Hi Mrs. Stein and kids- We just got back from Ha Long Bay!

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Saturday Uncle Arlyn and I took a trip to Ha Long Bay. The bus picked me up at the my Hotel at 7:30 AM and we were on our way! Ha Long Bay is about 120 miles northeast of Hanoi and is worth every mile. It wa s great trip, and we made many new friends from other countries. We were the only Americans on the bus, but we had great company with travelers from Belgium, France, Finland, England and South Korea. Once again, everyone spoke English. We had a really fun time with lots of stories and laughter.

Ha Long Bay was Beautiful! Upon arrival we got on board about a 30-passenger boat, but there were only about 14 of us, so we had lots of room. It was a four-hour cruise, and we took lots of pictures, but there is not one that captures the true beauty of Ha Long Bay.

An hour into the cruise we stopped at a floating fish store. There were lots of live sea bass, eels, lobsters, squid and shrimp. Everyone picked out what they wanted; it was retrieved in a net, then cooked and served on the boat. It was a bit strange eating fish that only about 30 minutes before were swimming in the bay, but it was very good. In addition we had fresh spinach, tofu and even French fries. It was a wonderful meal!

We then proceeded to the largest island, where there was a very big cave. It was lit well and there were many interesting formations. Over the years, water has leaked from the ceiling and the mineral deposits caused rock that looks like icicles to hang from the ceilings and upside down icicles that grow to the ceiling. The ones hanging from ceiling are called stalactites and the ones that start on the floor and point up are called stalagmites. I remember it this way; Stalactites hang “tight” from the ceiling and Stalagmites “might” grow to the ceiling.

It was also a very good work-out with lots of stair steps to get to the entry and exit of the canyon. We took pictures, but there is really no way that they can come close to the beauty of the cavern.

We toured another couple of hours till we arrived at Titop, which was a favorite Island of Ho Chi Minh. Do you remember who he was? It had a great beach and we were free to go swimming.

On the way back, the sun was setting and I think I got a really good picture. Again, not as good as real-life, but I am pleased with the result.

Please take care,
Flat Stanley and Uncle Arlyn

PS- Another clue on our special guest to Hanoi- He used to live in Texas and his father was a United States President!

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Photos

Flat Stanley and the Chicken Rock
Here I am on the boat!

Chicken Rock
This rock looks like two chickens

Selecting from the "Menu"
Point out the fish you want to eat, and they catch it and cook it for you right on the boat!

Boat Vendors
These boats pulled along side our boat and asked us to buy fruits, sodas and candy from their boat

Ha Long Bay is wonderful
The weather was great- lots of sun, but not too hot!

Flat Stanley at the floating Fish Market
Behind me is a tank of live fish. Guess what? Uncle Arlyn and I are going to eat one for lunch.

Here is our Fish Dinner
This was really great. Lots of fish, vegetables and rice. We ate with chop sticks and had a wonderful time talking and sharing adventures with our new friends.

Titon Island
Our boat stopped here. This was a favorite island of Ho Chi Minh. We had a chance to go swimming, sit on the beach, or have a drink of coconut milk.

Chopping Coconuts
These women are chopping coconuts. They will stick a straw in and we will drink the coconut milk!

Sunset on Ha Long Bay
This was the very pretty sunset that saw as our boat returned from Ha Long Bay.

Comments

[Ingo]

hey
nice Blog!!

[Angie]

Hi Arlyn,
Hope all is well with you. These are great pictures, we are all very much enjoying your blog. We got the laptop out yesterday and revisited it with the kids. Stay safe, and have fun, Love, Angie