June
4, Monday
Our bus picks us up early for our 3 hour drive to Ha Long Bay. Our local tour guide is Lisa, not her Vietnamese name, but one that we will remember. She is very talkative and makes an effort to get to know each one of us by asking extremely personal questions. She was a real hoot !
Crossing above the Red River, I spot a tiny round woven basket boat. It is called a Thúng chai and is made of a bamboo mesh. How amazing to spot one !
Half way to Ha Long Bay, we stop at a centre selling an amazing array of products, including these garden sculptures. The centre is full of people with disabilities, who are employed to make textile products: shirts, skirts, shawls, pillow cases, etc There are also beautifully embroidered pieces. I purchase a cotton shirt I don't really need, but I want to support the work these people do.
There area between Ha Noi and Ha Long Bay is very flat, and full of agricultural fields. The rice is ripening. Yellower areas = rice ready to be picked
We also pass many towns on the busy high way we are on
and lots of vegetable gardens
The entrance gates to a temple
I am amazed at how people are able to ride their motorcycles with heavy loads. If it needs to be transported to maket, they will get it there !
When we arrive at Halong Bay our boat is just coming in to the Harbour to pick us up. None of us knew what to expect and the boat that backs up between two others is….. quite old…. All the tourist boats have been painted white due to a new regulation. Quite stupid really because the boats look worse for wear this way. I saw one that had been left its natural colour and they “looked” much nicer.
This is the boat we will be on for the next 24 hours, cruising on Ha Long Bay
A glimpse into the kitchen area of the boat next to ours. At least it looks clean.
Other boats waiting in the harbour. Ha Long Bay hotels in the background
It is similar to the others we have seen, but ours is a triple decker: Bedrooms are on the main deck where we boarded, dining room / lounge on the 2nd level and sundeck on the third. Not sure what the dimensions are, but it can just accommodate our group.
There are many other boats similar or smaller to ours, jockeying for position along the harbour front. There is just a plank to walk on to get on board. Gives a whole new meaning to “walking the plank”! Luckily for me the men who work on the boat are there to lend a supporting hand and I make it safely on board. I’m sharing a room with Lindsey. Sorry, no pictures of the room.... I guess I forgot. In any case, it was tiny and nothing to write home about.
We drop off our luggage in our rooms and make our way up to the main deck as we leave the harbour.
One of the many limestone karsts
We spend the afternoon cruising the area around the thousands of rock islands (limestonekarsts)in the bay. “The core of the bay has an area of 334 km2 with a high density of 775 islets. The limestone in this bay has gone through 500 million years of formation in different conditions and environments.”
Amazing views everywhere we look
A gas station on the water. That's a fishing boat with all the posts.
On the top deck, we have loungers to relax on and enjoy the view. They look nice, but they were very uncomfortable.
Ha Long Bay is a “UNESCO World Natural Heritage site because of its aesthetic values and geology-geomorphology”. Ha Long means "descending dragon". The Legend says that to assist Vietnamese in defending their country, the gods sent a family of dragonsas protectors. This family of dragons began spitting out jewels and jade. These jewels turned into the islands and islets dotting the bay, linking together to form a great wall against the invaders."
It does look like a wall doesn't it ?
If you ever come to Ha Long Bay, you need to know that there are bigger boats sailing these waters.
We also see a variety of small boats. This one people actually live on !
A leisurely day of fishing.
We stop off at some caves “Me Cung Grotto” and I make it partway into the caves, but since I did not bring my flashlight, I have to turn back. I have absolutely no balance when I’m in the dark and the floor of the cave is uneven as it has been left in its natural state. The rest of the group continued and I was able to see them when they emerged further up on the mountain.
At the entrance to the cave, we are standing on some type of pebbles
And then I realize they aren't pebbles at all; they are shells ! Look at how beautiful they are. No I didn't bring any home to add to my collection. I was too worried about bugs.
Inside the grotto, in the parts with better lighting
At the top of this picture you can see a rock outcrop. This is where the group came out of the grottos.
Here's a zoom shot of the rock face where John, Scott, Karsten and Lindsey have emerged.
Here is one of the rare boats that has not been painted white. It must be privately owned. Doesn't that look a lot more exotic than if it was painted white !
Here is one of the fishing boats
Kayakers going into a cave.
We then make our way to a bay among the islands were some of our group will be going kayaking.I get a few great pictures of them as they go out and return.
Scott in the water, John and Mel in their kayak
Karsten and Lindsey
Scott and Mike
We spend the night anchored in this bay among the islands, rocking in the gentle waves.
The next morning, we make our way back to the harbour and return to Ha Noi.
