Halong Bay
Although our agent seemed to be a bit more slimy than we would prefer to work with we were eventually picked up from our hotel and 3 hours later we were at the harbour. Halong Bay is a large bay on the coast of Vietnam. The South China Sea waters in this bay are dead still and studded with 1,969 karsts (steep limestone islands) which make it probably the most photogenic spot in Vietnam.
The harbour was jam-packed with tourist boats - all very good-looking wooden sailing vessels, most of which one can spend the night in. We boarded our boat along with 5 other couples and sat down to a fantastic sea-food Vietnamese lunch. First came the crabs, then the clams, then the spring rolls, then the grilled whole fish, squid salad, rice and veges followed. The couple sharing our table was from Russia and were completely lost with all this strange food they did not know - it was just giggles all lunch. Janine was thrilled - more for her!
We checked into our spacious comfy cabin and headed off to the Amazing cave (yes, that is its name) to wonder through the huge artistically lit interiors. There were many an interesting stalactite/mite to behold. Once back on board we set off for one of the few islands with a beach. Here we climbed up to a lookout on the top, took pics and got to know some of our fellow seafarers while dipping our toes in the surprisingly warm waters.
The harbour was jam-packed with tourist boats - all very good-looking wooden sailing vessels, most of which one can spend the night in. We boarded our boat along with 5 other couples and sat down to a fantastic sea-food Vietnamese lunch. First came the crabs, then the clams, then the spring rolls, then the grilled whole fish, squid salad, rice and veges followed. The couple sharing our table was from Russia and were completely lost with all this strange food they did not know - it was just giggles all lunch. Janine was thrilled - more for her!
We checked into our spacious comfy cabin and headed off to the Amazing cave (yes, that is its name) to wonder through the huge artistically lit interiors. There were many an interesting stalactite/mite to behold. Once back on board we set off for one of the few islands with a beach. Here we climbed up to a lookout on the top, took pics and got to know some of our fellow seafarers while dipping our toes in the surprisingly warm waters.
The rest of the afternoon was for lounging on the deck chairs and chatting with the other travellers. The company was great. The idea of this little splurge was to celebrate Johan's birthday a day or two early as we would be travelling on the actual day of the 8th of January. We spent the night of the 6th on board and had one of our best night's sleep.
On the morning of the 7th we anchored next to a floating fishing village which supplied us with sea kayaks. We all paddled off to explore a lagoon only accessible by a cave entrance. The lagoon was beautiful with the steepest island cliffs rising out of the see all around us. Johan spotted a few monkeys too (he loves monkeys).
When all this was over and we were showered and checked out of our cabins we headed back to land again for a great Vietnamese lunch. Vietnamese food is not our favourite food, but we really enjoyed this meal. Our Russian friend downed a double Russian vodka as it was, he told us, Christmas day in Russia. We chatted merrily away for the 3 hours back to Ha Noi. Once back in the city it was just about 2 hours wait and we were heading south in the direction of Hue on rather compact overnight tourist bus.
On the morning of the 7th we anchored next to a floating fishing village which supplied us with sea kayaks. We all paddled off to explore a lagoon only accessible by a cave entrance. The lagoon was beautiful with the steepest island cliffs rising out of the see all around us. Johan spotted a few monkeys too (he loves monkeys).
When all this was over and we were showered and checked out of our cabins we headed back to land again for a great Vietnamese lunch. Vietnamese food is not our favourite food, but we really enjoyed this meal. Our Russian friend downed a double Russian vodka as it was, he told us, Christmas day in Russia. We chatted merrily away for the 3 hours back to Ha Noi. Once back in the city it was just about 2 hours wait and we were heading south in the direction of Hue on rather compact overnight tourist bus.
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