The stone front
And its pointed bell tower.
trungydang — CC BY 3.0 · Christophe95 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Christophe95 — CC BY-SA 4.0
Sapa's stone church stands at the top of the town square, the landmark around which the hill town grew. French missionaries of the Paris Foreign Missions Society founded the parish in 1902, and the church, built of cut stone with a pointed bell tower in a plain Gothic style, was completed in 1925, when Sapa was a summer retreat for the French colonial administration. From 1947 the parish had no resident priest, and through the war years the church stood empty for decades, until the local authorities allowed it to be repaired in 1995; a priest has lived there again since 2006. Today the parish counts more than 2,000 members, most of them Hmong from the surrounding villages. The square in front is where town and visitors meet, busiest on weekend evenings. The interior opens around service times; modest dress is expected.
And its pointed bell tower.
Sapa's evening meeting point.
Most members come from nearby villages.
Town square, central Sapa
The interior opens around service times; the front and the square before it are open at all hours, free of charge.
