, but Binh had been full of surprises, and sure enough, he had one for us—the Hang Kia overlook. Despite the clouds (and the wooden planks I had to walk on) the view was spectacular! I’m afraid of heights, but it was so beautiful I forgot to be scared. 

Felt like walking in clouds

Binh had one more surprise for us. When we drove back into Mai Chau, he pulled up to one of the shops in the rabbit warren of the touristy area. We walked past the dozens of shawls we’d seen everywhere, and into a secret room, where the owner had antique textiles. We found a stunning antique Hmong skirt, which we gladly bought (at a quarter the price of the new one). 

Our much-loved and worn Hmong skirrt

Another yummy meal at a Thai homestay, and we headed the long way home to Hanoi, happy with another weekend away, and more information to absorb. We learned so much from Binh, who was one of the best tour guides we've ever had. Unfortunately, we were so busy that we forgot to take a photo of him and Kai.

As a side note, we spotted a skirt like ours in the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, and another antique one for sale in the shop, which cost several thousand dollars. Wow! Ours was less than $100!

The top skirt in the museum display is almost exactly like ours