Hi everyone! Just realized that my last post didn't publish, so sorry to leave you hanging! I posted the first night we were here, then we went to Halong Bay and lost internet. I wrote a good bit from the boat and will paste it here, then finish with the first night back in Hanoi:
We got up fairly early for the ride to Halong Bay. We ate breakfast at our hotel which was quite good. The fruit here is simply amazing, with a flavor and sweetness unlike in the US. On the way out of the city we had an interesting ride, though not quite as breathtaking as the ride from the airport! Mopeds are everywhere and skirt in and around of all the larger cars and trucks. We did see two overturned bikes, which is impressive considering how many are around and how crazy people here drive.
The highway was lined with people selling bread; large loaves of French bread. We went through a toll ‘booth’ with three people standing in each lane: one to take the money, 1 to hand out a ticket, and one to mark passersby on a clipboard.
The architecture here is interesting. Most of the houses are three floors and very narrow across. They go very far back. The front is beautifully decorated and almost looks Victorian in style with multiple bright colors. The sides are usually a grey concrete color. Very few are painted on the sides. They are mostly free-standing structures, so it’s quite an interesting look. Almost like the side buildings that looked the same were taken down to expose the grey unfinished sides.
We drove through many towns on the three hour drive. There aren’t many loose dogs, and we actually saw some cows tied by the side of the road. People burn their trash and tree/plant cuttings, so fires blazed also by the side of the road. Cemetaries also were scattered about, in small clusters in seemingly random areas. What’s interesting is that each are decorated with a brightly-colored structure that looks like a small house and a lot of care seems to be put into what it looks like. They aren’t in graveyards but in random places scattered by the roads. There are a lot of farms right next to the roads as well and the highways. The farmers wear the pointed crème-colored hats to cover their faces from the harsh sun here.
There was a surprising amount of construction, with a lot of new homes, and homes replacing their windows. We stopped halfway through at a tourist trap of sorts where we could buy things or stop at the restroom. They had a room full of women weaving silk tapestries, which was really beautiful to watch.
We pulled into the small port area of Halong Bay and walked past some large glass tanks with different kinds of fish for sale. There was a large room where people waited to gather for their boats. We waited for a few minutes, then decided to walk around a bit to explore. Five minutes later after finding little to see, we went back to wait.
Our table slowly filled up with the 14 other passengers on our boat. We took one of the IndoChina Sails tours called the Dragon Pearl. The boat we are on is only 2 months old and very nice. We had to ride a boat to it as the water is too low for it to dock at the harbor.
Our tour guide in Thinh and he’s a very good guide. His name means long prosperity. The boat has a wonderful representation from Scotland, France, Germany, England, Australia and the US (seattle and San Francisco.) Everyone’s very nice and friendly. We checked into our rooms which are quite nice with red wood, white linens and a very small but nice modern bathroom. We sat for our welcome tea. We talked and got to know each other a bit, then settled in for lunch to eat one of our huge and fantastic many-coursed meals. Most of the food is vegetables, fish and fruit and delicious. We’ve had haddock, crab, shrimp, mussels and clams, and watermelon, bananas, and a fruit that I can only describe as a bland white kiwi. It has the seeds of a kiwi and the texture, but isn’t as sweet.
The boat is three floors with the lowest with sleeping quarters, the main which has some sleeping quarters and the inside and the outside dining, and the top with chairs. We spent the afternoon heading into the bay which is just the most magnificent place I’ve ever seen. Jagged limestone rocks and cliffs are in clusters randomly placed, jagged by erosion and covered in lush green vegetation. The water is a crystal blue. It’s humid and warm, but there’s a beautiful breeze that runs through cooling you down.
We spend some time talking, then headed out in kayaks to a cave. Thinh told us this boat goes a bit off the beaten path, which is nice, and even still we saw several boats. The cave had two large rooms and a sandy floor indicating it had been filled with water. We looked at the stalagtites and stalagmites for a while and headed back to the boat.
I was quite whipped from the jet lag and actually headed to bed a little before 9, sleeping soundly through much of the night.
I woke and opened my curtains to see the sunlight shining on the crystal turquoise waters and again thought how lucky I am to see this, as it’s so very beautiful. We laid up top for a while enjoying the view as the boat headed off. Breakfast was chicken pho, a traditional Vietnamese noodle soup which I enjoy in the US, and toast and eggs.
Next we stopped at a fishing village in a secluded area of the Bay. The village was started by IndoChina Sails, and was supported by them. There are 34 buildings with 120 people living in them. Many are tied together so you can walk from building to building. The entryway is a large welcome area that also serves as a school. We were greeted warmly by some of the most beautiful craggly and warm smiles. Their faces are so warm and so expressive. Everyone watched us approach, and the children waved to us. Even the adults did and everyone seemed so happy to see us. Thinh told us each house costs US $3000, as do the boats which were made of woven wood covered in pitch. We had welcome tea with the head fisherman, the chief, who greeted us warmly. ‘Sin ciao’ means hello or welcome. We were invited to tour one of the homes, which had a small entertainment unit with a tv and radio, a very small bed and a cracked linoleum floor. We were told that they run the generator for two hours a night to watch tv.
A dozen young girls and women came to pick us up on small boats, and we went to a small secluded cove which was beautiful. We then went to another area to enjoy the views and headed back. The girls rowing were so tiny, both in size and stature. They apparently made it look very easy as a couple of the guys tried to row and had a hard time of it! They gave us the pointed hats to wear to protect us from the sun. Mine didn’t fit so well over my ponytail but I was happy to have it. The sun is quite strong here and 30 suncreen only goes so far with my fair complexion!
