Ha Long Bay & Sapa

Vietnam, from what I’ve seen so far does measure up to the stereotypes… cramped, crowded, dirty, full of mopeds, the air is thick with pollution and everyone beeps their horn. Every. Twenty. Seconds. This is not to say it isn’t fun and exciting, though.

The natives, on the whole, are friendly. They are happy with what little they have, I guess their religion has a part to do with this. There is a communal sense to the people. For example, surrounding the main lake in the centre of Hanoi they played tug of war, skipping rope games and this other bamboo shoots game on one nice evening. Just casually getting everyone involved, the games were good fun. They can be rude, but in general are friendly. They also randomly stop you in the street to take a photo… I felt like a celebrity at the times when they did it :).

However, despite the crowded, cramped, polluted city, they do have some absolute treasures just a few short (ish) bus rides from Hanoi. 

Ha Long Bay

I went Ha Long Bay on Sunday (the final destination of Top Gear and where they filmed Cast Away). Needless to say, it measured up to the film and TV programme. It was breathtaking! It’s no wonder it’s a world heritage site. There are so many gigantic rocks that stick out of the luscious green sea with plenty of vegetation and birds flying around. It was just, simply, beautiful.

We took a tour boat that navigated through the rocks, each one having its own unique feature. After a good hour or so (and some lunch), we went kayaking through the rocks, in and out of caves that, on the other-side of the cave, open up in to large craters of the rocks. We went walking through the large, dry caves (stalagmites and stalactites and all that jazz… Must admit I don’t know the difference). So after that, it was another nice cruise in the sun back to the harbour.

The Next Day Was Sapa.

I spent the night on a bus for a lovely 6 hours, arriving at 4am. It was hot, stuffy but fairly comfortable, for Vietnam. I do remember a baby crying part of the way through which was pleasant. I spent the day Hiking through the rice field mountains. The only way to explain it is for a photo or two:

With only 3 hours of sleep, I hiked on through a couple of villages in the rice fields for 7/8 hours. I came across lots of helpful locals and sadly a dying pig. I didn’t take a tour guide but instead just relied on a map and asking the locals. It was sunny but very fresh, maybe around 15 degrees. I also had to go for a wild shit on the hike (traveler’s belly) due to the lack of toilets but maybe that’s not appropriate for the blog. 

Then it was a nice 6 hour bus back at 10:00pm :).

While I was waiting at a hostel for several hours I helped the owner with some English translations and booking.com. He gave me a couple of free beers and invited me to eat with his family, it was a nice home cooked noodle, pork & fish dish.

I slept pretty much all the way home and arrived at 3am.

And for those that want to know… I’m still in the same pair of boxers, socks and shorts. Will likely not change for the next couple of weeks. They’re still pretty fresh despite the hot, sweaty country. 

I’m saying goodbye to Hanoi today and catching the bus south to Phong Nha, a national park.