Previously known as Lai Chau, Muong Lay is set in a peaceful valley that's absolutely stunning, and the atmosphere here is unique in what is already a region filled with diverse natural beauty.

The Da and the Nam Ha rivers both join forces here under swept back mountainsides and wide blue skies. A small village has turned into a barely-there town of wooden shacks strung with bare bulbs in the cleft of the valley. With the casual atmosphere of a town whose time will soon come, people here bare a relaxed attitude almost watered down to indifference. This is a place you can sit back and relax while taking in some river trips, a little trekking and some rides up into the hills.

It's useful to note that the people of the remote northwest of Vietnam are not particularly fond of having their pictures taken, and not used to foreigners. At one point, on our most recent visit, we approached a group of kids, who were assuming an absolutely frame-worthy pose, to ask if we could snap them, but before we could even ask, they dropped what they were holding and ran away in terror! If you've just been to Sapa (or practically anywhere else in Vietnam) you may have gotten used ot Vietnamese people all-but begging to have their picture taken. But once you enter the remote regions, you may find yourself being treated like the boogie man.

The Dam Situation
There is much discussion when you're in Muong Lay about the impending, planned inundation of the Song Da river in the Muong Lay valley. While optimistic estimates put D-day sometime in 2010, most locals tell us that 2012 or later is a more realistic time-frame. It's true that much of the town centre, which amounts to little more than a strip of shops and shacks, along with many homes and farms, will be sacrificed in the flood. Lives will be uprooted, and it will be an unpleasant business. But to say that Muong Lay will no longer exist is untrue. One can tell from the new construction that is going on how high the water is expected to rise, and it will certainly not wipe out the entire valley. Residents plan to simply relocate on higher ground nearby. The Lan Anh Hotel, which does a thriving business as Muong Lay's only place to stay, already has its ducks in a row. The beautiful, multicoloured slate that adorns the main reception building has already been requisitioned by a buyer in California. The stilt houses are going to be partially disassembled and moved up the hill somewhere -- the Lan Anh will survive the flood. In fact, they are in talks with the government to convert the abandoned residence of the last king of Vietnam into a swank hotel. So, at some future date, Muong Lay will not exist as we know it, but it'll still be there in a new and different form. The reservoir might even be kinda pretty.

Orientation
Muong Lay is along Highway 12, and it's not hard to spot the main road through town as you approach. You'll find prominent signage leading you to the Lan Anh Hotel, and the road dips precipitously down into the river valley and then continues a kilometre on to the hotel, which is just before the bridge, to the right.

The post office is located north of the road into town, on the highway heading towards Lai Chau (milemarkers count down to Chan Nua, 25 km along the way). Internet (3,000 VND per hour) and long distance telephone services are available. The Lan Anh Hotel has a dial-up connection that's not too bad, but overpriced at 10,000 VND per hour.

Muong Lay Post Office: To 11, Song Da Ward, Highway 12, Muong Lay. T: (0230) 852 301, F: (0230) 852 341. Hours: 07:00 to 21:00