If you took one look at a picture of Ha Long
Bay, you’d probably think, “I have to go there.” At least that’s what I
thought. The place is unbelievably gorgeous and photogenic.
We planned a visit without getting our hopes up too much though, for
a couple of reasons. Some of our friends (tomo) and other travelers
warned us of a lack of tourism regulation, resulting in things like
dirty water, overdevelopment, and just plain too many tourists. Also
we’re often weary of tours in general, and we hadn’t given ourselves
enough time to plan out a visit (way to get there, way to sail around,
place to stay, etc) all on our own.
So after talking to some other people and looking online, we settled
on a two-day/one-night tour of the bay. When we got to the dock to find
our boat and set sail, it was hilarious. There were dozens and dozens
of boats all crammed together with little or no organization to be
seen. We were led to our boat via climbing on and off two others. Then,
as we pulled out, we watched all the boats (ours included) bumping into
each other to start their tours. We wondered how much normal wear and
tear accelerates by doing things so haphazardly. And of course, when we
got back the next day, it was the same deal but in reverse. Priceless.
The scenery was as stunning as I’d hoped, and it never disappointed
as the hours went by. I got very excited sailing in between the huge
limestone karsts. The bay is so huge that all of those other boats were
somehow able to spread out enough so that all the romance wasn’t sucked
out.
Unfortunately, a couple of things about the tour were disappointing
as I’d thought they might be. We were rushed through each “activity” -
30 minutes of sea kayaking (instead of the promised hour), a 15 minute
hike through a cave and up a hill, a lot of fried food, etc.
But the other people on the tour were a lot of fun to hang out with,
and as I said the scenery was fantastic, so all and all it was a pretty
good trip.
