Vietnam: Halong Bay

Yesterday morning, Erin and awoke to yet another dreary day in Hanoi, and after breakfast, we boarded our mini-bus bound for the famous Halong Bay. After a three-hour ride, we arrived at the port, where we climbed on our "junk," our new home for the next two days. The day was a rainy, cloudy one, so any chance of seeing any of the massive limestone cliffs jutting out of the water was minimal. Fortunately, the clouds eventually subsided, and we watched the cliffs roll by from the warmth of the junk's dining room.

Having sailed through Glacier Bay in Alaska aboard my cruise ship home a few years ago, I must say that Halong Bay left much to be desired. I snapped a few photos, and within minutes found more excitement reading "The Da Vinci Code" than viewing the sights of Halong Bay. It is such a shame to be jaded to such beautiful sights, but I have to admit, I have seen better!

We had a quick exit from the boat (and my book!) to walk through a massive cave located in the midst of our sailing route. We wandered through, snapped a few photos, and With our "been there, done that" attitude (Erin's from Canada, so she was feeling the same scenery snobbery that I was), we were more than happy to climb back onto our warm boat. I delved back into my novel, not even paying attention to the fact that we later stopped for our boat's passengers to imbibe in a cold swim/kayak around the freezing waters of the bay.

We did manage to tear ourselves from our cabin for a wonderful, freshly-prepared Vietnamese dinner. We even had a group rummy game going with various members of the junk's crew, who all happened to be in love with Erin. Finally, around 9:00 pm, I answered the call of old age (I am 26, after all!) and the fact that my last week has involved very little sleep, and headed off to bed.

This morning, Erin and I awoke to another dreary day on Halong Bay, had breakfast with our fellow passengers, and I stuck my nose back into my book. We spent $30 on this trip, and even though I should have felt cheated, I was more than happy to have an excuse to do nothing but read and sleep for the two days. Finally, around 11:30 am, we arrived back at the port, had lunch, and around 2:00 pm we were back in Hanoi.

Upon arriving back in the Old Quarter, we checked back into the same hotel before visiting Cuong's bike shop, the very company that is foolishly entrusting us to two Russian Minsk motorbikes for our next adventure...a solo ride hundreds of kilometers through the northwest Vietnamese countryside. We practiced riding these hefty, cumbersome bikes through the hectic streets of Hanoi (Erin managed to get lost), discovering the glaring differences from the wimpy Hondas we have grown accustomed to riding. We then bought a few must-haves for our daring trip, including "Barbie" face masks, some ugly tennis shoes for me, and ponchos. Right now, I have spent the last few hours convincing Erin that we will not, in fact, die on our six-day motorbike trip (even though I do not truly believe it myself) and updating my blog. We leave in the morning...we will probably end up sharing a single bike, as Erin somehow believes I am a much better motorbike driver than she is.

At any rate, if for some reason this blog is not updated by April 2nd, send out the search parties, because Erin and I are either dead or in vegetative states...Here's to hoping the next six days, with me behind the handlebars, are a safe and enjoyable time!!!