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Published: February 11th 2009
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A king fell in love with a girl. Her name was May. He asked for her hand in marriage. Every animal throughout the land was invited to the wedding. The ceremony lasted seven days and seven nights. When it was over, all the animals turned into stone...
Or so the story goes... The story about the origins of the rock formations inside the Heavenly Palace Cave at Halong Bay may be fantasy but the real world beauty is undeniable.
* * * *
The twelve hour sleeper bus ride from Nha Trang to Hoi An was not all that bad of an experience. Besides the loudest snoring guy I've ever heard and an endless barrage of honking, I think we actually managed a couple hours of sleep. (Our twenty hour ride to Laos tomorrow will be much different I'm sure). Hoi An was well worth the journey. Like stepping back in time, the central area of town lacked a building higher than three stories, and maintained an air of nostalgia through the perfectly decaying facades of the colonial architecture. Colored lanterns illuminated the streets at night, and busy cafes breathed life into the town. Ask any visitor what
the main draw to Hoi An is and they won't hesitate to tell... the custom tailored clothes! I'm not at liberty to say exactly what we got, but just know that it was fifteen kilos worth of perfectly fitting spanking new wardrobe for about $100 each. All that extra baggage was shipped home via Sea Mail for a very fair price as well. Need a suit and a cheap excuse to come to Vietnam? Look no further than Hoi An. Brilliant.
Another 12 hour bus ride (more like 14 with the shady midnight restaurant stop and toilet clean-out stop) brought us to the north end of the country to a little place called Hanoi- the capital city. We were expecting our pre-arranged ride to be there waiting for us, but as we later found out, he conveniently slept in. No wonder. We arrived at about seven in the morning and after waiting for our no-show ride, we took two motorbike taxis to our hotel. I managed to snake a free breakfast out of them for their no-show antics and we immediately crashed out until the evening. Hanoi is quite a city, to say the least. The main traveler area,
ancient town, is a dizzying maze of shops and markets dog-piled on top of each other, scattered about on narrow two lane streets. It creates a hilarious spectacle of architectural mishaps and motorbike madness. Though entertaining and sometimes nauseating, Hanoi city was not our main draw. Its simply a springboard for much better- Halong Bay of course...
Halong Bay is one of those few places in the world where you can feel totally surrounded by the energy of the earth. The rocks that ascend from the water look like the incarnation of ancient folklore. And according to our guide, Duy, that's exactly what they are. "Halong" means descending dragon in Vietnamese. Cruising on a boat (called junks) through the narrow passageways in between the behemoths felt like hiding in the shadows of a dormant beast, creeping along and hoping not to wake it.
Like jagged blades of armor on a dragon's back, the green goliaths climb from the calm waters of the South China Sea, perpetually shrouded in a cloak of enigmatic mist. Awe inspiring, jaw dropping beauty. Thousands of these islands dot the water as far as the eye can see. To be in the middle of this
was a once in a lifetime chance.
The Halong Bay cruise was different for us because we got to meet and befriend some fellow travelers because we were all on a boat for 2 days (one day was on the only inhabited island, Cat Ba). We were blessed with a great group. All though we've only met a handful of Americans on this trip, two were on our junk boat. Clay, a former college professor and ex-park ranger from Glacier National Park in Montana, and Chris, a stony character from Oregon. Neither had met before, yet both shared a magnetically friendly demeanor and told captivating stories about their travels. A pair of Koreans, Jin and his friend whose name I can't pronounce, so I called him "Juice," surprised the group with a bottle of Soju- Korean rice wine. It was clear and smooth, with a slight aftertaste of good vodka. Everyone was thrilled to be sharing tales of travel adventure on the rooftop deck of our junk boat under a full moon in Halong Bay. The most notable was the Italian/Brazilian who has traveled every continent and has a story for each. Just another one of those perfect unforgettable
memories of the trip.
Ya, Vietnam has a very special feel to it. Numerous individual and unique mysteries that complement each other to form one harmonious portrait of otherworldly beauty. Strange combinations of sights, usually regarded as discordant, seem to enhance the mystical charm of this world over here:
A masterfully detailed pagoda with a motorbike parking lot.
An elderly woman wearing pajamas and a conical hat walks in front of a Samsung neon sign.
A row of power lines marches through a field of rice patties.
All of those idiosyncratic characteristics that define this country are a blessing to witness, and it is purely a joy to be immersed in this rapidly progressing culture.
Farewell for now, Vietnam...
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Mom
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Going back in history
You've given us the gift of understanding the true spirit of Viet Nam. Thank you. I can smell it. I can fel it. I can sense the dragons. The sleeper bus I could probably skip... Love you guys!