Look up Halong Bay in google images right now, do it ...
click here
This is where I have just spent my last 2 days. This again is one
of those experiences words and photos fall short of describing. I will
post photos to explain the sights and will use this entry to explain
the other parts of the trip that helped wrap this wonderful experience
up.
From Hanoi you can walk into *any* guesthouse or travel agency and
book a trip to Halong Bay - and this makes it very difficult to decide
what package to go with! Packages range from $25 - $250 for the average
tourist - but I'm sure there are many people who pay much more. Many of
the trips offered are 2-3 days trips where you stay overnight on a
'Junk' - a Chinese sailing vessel. - We've heard horror stories of some
of the Junk when you go for the $25 price range so we decided to treat
ourselves a bit more...
We ended up getting a great deal from a travel agent friend Jessica
made when she was in Vietnam last year. He offered a $80 two days one
night trip to us for $65 each.
Day one:
We took a small air
con mini-bus for 3 hours to Halong Bay. As soon as we got to the Bay
that old familiar 'home feeling' came to me as I saw and smelled the
ocean. (It's been about 2 months since I've seen the sea!!!) But this
Harbour was like nothing I've ever seen before! Look up 'Chinese Junk'
- The harbour was filled with these beautiful majestic boats! We took a
small boat to our Junk. On the way I observed all of the other Junk -
All of them generally look the same - but this is where you can see
what money will buy you - The old Junk made me shiver - not only did it
look haunted but you could just *see* what kind of creepy creatures
might also be aboard those old dirty boats. And the nice boats? They
were niiiiice. And oh, lucky us, our small boat drove right up to one
of the nicest boats on the sea, and it was ours! The whole boat was
construced of beautiful dark glossy wood, with carvings of dragons and
asian symbols. They lead us to the dining area and our mouths all
dropped. The 5 of us were the youngest on the ship, everyone else was
more 'mature' and were used to being able to afford this kind of thing.
For Dave and I, this was by far the most posh thing we've done on this
trip. The dining area was immaculate. Like any other classy luxurious
eating area.
We were given the keys to our rooms and told to return in half an
hour for lunch. Again, my mouth dropped at our room. All of the rooms
were beautiful but dave and I were lucky and got a corner suite - so,
two large windows looking directly out onto the sea - seeerrriously, I
live for these kind of things. Also, our bathroom, on a freaking boat,
was also the nicest bathroom we've had so far in Southeast Asia. Eheh.
I was sooo happy! The rooms were small, but they were super clean, made
of that nice dark wood, large beds, and beautiful bedding and decore
and a world class view from the window!
We returned to the dinning area for lunch and were
so
impressed with the menu - When I get the chance I will post photos of
some of the dishes. They cooked according to all of our requests: three
people eat no mean, but fish and seafood are ok, one person eats no
meat, no fish and no eggs, and one person will eat anything. They
Cooked all veg dishes for Dave, pescetarian dishes for Sean, Jess and
I, and meat dishes for Johan. That was incredible for us - lots of the
time when we give that request we end up just getting really bland
dishes and Dave's requests for no egg or fish are usually ignored.
To save time, I will just write parts of the (set) lunch menu me,
Sean and Jessica enjoyed... A delicious, thick, sweat and sour soup,
large fresh prawns, a cooked veggie and squid dish, and my favorite, a
grilled marinated fresh tuna dish - along with the usual steamed rice
and veggies.
After lunch we took the Mini boat to a cave called "The Amazing
Cave", and as cheesy as it sounds, the cave WAS amazing. When I was
inside I felt like it was arificial and I was in Disneyland. It was
GIGANTIC, and all of the beautiful rock forms were highlighted with soft
coloured lights, it was incredible and I will let my photos to the rest
of the talking for it.
After the cave we kayacked for about an hour taking in the scenery,
which again the photos will obviously give a better idea of. By the
time we got back to the the Junk the sun was going down and we were
served watermelon slices to enjoy the view with. We relaxed for a bit
and then went for dinner. Dinner, again, made the whole trip worth the
extra money! We were again served large delicious prawns, clams, crab
cakes (my favorite!!!) and an assortment of veggies and rice. (By the
way, Dave was also enjoying his meal, they made him really good tofu
dishes and noodles and fake meat meals and Johan got beef and chicken
dishes.)
After dinner the whole boat did karaoke, including me! It was a
ball and Jess, Sean and I split 3 bottles of wine! The party ended when
Sean broke a wine glass (haha that was too much for this posh ship)!
After that we were sent to bed - And a good thing, as we were to meet
at 7:30am for breakfee. The sleep on this boat was one of the best I've
ever had. I slept like a rock in this beautiful big clean bed, with the
smell and movement of the sea keeping me happy.
Day Two:
I woke up to a view of the blue see with large, rocky
islands jutting out of it... sigh... We ate breakfast in the morning
and after we actually just relaxed and enjoyed the scenery lazing about
on the upper deck for a few hours. The boat cruised the ocean and
around all the amazing land formations. The only break from relaxation
we had was another delicious mainly seafood lunch. The we did even more
relaxing. At about 12:00 we made our way back to the harbour and our
fantastic voyage was over... =(.
I say this about most things I've done here, but I want to do this
again with my family soooo bad. Mum, Dad, Miranda, Lets save all of
our monies up again, and do a family vacation to Vietnam. It is
incredible here. It is WORTH coming here. I've seen lots of families in
this country and my heart just sings thinking about what a great family
experience this would be. There's nothing I want more than to Cruise
Halong Bay with my mother, and then go drink cheap, delicious local
beer on the crazy streets of Hanoi with my Dad and sister.
I'm having the time of my life =) Wish you were here...
Will write another entry soon of fun observations and experiences I'm having here in Vietnam.
