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Published: February 6th 2014
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“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.” – St. Augustine
It’s that time of year again. Exactly one year ago we were in S. America, now we are heading to SouthEast Asia, Indochina of old. Our ventures will start in Hanoi, Vietnam and will snake it's way through the Mekong Delta through Cambodia and into Thailand. This will be my most ambitious undertaking yet, spanning 3 countries in 3 weeks.
We left Tucson at 0600 on Feb 2, and after a layover in LAX and Seoul, S. Korea we arrived in Hanoi, Vietnam at 2215 on Feb 3.
Jetlagged and travel weary we quickly obtained our VOA’s (visa on arrival) and were met by a taxi driver sent by our hotel. The drive to Hanoi was about 45 minutes to the city. We attempted some small talk with the driver who spoke only a few words of English, and learned some proper pronunciation for the “big 3”( hello, goodbye and thank you). Once we master those, we may graduate onto the more difficult phrases.
Our driver began to doze off about halfway through the drive, obviously fatigued by the
hour, coupled with it being the Tet (New Year). Dennis and I tried desperately to keep the driver awake whose eyes I could see in the rear view mirror closing for longer and longer with each blink.
We safely arrived at our hotel, the Tu Linh Palace ($25) and were greeted by an incredibly friendly clerk who showed us to our room, a lovely highly rated boutique hotel situated in the Old Quarter.
We woke early and ate the complimentary breakfast of Pho noodle soup with bread and coffee and fruit. We tried our first cup of the famous Vietnamese coffee, traditionally served with condensed milk. The coffee was a strong thick brew that had a velvety chocolate undertone…delicious.
A guide picked us up at 0745 to bring us to the bus that would eventually led us to the docks along the Gulf of Tonkin. It was a 3 ½ hour trip to the docks on Ha Long Bay, narrated by our guide Binh. We passed endless fields of iridescent green rice patties being worked by locals in their pointy bamboo hats known as “sedge hats,” plowing as they have for centuries with their sacred water buffalos.
Pondering Tao Philosphy Ha Long Bay has recently been added as a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the 7 new natural wonders of the world. I have seen pictures in numerous magazines throughout the years, and have considered it the main reason why to travel to Vietnam. The bay has seen naval battles that span the times of Genghis Khan to the Vietnam war when we heavily mined the channels. Local legend
Ha Long Bay means “where the dragon descends into the sea” and is believed to have been created by a great dragon whose flailing tail gouged out the canals and waterways. The bay is comprised of over 3 thousand of limestone islands called karsts that rise above the waters like prehistoric monoliths. Each island is a limestone spire, completely protected and untouched due to the sheer cliffs that fall into the sea.
I decided to splurge on a beautiful traditional junk boat that visits one of the more remote sections of the bay. The boat had 2 decks, a sundeck, a dining room, and 10 cabins, 2 of which were suites with balconies. Our suite was gorgeous, all in dark teak with an enormous bathroom complete
3 weeks worth of luggage, sub carry-on sizewith steam room and Jacuzzi tub. There were four windows and a balcony to enjoy the breathtaking scenery by. We were accompanied by couples from all over the globe to partake on the 2 day 1 night cruise.
Our first day we were lucky to have beautiful warm weather, especially considering it is the winter when it is often cool and wet. We were fed a 7 course lunch as we cruised 15km into Bai Tu Long Bay, to enjoy some afternoon kayaking and swimming. We kayaked through eroded limestone sea caves and soaked in the sun and salty air, finishing with a refreshing swim off a desolate beach. Dennis said that his “ocean batteries” were recharging by the minute.
We had another 7 course dinner that included a variety of fresh caught prawns, mackerel and squid. Later in the evening we watched as the crew fished with bamboo sticks and handlines, catching tomorrow’s lunch. We moored for the night in a beautiful and calm bay, enjoying a quiet and completely still night of sleep.
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Mombie
non-member comment
We love your beautifully written blogs. It makes our armchair traveling awesome. What incredible scenery, the water is so green and luminous. Have fun, be safe, and write when you can. Love, Jeremy and Mombie