Halong Bay

IMGP2041
Originally uploaded by theslaad.

According to legend, Halong Bay was formed by a dragon descending from the heavens and refusing to leave (or something like that, can't quite remember and we just sold our guide books!). Whilst it is a bay, I didn't quite realise how vast it was, there's something like 2000 islands (most of which are uninhabitable).

There are tonnes of places in Hanoi offering trips to the bay so we figured it would be pretty busy when we arrived but we weren't quite prepared for the scrum that was the harbour. You would think that since it's so popular they might have more than one place that you could get onto the boats, but not so, everyone goes through the same one person ticket check and then you have to climb onto and through several boats until you reach the one you're supposed to be on! The boats are then driven in much the same way as other vehicles in this country, so it's a free for all until you manage to get out in to the open water and the boats dispurse, you can breathe again (the fumes were choking) and sit back on the sun deck to enjoy the ride.

We are plagued by haze. The karsts in photos are crisp and clear, backed by blue sky. On our first day they were quite difficult to spot at first, but as we got further into them they were quite stunning.
We lazed on the sundeck after a spot of lunch and then arrived at a large cave. All the tours we'd seen took you to a cave for an explore and we were expecting a ittle cave at sea level. About 10 other boats were at the cave when we arrived, and little the cave was not, nor was it at sea level. We climbed up quite a lot of steps and then descended into quite an impressive cave (it's called the surprising cave because the fisherman was surprised when he discovered it!- you've got to love that logical name giving!. That particualr cave is UNESCO funded so it's pretty devoid of rubbish & graffitti which was surprising(!) and had some good lighting and safe paths around.
After the cave we had a short sail across to an island where there's a bit of beach. We got off the boat for a swim, but thought better of it when we realised the water was bloody freezing-23c, so got back on the boat for a bit more chilling out.

We sailed a bit further along the bay and anchored at our spot for the evening. The sun seemed like it was starting to set but it was time for some sea-kayaking action! (By the way, does anyone know if there's a difference between a kayak & a canoe?). Luckily for me it was a double kayak and I didn't need to worry about technicalities such as steering. We paddled our way through an opening in the karsts and through a little under pass before being in a lovelly still cove. Well worth it, but we thought we best paddle back before it got dark and we weren't sure which boat was ours anymore. A nice fresh water shower followed by some quite good dinner and then a few games of cards before bed. It was much calmer sleeping on the boat than I'd expected and quite peaceful except for the crew watching tv & drinking beer.

This morning we woke to a slightly clearer day and spent around 4 hours sailing back to the harbour. We noticed quite a large fire on one the karsts that looked as though it had started quite low down and travelled up the rock, not really sure how it started - a rogue cigarette butt maybe. There were loads of differently shaped karsts as we sailed along, we named a few - lion stone, big belly stone, giraffe neck stone & ski jump stone! There was also some good wildlife to look at - sea eagles soaring above us, and according to legend a Tarasque swimming around below us!

We arrived back in the harbour for another scrum and then drove back to Hanoi. We catch a plane to Bangkok in the morning and then are slightly stuck as to where to go! We think we'll probably go to Phuket to start with and then move on. Has anyone got any good suggestions from their visits? We're a bit worried Phuket might be a bit expensive for the likes of us!