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Three-quarters through our first day, Dziong stopped the car and motioned us to a dirt path. He smoked and checked the jeep's engine while we climbed down towards our first village. Gregarious kids approached us, the tall, weird looking and strangely dressed foreigners. Will filmed them and turned around the viewfinder so they could see themselves. They loved it. We pantomimed and goofed around with them. When they tired of us and went back to their previous game, we walked around the village. Twelve wooden plank houses were set along a dirt path. There was no electricity. Cows grazed nearby. Huge sacks of rice were piled in the middle of the path, apparently for sale and transport. We greeted people as we walked by. They greeted us in return.

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We stayed the night in Sapa, a well-known hill tribe town in northwest Vietnam. The town is brimming with hotels and traveler restaurants. Upon leaving our hotel, we were greeted by a swarm of Hmong children and women selling any and everything associated with their tribe: silver jewelry, embroidery, and simple musical instruments. Everywhere we turned in Sapa we were accosted with the children's high-pressure sales tactics, friendly, sweet faces saying, "buy from me?" We succumbed occasionally, but shopping was not the adventure we were in search of. Our travel partners, Pieter and Martin, explained this to Dziong. Early the next morning we left.

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Another day of gorgeous scenery awaited us. The gray clouds enveloped us as they rose from the mountains. Our jeep hugged the dirt road as we traveled through pillowy mists and emerald green forests spotted with red poinsettias. By noon we had arrived at our destination, Tam Duong.

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It was a two-guesthouse market town located in a valley. Our room in the hotel faced two dramatic limestone peaks. Various ethnic villages surrounded the town. This is what we had been searching for. Armed with a hand drawn sketch of the Hmong and Tai villages and the paths that connected them to the town, the four of us began our trek. Dziong stayed behind and played cards with the guesthouse owner.

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It was more of an adventure than we bargained for. We hiked up one path and were stopped in our tracks by a pack of dogs. While trying to negotiate around them, Pieter was bit. Luckily, as rabies is a real problem in Vietnam, the skin was not broken. We continued to wonder on red dirt paths up into the mountains, skirting fresh water buffalo patties. Steep terraces had been carved out of the mountains for rice. Hmong men passed us, heading into town.

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Upon arrival at the second village we were again met by a ferocious dog. Luckily, an older child held the dog back. The younger children came out to see what we were up to. By the third snarling dog, we decided to leave the trail. The boys of the village perched on trees and giggled as we clumsily negotiated the dried-up rice paddy terraces. Martin, who grew up in the Alps, and Pieter blazed our new trail. Women wearing traditional tribal attire were working the fields. They watched in wonderment as we looked for the town. We waved, and they reciprocated. After four hours of trekking we managed to find the town and guesthouse.

On our way back, Martin relayed stories of his childhood in the Alps. People would come hiking through his family's farm, taking pictures of him and the surrounding countryside. He would sell the tourists packets of herbs.

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Exiting the village, we realized we were the outsiders. The dogs merely reaffirmed our feelings, that we were intruders in their space. Guidebooks advise not to give the villagers, candy, T-shirts, ball caps or handouts in order to preserve their culture. Visitors, like the four of us, want to see these tribal areas untouched and undiluted. But when you do find these new places, you realize you are the corrupter. We want to purchase their beautifully handcrafted textiles, silver and other objects. Who is to say that they cannot have or want T-shirts, baseball caps, TVs or other accouterments of 21st century life? Cultures inevitably change, adapting to outside influences both human and environmental. I respect the ability of the tribal groups in Vietnam to keep their way of life and beliefs intact in an ever-shrinking world. Wanting these groups to remain unchanged, or dictating what items they have of a 'modern' lifestyle is akin to treating them like a human zoo.

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Our six-day adventure was filled with beautiful vistas. It was interesting to see and interact with the various tribal cultures. At times it was like living a National Geographic article. In most encounters the people were friendly and the experience, save the dogs, positive. At the same time though, I felt strange. I realized I did not feel like an explorer, I often times felt like an invader.