Blogs from Halong Bay, Quang Ninh, Northeast, Vietnam, Asia - page 64

Ahh, 6am wake up call. Drag myself out of bed. Clamber on to the bus. Promptly fall asleep whilst trying not to drool on the poor guy next to me. On my way to Halong Bay. yea. It's a pretty good deal for 17 bucks they take you out there, put you on a boat,feed you and put a roof over your head. The day we arrived was fairly misty which gave it a eery type of feel but on the other hand you could not really see too much. Went inside this incredible cave, massive. Got friendly with this young dutch man and lovely belgian lady. Such nice and fun people, I hope to see them once I am living in the UK. Once we got to the island of Cat Ba we rented motor ... read more

hi my fellow followers - well arrived in Hanoi, and its manic! Similar to Ho Chi Minh but not in a way. Same Same but different they would say over here! The first day included some sightseeing which included a visit to see the legendary Ho Chi Minh mosaleum (ok forget the spelling). This was a wee bit bizarre as the security is something only a communist country could display - lined up fiercley in pairs like when going to the library at pre-school. Then we made our way past a large number of guards and had to give in camera bags - all but your clothes and even then i wasnt sure if i was going to have to strip down to my calvins and strut around the place of worship. We eventually entered a ... read more

I know I'm putting this up a bit late but it's been a busy 2 weeks! Thinking back to the last time I wrote I was in Nha Trang causing damage to my liver and wallet. Anyway I flew up to Hanoi on the 22nd December with the easyjet of Asia, Air Asia, and was pleasantly suprised to find it was dry there and that hotmail worked again. The first night I took it easy as I was taking a trip out to Halong Bay early the next morning. I just wondered around the Old Quarter where I found an amazing bar with a lovely balconey overlooking the main street. To get to it you had to walk up some rickety old stairs, it looked like it was going to be a hole - what a ... read more

Ha Long bay is marvelous place to spend a day or two visiting on a visit to Vietnam. When planning the trip imagined myself sunbathing on the deck of the boat whilst looking at the natural stone structures that jut out of the the water. Unfortunately the reality was cold, dank dreary misty weather the matched my hungover state. But the weather did not stop me from admiring the natural beauty of the bay as eerie stone structures loomed through the mist. We visited fantastic limestone caves that where subtly illuminated. Our guide tried to point out dragons and human forms in the natural formations as he gave a sketchy history of the caves. The boat stopped at a floating village that doubled as fishfarm. Flimsy sheds where kept afloat by a series of planks and ... read more

Rising from the clear waters of the Gulf of Tonkin, convering 1500 sq kilometers is one of Vietnam’s marvels, Halong bay. This natural wonder of tiny islands, beaches and grottoes created by wind and waves was designated in 1964 as UNECO World Heritage Site. Vietnam’s second such site. Not only is this site beautiful but it is easily affordable. For 14 dollars each we got a room that looked like a Holiday Inn room and an all day boat ride of the bay with lunch included. We must have been there in the off-season as it was not crowed at all. It is popular to go swimming on these boat rides off some beach or the boat. When we were there it was too cold. One world-class resort being developed is Deu Reu Island. Former President ... read more