We arrived in Hanoi as scheduled on December 27th. The flight was ~1 hour and 45 minutes. Flights over here serve hot meals and our breakfast choice was pork and noodles or fish. We all agreed that the pork and noodles was pretty tasty.
Our travel guide, Sihng (Sing), met us at the airport with our driver, Hai. We jumped into our Toyota with all of our luggage and immediately headed for Halong City. The vehicle was much smaller than we have been used to and the three of us were nice and cozy in the back seat. Up until then we have been getting around in a Mercedes van that can hold ~10 people. BTW no one here wears seat belts and we didn't either especially since Hai said ours didn't work?! This makes me a bit nervous considering what the traffic is like here (more on that later as it is a whole topic in and of itself!).
The trip to Halong City took about 3 hours. Along the way we were able to take in some sites. We all agreed that the northern towns we passed through were not as busy, loud and crowded at Saigon. We were able to see more of the Vietnamese countryside and watched farmers plow with horses and oxen and workers in the rice fields tending their crop. Corn was another common crop that we observed.
Our hotel accommodations were nice and our travel package had us all sleeping in one room. There are 3 twin and/or full beds set up in the rooms. This has been... interesting and needless to say, we are all getting to know each other quite a bit, LOL! We are all terrific travel mates though and do very well maneuvering around some very small quarters.
After a very large dinner consisting of about 8-10 courses (the standard on our trip) we walked around the town briefly and finally went to bed exhausted.
The weather in the north this time of year is definitely much cooler, about 65-75 degrees. Unfortunately we hit a rainy spell and it was a bit on the chilly side. We weren't as well prepared for such a drastic change in the weather so Mike bought a rain poncho, Jolene bought a down-filled winter coat and we all bought umbrellas. I think the total cost for all of these items was approximately $30 US dollars.
The next part of our travel package included a trip and room accommodations on a private boat in Halong Bay. In total the bay spreads across 580 miles and has more than 2000 pinnacle-shaped limestone and dolomite outcrops (islands) scattered across it. It is a bit reminiscent of the San Juan Islands but on a much grander scale.
We weren't sure quite what to expect of our boat but were pleasantly surprised! The vessels are traditionally made sailing junk boats and although they may look a little questionable on the outside, the inside was very nice and quaintly decorated. The main cabin is set up with tables and can seat about 24 people. There are also individual private cabins for overnight passengers. Since we reserved the boat for just the three of us, they gave us 2 separate rooms. Each room had a double and twin bed and private shower. The staff couldn't have been better. We were fortunate to have VIP treatment all the way. The food was delicious and very meticulously prepared.
We sailed around part of the bay which included the limestone islands and brightly painted floating villages. The villages include houseboats, floating fuel stations, herb gardens, kennels, and even pigpens according to our guidebook.
Along the way our boat stopped at Hang Sung Sot or the Cave of Awe. This cave consists of beautiful karst outcrops that are made from sediment that settled on the seafloor during prehistoric times. Through geological upheaval and acidic erosion the alkaline limestone formations become worn and form into peculiar shapes. It truly is a stunning site.
The rest of this particular part of our trip was very relaxing. Slowly moving through the islands and anchoring for the night with other boats in the bay. At night you can see all the lights from the other boats and it looks as if candles are lit up all around the bay. This site along with the gentle whirring of the boat's engine made for a great night's sleep.
To be continued...
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