The trip from Son Trach to Cat Ba ended up going fairly well. We took a small bus from Son Trach to Dong Hoi and then an overnight bus to Hanoi, arriving around 8am. Having several hours to kill before the next phase of travel we bought some fruit and banh my sandwiches and holed up in a cafe. At 11am we took a bus several hours to the cost, then a boat to Cat Ba, and a final bus to the main town on the island. All in all we had traveled for about 24 hours, but checking in to our hotel, normally $25 during the high season, which we were paying $3 each for, and watching the sun set over Cat Ba Bay from the balcony, made everything worth it.
After a wonderful meal we decided to call it a night, and I personally finished off the evening by watching a French pastry competition on TV. Parfait!
The next day Kristy rented a bicycle while Mari and I took it easy. We walked around some of the nearby beaches, admiring the surroundings
and laying out in the sun.
I also spent some time collecting pieces of coral that had washed up on the beach
and making sandcastles like a motherfucking adult!
Jonathan, who we had met in Son Trach, arrived in Cat Ba that afternoon and came to meet us. In the evening Mari, Jonathan, and I went to the local outdoor adventure / rock climbing company and signed up to do deep water soloing and kayaking the next day! (Google it.) After dinner we made an early night of it in order to prepare ourselves for the insanity to come.
In the morning, Mari, Jonathan and I woke up early and went to meet up with the rest of the crazy people. The other climbers on the trip were: Declan, Lawrence, and Ken from Australia, Peter from Germany, Kyle from Canada, and Sean from California. Our two guides were Nick (who was Vietnamese but from Florida) and Thanh (a local). We set out on a small boat into Cat Ba Bay to find some good rocks! Although the climbing was pretty tough, we all had a great time and a few people took some pretty intense jumps into the water.
I did my best and on one run had one pretty decent climb up to about 30 feet, but when I got tired Nick did yoga with me on the boat instead. Back on board we all compared battle wounds (everyone was covered in scrapes, bruises, and torn clothes) and shared a great lunch.
Then it was time for Nick and Thanh to leave. We were joined by Kate (from Massachusetts) who led us on an unbelievable kayaking tour. We sailed under rock arches,
into lagoons surrounded by jungle,
and explored beaches blanketed in washed up coral.
After returning to the main boat we traveled back to Cat Ba Island. Lying on the ship's roof, passing fish and pearl farms,
we basked in the wondrous views, the sunset, and the memories of the day.
In need of some serious caffination, the whole group headed out for coffee where Declan, Lawrence, Ken, and Peter revealed that they had signed up to do a traditional snake dinner that evening. Having wanted to do this my entire time in Vietnam I freaked out and begged to join. They assured me that everyone was welcome, so after a quick shower we all reconvened at a local restaurant where their snake was being delivered. The owner of the establishment brought out the live snake to show us, then killed it at the table by cutting it's throat. The blood was drained into a glass and mixed with Vietnamese vodka. Then it was bottoms up!
We also did shots of the venom mixed with vodka which was super cool (it made your mouth tingle and go numb).
The owner brought out the skinned snake and delivered its internal organs to us on a plate, including the heart which was still beating! Ken dominated and swallowed the heart with (little to) no hesitation.
A few of the guys did shots of the bile mixed with alcohol but I passed on that one with no regrets.
The snake skin was deep fried and served as a starter,
and then the snake meat was served two ways: ground and rolled up in seaweed,
and as part of a hot pot mixed with whole chickens.
(Peter, not sure how to feel after sucking on the boiled head of a chicken, and Ken looking on in absolute glee.)
While the snake was the main meal for Ken, Peter, Declan and Lawrence, the rest of us ordered other dishes, and a few people chose dog. I tried one piece of each offering, including the dog (*hangs head in shame*), but was happy to focus most of my attention on my vegetarian meal. After the epic dining experience concluded, Sean, Peter, Jonathan and I headed to a nearby bar for a few drinks and balloons of laughing gas. Ya know, the usual.
The next day Kristy left for Hanoi and I joined Mariana, Jonathan, Sean, and Kyle for some more rock climbing out near the national park. As seasoned climbers they were very helpful and supportive and assured me I did pretty well for a newb. After a few attempts I left the climbing to them and went trekking, but I think I might have found a new hobby! Hopefully I will get to climb more on this trip. Before heading back for dinner we drank some beer and honeyed rice wine at the family restaurant located next to the crags. After a quick meal in town I went on a night fishing adventure/debacle with the Aussies from the day before where we caught nada and just sat freezing our butts off on a tiny boat in the middle of nowhere. Oh well, live and learn.
Back to shore!
Visiting Cat Ba was definitely a highlight of my time in Vietnam, but everything must some day come to an end, so after three glorious days I boarded a boat set for Halong Bay and from there took a bus to the capital city of Hanoi.