Our bus picks us up early for our 3 hour drive to Ha Long Bay. Our local tour guide is Lisa, not her Vietnamese name, but one that we will remember. She is very talkative and makes an effort to get to know each one of us by asking extremely personal questions. She was a real hoot !
Half way to Ha Long Bay, we stop at a centre selling an amazing array of products, including these garden sculptures. The centre is full of people with disabilities, who are employed to make textile products: shirts, skirts, shawls, pillow cases, etc There are also beautifully embroidered pieces. I purchase a cotton shirt I don't really need, but I want to support the work these people do.
There area between Ha Noi and Ha Long Bay is very flat, and full of agricultural fields. The rice is ripening. Yellower areas = rice ready to be picked
We also pass many towns on the busy high way we are on
and lots of vegetable gardens
The entrance gates to a temple
I am amazed at how people are able to ride their motorcycles with heavy loads. If it needs to be transported to maket, they will get it there !
When we arrive at Halong Bay our boat is just coming in to the Harbour to pick us up. None of us knew what to expect and the boat that backs up between two others is….. quite old…. All the tourist boats have been painted white due to a new regulation. Quite stupid really because the boats look worse for wear this way. I saw one that had been left its natural colour and they “looked” much nicer.
A glimpse into the kitchen area of the boat next to ours. At least it looks clean.
Other boats waiting in the harbour. Ha Long Bay hotels in the background
It is similar to the others we have seen, but ours is a triple decker: Bedrooms are on the main deck where we boarded, dining room / lounge on the 2nd level and sundeck on the third. Not sure what the dimensions are, but it can just accommodate our group.
There are many other boats similar or smaller to ours, jockeying for position along the harbour front. There is just a plank to walk on to get on board. Gives a whole new meaning to “walking the plank”! Luckily for me the men who work on the boat are there to lend a supporting hand and I make it safely on board. I’m sharing a room with Lindsey. Sorry, no pictures of the room.... I guess I forgot. In any case, it was tiny and nothing to write home about.
We drop off our luggage in our rooms and make our way up to the main deck as we leave the harbour.
One of the many limestone karsts
We spend the afternoon cruising the area around the thousands of rock islands (limestonekarsts)in the bay. “The core of the bay has an area of 334 km2 with a high density of 775 islets. The limestone in this bay has gone through 500 million years of formation in different conditions and environments.”
Amazing views everywhere we look
A gas station on the water. That's a fishing boat with all the posts.
On the top deck, we have loungers to relax on and enjoy the view. They look nice, but they were very uncomfortable.
Ha Long Bay is a “UNESCO World Natural Heritage site because of its aesthetic values and geology-geomorphology”. Ha Long means "descending dragon". The Legend says that to assist Vietnamese in defending their country, the gods sent a family of dragonsas protectors. This family of dragons began spitting out jewels and jade. These jewels turned into the islands and islets dotting the bay, linking together to form a great wall against the invaders."
It does look like a wall doesn't it ?
If you ever come to Ha Long Bay, you need to know that there are bigger boats sailing these waters.
We see a few floating villages (not at all like the ones
in Peru on Lake Titicaca that Yvette and I visited).
I love the look of the rock face, full of cracked lines, like the wrinkles on a very old persons face. "The limestone in this bay has gone through 500 million years of formation in different conditions and environments."
We also see a variety of small boats. This one people actually live on !
A leisurely day of fishing.
We stop off at some caves “Me Cung Grotto” and I make it partway into the caves, but since I did not bring my flashlight, I have to turn back. I have absolutely no balance when I’m in the dark and the floor of the cave is uneven as it has been left in its natural state. The rest of the group continued and I was able to see them when they emerged further up on the mountain.
And then I realize they aren't pebbles at all; they are shells ! Look at how beautiful they are. No I didn't bring any home to add to my collection. I was too worried about bugs.
Inside the grotto, in the parts with better lighting
At the top of this picture you can see a rock outcrop. This is where the group came out of the grottos.
Here's a zoom shot of the rock face where John, Scott, Karsten and Lindsey have emerged.
Here is one of the rare boats that has not been painted white. It must be privately owned. Doesn't that look a lot more exotic than if it was painted white !
We continue cruising along the islands and see the oyster beds where they cultivate pearls. Actually, we only really see a series of boueys floating in the water. Although I get to see some sample pearl jewelry, I don’t buy any from the case the captain hauls out.
Here is one of the fishing boats
Kayakers going into a cave.
We then make our way to a bay among the islands were some of our group will be going kayaking.I get a few great pictures of them as they go out and return.
Scott in the water, John and Mel in their kayak
Karsten and Lindsey
Scott and Mike
We spend the night anchored in this bay among the islands, rocking in the gentle waves.
The next morning, we make our way back to the harbour and return to Ha Noi.
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