Four months, four continents... now, I'd like to say that I painstakingly thought about each destination, researching and painfully narrowing down my shortlist to an itinerary realistic enough to accomplish, given non-comic book rules of physics.
And sure, mostly that was true... but Vietnam quickly jumped into one of the top spots for one reason and one reason alone – Halong Bay, that came in at #12 of the not very scientific, and kinda patriotically skewed "New Wonders of the World" competition. I might have been browsing travel guides when I first saw a picture of this natural wonder, and I was hooked. Vietnam – here I come...
Once I arrived in Saigon, the next question was trying to determine how to get out there. Vietnam seems to specialize in making travel incredibly easy for the tourist, and just like Saigon and Hue, there were dozens of companies offering a huge array of packages, ranging from the super budget “pack 'em in like sardine” type to the uber-posh, waiters at your every beck and call variety.
Since it's such a highlight, Halong Bay was a bit of a splurge for me; I opted for the middle to high end operator called Handspan, and man, did I not regret it. They have an impeccable reputation, and for $185, it covered everything from transport to our stay on a super nice junk, complete with mounds of fresh seafood at every meal. The only downside was that drinks were flippin' expensive, but not enough to dissuade me from my sunset G&T. :)
Once we got clear of the crowded port at Halong City, we got to get down to some serious lounging. Halong Bay is thought to be a sleeping dragon, with each of the thousands of islands the tip of his scales, and they provide a constantly changing view, minute to minute.
In the afternoon, we stopped off near a floating village in a sheltered bay – one of a handful, it's a fully functioning community from centuries past, complete with floating school. The locals raise fish in (what else?) floating fish farms, plus guide tourists around to check out the islands.
Of course, the mainland still figures in things – with fresh water, plus some other modern necessities:
… computers, pictures of the latest hot models, and other items critical to the modern teenager.
A swim off the junk, and then we headed off to our sunset spot for some dedicated lounge time...
Dinner was amazing - a six course meal, with fresh caught crab, shrimp and prawns coming in waves... I've gotten used to the idea that when eating in Vietnam, it's like an old school video game – if you don't keep up with each 'wave', you quickly fall behind and before you know it, you're swarmed under! An extra bit of difficulty is that all of the shellfish need to be de-shelled... we worked it out, but the aftermath wasn't pretty, with bits o' shell everywhere.
Let's just say we emerged victorious, but very very full... some rounds of Liar's Dice, and then we all decided to call it a day.
The next day was a bit more active – I woke up at dawn, and was treated to the sight of jellyfish cruising around the junk. I was thankful for two things – that I didn't see 'em when we were swimming around yesterday, and that we weren't in Australia, with its array of 'if you even come within a 5 foot r radius, you're toast' jellyfish!
It was pretty cool having the junk to myself – all of the other boats were quiet, and you could just sit and take in the scene... awesome.
After another big meal for breakfast, it was time to head off for a round of kayaking. I was really looking forward to this, since it was a much more active way of exploring the limestone karsts (islands), plus it would be a big help in working off some of the food...
We transferred to another boat, and after an hour, we pulled into another quiet bay -it was here that Handspan really separated itself from the other companies, offering top-notch kayaks from the States, with rudders and all of the other bells/whistles. With a fellow traveler from Quebec, we headed off, and were soon ducking through a low tunnel to check out an enclosed grotto, another floating village, and then relaxed at semi-private beach.
After another massive lunch, the rest of the group was pretty tired and crashed out – so I was able to take a single kayak out solo. Tours are fun and all, but having alone time to enjoy such a great environment was pretty special.
The afternoon brought us to Cat Ba Island – the largest of the group, where we transferred to a rather nice 4 star place, complete with beach view. It's pretty funny the range of accommodation you get traveling, from a dusty tent to crowded hostel to, well, this:
In what's growing to be a constant theme of my trip, I'm telling you – life is hard sometimes... throw in some concentrated pool lounging and a beer, then the most massive meal yet (with cornmeal crusted squid as my personal fav) and I really need to walk it off.
So, it was off to Cat Ba Town... a fast-growing development that has somehow managed to almost completely ruin the ambience of their gorgeous harbor. So *shudder*, a short stint was enough for me and I headed back... by this point the humidity was so high, that even a short walk left me dripping with sweat and it was a matter of counting the steps to yet another cool shower and AC!
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