A young H'mong boy fulfils his duty: minding the family's buffalo.

During winter, when the buffalo isn't required for work in the rice paddies, it's allowing to roam free. This doesn't seem to be a problem, even though, when spring arrives, your buffalo might be 20km away!

A knot of trees on a hilltop silhouetted against the hills around Sapa valley.

It was ealy morning as we walked down into the valley at the beginning of our trek around Sapa. In the background, the clouds were beginning to descend, and this knot of pines caught my eye.

Detail of elaborate Red Dzao (or Zao) head-dress.

The wealth of a Dzao woman is said to be measured in the weight of the coins she carries in her attire.