Another reason to stay
on Cat Ba at this time of year – in the off-peak season lovely hotels are found
at ridiculously low prices and budget guesthouses are sooo cheap. Our accommodation
was part of our package from the brown –toothed junkie (and we were happy with
it) but we bumped into a lovely Israeli family, who had been on the junk as day
tourists with us, and they had found a mid-class hotel (including the
chandelier laden swish foyer) at the centre of the main street on the water at
$20US for a large family room with bath and inclusive breakfast.
After an adequate breakfast
at our hotel with our Dutch companions, we were collected and returned to the
pier to re-embark the “Discovery Oz” – our not-so-grand old lady. As there was
a little drizzle we found a seat in the covered restaurant but it didn’t take
long for the skies to clear and we were taken to another fish farm – maybe it
was the same one – I didn’t bother looking! Following that we stopped and were
told that we could visit an outdoor cave in a rowboat and it would cost only a
few dollars. We tried to get the tickets for free seeing we had paid for more
than we had received but our guide said it wasn’t his doing as he was paid to
take us on HIS tour schedule, so we parted with our dong and lowered ourselves
into a timber, unseaworthy dinghy and sat like sardines with the other
travellers- it was fun, especially when our little motor wouldn’t start and we
were the only boat left behind! The seats were rotting pieces of timber planks
that didn’t look much worse off than the skeleton of the vessel. After a few
more pulling attempts our engine roared and spluttered and we were on our way -
grateful that we had now become detached to the chain of crafts and would see
inside the outdoor caves in peace. It was lovely but Adrian thought not
comparable to what you can experience in Australia. We ventured the identical route back to the
mainland harbour – a part of our package was taking a different route – just another
paid extra we missed out on. Get over it! For lunch, we were escorted to a
large bay side restaurant that catered to the majority of returning boats. It
was busy so while we were waiting for our shared meals to arrive, Adrian and
the big Dutch man went looking for our brown toothed, brown jacket friends.
Ours was unfortunately nowhere to be found. Frank found his but the guide was
not concerned and told him to refer any problems to the nearby Police – either
he knew that no one would bother with all the red tape or he was pals with the
local authorities. The men returned for lunch and then we boarded a top quality
mini bus with working air-con and a new guide to head for Hanoi. We spoke to
the guide about our rip off deal and he immediately told us that the man we had
purchased from was a local crim, that two of his brothers had died of overdoses
and other family members were in jail. He
continued telling us that he owned the boat, the company, the bus we were now
on and he did the package beginning and ending in Hanoi for only $40US per person
for the three days inclusive of everything. He was lovely but unable to refund us any money!
We were dropped off
near Hoam Lake, at our request, and began looking for accommodation. We ended
up at “Central Backpackers Hostel”, opposite St John’s Cathedral, looking for a
room. As none were available until the next day, we decided to share two
singles in the dorm for only $10US. The hostel had free internet, free
breakfast, free tea and a happy hour when fresh draught beer from a keg was
shared for free. Adrian was there and waiting each night. They also had $40, 3-day
tours to Halong Bay on offer. If we had paid $40 we would have had nothing to
complain about with service, food, tours and accommodation – it really is an
unbelievable deal although I would advise taking some extra food and drinks to
have in your room to avoid hunger or inflated snack prices on board. As it was fairly late we went walking looking
for dinner and ended up adjacent to St John’s Cathedral, eating opposite our
hostel, at “La Place”. The meals were lovely though I don’t recommend the
chicken coconut curry as LP advised – generally, I don’t think the Vietnamese
are good at curries and it tasted like chicken, coconut and nothing else. The atmosphere
was stylish and relaxing, the kids enjoyed the crayons and paper table cloths
and the food was certainly appreciated after the fish heads and choko over 3
days in the Halong region.
Back in the hostel,
after some time on the internet, we retired to our dorms and all had a fine
sleep. Nim was with Adrian -she was the only snorer around- and I was with Ash.