Everyone watched us and were very curious and happy to see us. I couldn’t help but feel little strange, as if we were taking advantage of them but the tourism provides them with an easier life than they’d otherwise have. They had fish between the wood planks in netting, and Thinh fed them to make the swim around and jump. There were quite a few and some rather large groupers!
We went back to the boat and some people swam. I of course, sat here writing this to post tomorrow when we have internet again! This afternoon we go by kayak to another cave for dinner, which will be really interesting. It gets quite cool at night here between the breeze, which settles a lot, and the sun going down. It’s amazing what a difference it is.
We ate a huge lunch which again was delicious with some different dishes of fish and vegetables, and this time some beef and pork. Then we rode off to another place and people sat on the deck in the sun reading or napped. We arrived at a beautiful small beach and kayaked around a bit then went ashore. It was really pretty and the best part (this won’t surprise anyone who knows me) was that there were three dogs with two puppies. The two females were friendly enough and the male patrolled his beach. The puppies were adorable and one was nestled into my chest for a bit while I walked around, quite content to just sit there and be carried.
We watched the sun set over the beach and blue water and I don’t think I’ve seen anything more gorgeous in my life. The sun turned shades of orange and red and pink, and cast a shimmery pink glow over the water as it fell.
We took a boat back to our boat to shower and change for dinner, which is back on the island in a cave. We were told it’s a ‘special dinner.’ We rode the boat back to the island and the pathway up to the cave was lit up. We climbed maybe 50 steps into the cave, which were really large rooms. The second room was really large, and a table was set up. The entire cave was lit with small tea light candles and it was beautiful. We ate dinner then the crew sang some Vietnamese songs for us. Then they made people from each country sing a song representing them. Hotel California, Hey Jude and two national anthems later… Then I was really surprised that they brought a cake out and sang ‘happy birthday’ to me! My birthday was yesterday, and Halong Bay was my special birthday treat. I didn’t expect it, and was quite surprised and embarrassed. I blew out the candles and made a wish (but I can’t tell you what for!!) I also got some beautiful petite red roses. Of course I had to cut the cake into 16 pieces, which was a trip to do!
We walked around a bit then headed back. What a lovely evening!! Back at the boat Scotland, England and Australia enjoyed some Baileys and some red wine so we sat outside talking with them for a while before heading off to bed. They’re a really great group, and I’m glad to have met them. I’m also glad my jet lag has worn off as it’s a ‘late’ night at past 11!
The last morning on the boat was very relaxing. Some people swam, and most of us sat up on the top deck and talked. The woman from Scotland is 3 months pregnant and very excited. she showed me her ultrasound pictures, and told me of their plans. I spoke with the Polish woman from San Francisco a bit as well. Great people.
We started to head back and everyone felt a little sad to leave. I took some pictures and just stared out at the beautiful scenery, wanting to imprint it in my mind forever. We ate lunch and docked, heading back to Hanoi.
The ride felt much longer on the way back but took around the same amount of time. Hanoi was the same crazy scene of darting mopeds and large trucks and busses that barrel their way down the narrow streets. The driving is something you need to see once in your life. People drive down the center of the road, weave around other cars and bikes to the left, right, or any way they can. There's no obvious traffic rules except to drive forward (whether with the flow of traffic or against!) and not get into an accident. We got to the hotel and it was the easiest check-in ever. "Hello, here's your keys. Same rooms" and off we went! We unpacked then set off to explore. I was very happy to let my friend lead through the maze of mopeds, and crossing the street is a real trip! Crosswalks be damned, you just start to walk and hope no one hits you! He got used to it much more quickly than I did, and i'll confess to a few yelps trying to make my way over to the relative safety of the narrow sidewalks! Each of them is covered in mopeds and people, so navigating is a real trip!
The air quality is horrible here, and you can't even breathe through your nose as it just smells awful of smog, exhaust and whatever else. The vendors are friendly and a little pushy and people sitting or standing on the streets are generally friendly. Much more so than I ever expected.
I was quite overwhelmed so we stopped to get tickets for the water puppet show then headed to the restaurant recommended by our hotel. It was a small place, and we noticed the locals were in a back room away from the tourists! We were grateful that the menu had english and vietnamese, as I only know three food words! They sat us next to the most adorable old woman, whose entire face folded up as she smiled 'hello' to us. She was the cutest thing but I couldn't find a polite way to take her picture! We ate a four course meal that was $4 (Sandy, I know you'll appreciate that!) and with water and tip it was just around $5 each!
The exchange rate here is amazing, as it's around $20k dong per dollar US. So our meal was something like $200k dong. Some vendors do take american dollars too, but many take dong. We changed a bit of money, but didn't realize just how inexpensive it is here! The food was good and we had pho, or noodle soup, fried spring rolls, chicken curry with white rice and yogurt for dessert. Everything was really good though I think I'm still full from all the food on the boat! We then walked around and did some gift shopping. I treated myself to a beautiful silk tapestry (which was only $60 US and hand woven) and a silk hand embroidered bag. Bought a few gifts and have ideas for a few more. We'll also need to find a bag to carry some things back in at some point.
We walked around until 8:30 I think, and since it was dark since around 6 pm it felt so much later! We came across a catholic church and walked through. It was very intricately decorated so we'll have to go back tomorrow during the light. We decided to call it a night and headed back to the hotel. Of course, going to bed at 9:30 could be why I'm wide awake at 2 am now, but allows me to update you all so it's fine by me. I woke with the spins and I'm thinking it may be a reaction to the malaria meds I'm taking. Hopefully it'll subside!
Today we'll do some more exploring and see a few of the sites, as well as the church. Our tickets for the puppet show are at 9 pm, which should be interesting as we've only been awake once that late! The tickets were only $3 each, and it's a well-known show that I was told you can't miss. Sounds like fun to me!
I'll write again later today/tomorrow!
Sam
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