beginnings of a lovely sunset

How we spent "ONE MILLION DONG!" on Cat Ba Island

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July 2nd 2009
Thursday morning we depart our hotel at a reasonable 9:30am to catch a mini bus to Halong Bay, where we will get the ferry to Cat Ba Island. Everyone advertises tours out to the islands, but we figure we can do it ourselves. There is six of us in total: the Fins, the Irish girls, Wade and I (the Americans). Arriving at the bus station was a hectic mess, the minute we exit our cab we’re being dra ... read more

Asia » Vietnam » Red River Delta » Hai Phong » Cat Ba Island

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The conquest of Vietnam by France began in 1858 and was completed by 1884. It became part of French Indochina in 1887. Independence was declared after World War II, but the French continued to rule until 1954 when they were defeated by Communist forc... ... read more