Halong Bay

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From our Sahara desert retreat we spent 35 hours travelling up the coast to the North (Hanoi). I was particularly impressed when we were awoken at 5.30am on the sleeper train to loud music blasting out in to all the cabins! All the Vietnamese and their screaming kids got up and made sure we couldnt sleep through! How kind. We were fed the most vile, gristly meat with sludgy, stinking sauce so we only ate the plain rice for 24 hours. The scenery however was fantastic, the mountainous landscapes, lakes and stunning coastal scenery helped the journey pass.

We arrived late and weary in Hanoi and as we got off the train we were surrounded by touts shouting at us to take their hotel or taxi. We opted against the ant infested rooms and went for a hotel to ease ourselves in! The city is the most manic place ive ever been to- their are more motorbikes than you could possibly imagine and the streets are a shopping ferenzy with stalls filling the streets. Crossing the road is practically impossible with all the bikes.

I decided to get a jacket tailor made and fitted for me as it is so cheap and returning to our luxury hotel for $8 a night, I feel like a millionaire!

We went on a 3 day cruise in Halong bay (3000 islands near the China border), this was breathtakingly stunning, being surrounded by islands of peculiar shapes and sizes. This has to be the most amzing scenery ive ever seen. We went exploring in caves and Kayacking in caves and around some islands. Then we steyed on the only inhabited Islands. It was like Jurassic Park, the whole islands covered in jungle covered mountain peaks. On a schorching day we hiked up 250 metres, it was a steep climb with verylittle path and mostly rock faces. At the top was a tower, I climbed it but was so terrified as each step you took you could see through the step to the sheer drop below. But it was just about worth the view! Awesome.

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Photos

Halong Bay
Afriad this doesnt do it any justice!

Halong Bay
Bliss!

Comments

[marcus]

nice!
Hey hon, that looks sooo relaxing, wish i was there! I show paul the pictures and all he does is clench his fist and do that annoyed growl that he does! Exeter is still here and i've just got back from Stratford after working with the RSC. Jem paul and robin are fine we did a pub quiz last night and won, we got a crate of 20 bottles of bud! I went to bed (with my GF! Oooh) and p and J stayed up drinking them and shooting each other with a BB gun, all is well today apart from the 100 or so pellets all over the floor and the multiple bruises on their bodys. Hope your journys continue to amaze and supprise you (in a nice way). Big up M xx