Ha Long Bay

Beautiful Sunset

Our Ship - Imperial

 
Day 1

After a one day delay (boat malfunction so they say), we finally made it to Ha Long Bay.  The natural beauty is not overstated.  There are limestone karsts jutting out of the water all around us creating thousands of islets and islands.  Unfortunately, the beauty of the bay is a bit tainted by the “tour” experience.  I’m currently sitting on our balcony aboard the ship, and aside from the gorgeous outcroppings all I see are other tour boats (hundreds of them).  So far, the tour consisted of a 4+ hour van ride, 10 minute small boat ride to our big boat, 20 minute big boat ride into the bay, small boat ride to a disgusting cave, small boat ride to an even grosser beach, small boat ride to a 30 minute kayaking spot, and back to our big boat for dinner.  We haven’t moved!  And we're surrounded by other ships all lit up and full of people!  What’s the point of sleeping on a boat if your view is other boats and the city in the distance.  Not exactly what I imagined when I signed up for a Ha Long Bay Cruise :(  

The cattle move through the cave.

Day 2 we are to board another small boat that’s supposed to take us to our private bungalow beach.  We’ll see what that actually means. I feel a bit bad for complaining because we are in a beautiful place and very few people get experience what I’m experiencing, but I guess I’m greedy.

The food was amazing!

Day 2 and 3

The sun sets as I sit to write this and as our flight heads West to our next destination, Luang Prabang, Laos, and it is with a bit of sadness that we bid farewell to the beautiful country of Vietnam. 

Fishing Village

Our Vietnam tour ended in a fantastic fashion as the second half of our Halong Bay tour was pretty spectacular.  After a quick breakfast and stop at a pearl farm, we changed boats and joined a slew of other folks as we were whisked away to our Bungalow for our second night’s stay.  The ride was beautiful, as we meandered through the various karst outcroppings, each with its own shape and character.  The turquoise waters carried us past floating fishing villages, caves, secluded beaches and towering islets to our destination.  

We made it through the rough seas!

The seas became a bit rough as we entered a bit of open water, and Rosemary was not very happy about, but it only lasted about 45 minutes before we were back cruising in the protected bay.  

Pearl Farm

Our Beach Resort

  









The arrival to our destination was not disappointing.  The set of bungalows were positioned right on the water and we had an unobstructed view of the one of the Seven Wonders of the World.  We spent the day playing in the sand, eating, and napping, and couldn’t have been more content. 

Yeah! Drip Castles

Our final day in Vietnam was spent traveling, but it was a beautiful travel.  We took three boats and ate two meals before we reached the dock in Halong Bay.  Then, we loaded onto a mini-bus for our journey back to Hanoi.  We unloaded a bit before Hanoi to catch a taxi that carried us to the airport, wherein we boarded the plane exiting Vietnam 28 days after we entered. 



Farewell Viet Nam!  You have been very good to us and we thank you for your natural beauty, friendly people and vibrant cities.