Vietnam

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Ha Long Bay, Vietnam

Vietnam & Cambodia Trip – Stop Two – Ha Long Bay, Vietnam

Ha Long BayFor our second full day in Vietnam we drove about four hours northeast of Hanoi to Ha Long Bay. The highway is a major route from the Hanoi into China and was filled with trucks and buses moving things between the two countries. It was rather interesting to realize that we were so close to the Chinese border and pass by many factories of companies we recognized such as Samsung and Apple.

Once we arrived at the port we were taken by a tender boat to the “Princess II” Junk which would be our home for the next two nights. After meeting the crew, the boat started on its way into the bay while we enjoyed lunch on the front deck. Even though it was pretty cold we sat on the deck for a while watching the landscape float by. The bay is filled with limestone karsts, incredibly beautiful and interestingly shaped rock formations. There is a legend which tells of a dragon creating the bay to protect the people from invaders which leads to the areas name, which means “descending dragon bay”.

Once into the bay we passed by a few floating houses and various seafood farms before setting anchor. We were able to kayak around the bay with our guide. This was not something I had on my life list but it should have been. Even though it was cold, the experience was one I would jump at the chance to do again. We did not see other people as we rowed around the karsts. It was so quiet and calm we could hear our paddles slice the water and the birds flying around above. I managed to get us stuck on one of the mussel beds briefly and Chris almost lost the GoPro, but other than that it was great.

Back on the boat we were served a multi-course dinner which included prawns and Mantis Shrimp. After we bundled up, we sat on the front deck of the boat enjoying the peace while watching the moon appear over the formations.

The next day felt even colder than the day before, but it was our one full day in the bay so we just went along with the adventure.  After breakfast we took the tender boat to VungVieng floating fishing village and pearl farm. There we got onto a smaller boat and rowed around the village and got up close to some interesting rock formations. The village itself was clearly set up to allow tourists to visit but was still remarkable. There was a bird which would say “xin chao” and a school room along with a pearl shop. We also saw demonstration as to how pearls were farmed before going back to our junk.

Our next stop was a private beach on one of the karsts which included a hidden cave. We climbed into the cave through several chambers filled with stalactites and stalagmites, before entering a large chamber set up with a table and chairs for our private lunch.   The chef set up a grill outside the cave and we were served several courses; my favorite being the grilled squid. After eating, we had time to walk  in the beach. The area was owned by the junk company so we were one of only a few couples spending time on the beach. Unfortunately it was too cold for swimming but we did make friends with a dog that lived on the beach before heading back to the junk.

At dinnertime the chef showed us how to make spring rolls. Chris impressed him with his chopstick skills, flipping the rolls around in the oil.  In addition to our spring rolls, dinner included several intricately carved vegetables including a melon in the shape of the junk and radishes carved as cranes.

The next morning the junk returned to the port and we drove back to Hanoi to catch our flight to Hue.

Chris’ Comments: Vietnam is a very inexpensive country and renting a private junk was one of the places we decided to spend some money. It was definitely money well spent, as being disconnected from the rest of the world for a few days was a perfect way to immerse ourselves into relax mode. It’s a shame the weather did not cooperate, but perhaps that got us even more isolation during our time there. My only real regret was not going for a swim, despite it. If you’re ever in Vietnam… and you should be… make sure you visit Ha Long Bay.

First Day on the Junk

 

Second day on the Junk

 

Note to our readers: If you are interested many of the photographs are captioned, just select the individual images to open them in a new window. Also, we were surprised how large the country was for a small country. I have put together a Travel Map with the places we visited to give an idea of how we managed to cover a good portion of the country during our trip.

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Hanoi, Vietnam

Vietnam & Cambodia Trip – Stop One – Hanoi, Vietnam

Quán Thánh TempleChris and I left Seattle on January 31st, flying 12 hours before changing planes in South Korea. From there we flew another five hours and arrived in Hanoi, Vietnam late in the day of February 1st.  While Chris had talked about getting up early to try to watch the Super Bowl we were a bit too tired. The next morning it was decided to start our adventure instead by walking around the city. After exploring a few blocks around the hotel and learning  how to cross the very busy streets on our own we met up with a local guide.

We started our tour of the capital city at the Quán Thánh Temple and then watched the changing of the guard at the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. From the mausoleum we were able to walk a few blocks to the Presidential Palace complex. While the Palace was not open to the public, we were able to walk around the complex where several of the cars that belonged to Ho Chi Minh are on display in former servants quarters. The complex also includes a large carp pond and the stilt house where “Uncle Ho” had lived until his death in 1969. Unfortunately the One Pillar Pagoda, an icon of the city, was going through some refurbishments so we only had a brief glimpse of it while walking by.

We then walked around the Temple of Literature, one of the oldest landmarks in Hanoi. Built as a school for teachings of Confucius, today many ceremonies are still held within the complex. After the temple, we stopped for lunch and had some fantastic Vietnamese coffee along with locals and our guide.

Afterwards we went to the Vietnamese Women’s Museum, one of the only museums open on Mondays. It was interesting to see all the different native costumes and see displays explaining the lives of women during the war.

The last stop of on the tour of Hanoi was the Old Quarter. It is the oldest commercial district in the city and we had to carefully  weave our way through the very crowded streets. It was our first view of the Vietnam’s street markets and every few feet we saw something new. Every inch of space is put to use, store fronts spill onto the sidewalk and any area not used to display the wares is up for rent as scooter parking. It was especially busy to due to the approaching Tet Holiday with many stalls selling bright red and gold decorations or blossoming branches.

Chris’ Comments: Hanoi is everything you picture, when you think of Vietnam. It’s bustling, the buildings are aged colonial style, and it’s clear the lives of people around you are living a very different life than the one you are. “Restaurants” are sidewalk cafes on child-size plastic furniture and the sidewalks are packed with fresh veg and meat. English is spoken by many, although it’s generally limited to things tourists talk about. As a city in the north, the Communist overtones are quite apparent and it’s definitely the most Third-World-esque city we visited. If you visit Vietnam, I recommend starting here, dedicating 2-3 days to soak it in, and move on. A guide for (at least) a day is also highly recommended. [As a side, Korean Airlines was quite refreshing after the annoyances that are domestic American carriers. I actually have no specific complaints about US airlines, but flying internationally on KA made me realize just how pleasant flying used to be. Good food, very polite employees, and decent coach accommodations. An empty middle seat didn’t hurt.]

 

The city streets outside our hotel the first morning in Vietnam.

 

The Quán Thánh Temple

 

Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum

Presidential Palace and complex


The Temple of Literature


The Old Quarter and remainder of our visit in Hanoi


Restaurants:
Nha Hang Koto – A chain “teaching” restaurant which appears to focus on serving tourists. The food was good, but nothing special.
Cafe Trang – Small coffee shop near the Temple of Literature frequented by the locals including many of the tour guides. Excellent Vietnamese Coffee.
Hanoi Fusion – Another tourist focused restaurant but it felt a bit more authentic. I sampled Chả cá, a cross between a fish taco and a fajita. It was very tasty.

Note to our readers: If you are interested many of the photographs are captioned, just select the individual images to open them. Also, we were surprised how large the country was for what appears to be a small country. I have put together a Travel Map with the places we visited to give an idea of how we managed to cover a good portion of the country during our trip.