The Halong Bay part of this was definitely the most relaxing time we have spent in VN so far. The trip to and from, not so relaxing :-)
We were picked up by a minibus, a converted Ford Transit van, with 15 passenger seats, and God forbid a vehicle should travel anywhere in VN unless it is packed to the gunnels. The biggest problem was, with a full complement of passengers, there wasn't really enough room for luggage so it was on laps and in the aisle, and every time we stopped it was like playing one of those kid's puzzles with the mixed up picture, and one free space, where you have to move this piece, then that piece and so on, before you can move the piece you actually WANTED to move.
After 1 1/2 hours of fairly unedifying countryside (there's a lot of factory building going on), we stopped at a centre for selling crafts made by handicapped folks. What a surprise. They also had a little cafe and more importantly, clean loos so it was OK. Then we were shoehorned back in for the next one and a half hours to Ha Long Bay.
At the Bay it was chaotic. There must have been 300-400 boats of all sizes packed in at the docks, with some of the boats moored further out being serviced by fancy tenders. We were led aboard our boat, the Huy Hoang 108 (a surprise as we had been led to believe it would be the Bai Tu Long), via an 8" wide gangplank with the staff holding a bamboo pole for a handrail. We did see the Bai Tu Long a few times in our travels, it looked smaller with only two decks, though very nicely fitted out. Perhaps it was a numbers thing or even a luxury thing as we had opted for the standard tour rather than the deluxe.
The boat was well presented, clean and cosy. There were three decks, with the small rooms on the bottom deck (accessed by a fairly narrow companionway so if you're even more generously proportioned than me I think it would be a struggle), the middle deck mostly a saloon where meals were served, and the top deck an open sort of patio with deck chairs and seats.
Soon after we set out lunch was served, all seafood dishes. We were asked while we were still on the bus if anyone did not eat seafood. It was pretty good for a set meal.
Sailing among the karsts was otherworldly. They jut straight up out of the sea like huge black thumbnails, most lightly covered with scrubby vegetation but none with any beach to speak of. Apparently there are some 3,000 karsts. It was cold and foggy when we were there, which added to the otherworldlyness, as there would be karsts up close and then you could see more humpy shapes further away in the fog. Even though there were hundreds of other boats tonking around there's plenty of room for everyone and often you couldn't see any other boats, except at the tourist stops. We did spy a big ocean-going liner off in the distance.
Before we got to our first stop we passed a few little floating villages, which were like bunches of little square houses on rafts all tied together. Presumably they survive by fishing and by selling goods to passing tourists, as everywhere we stopped there were little boats full of snack foods and drinks, whose proprietresses passed goods and change back and forth tied to the end of a long pole.
The first stop was the Amazing Cave. Getting off the boat challenged my poor non-bending knees as we had to jump down about three feet from the prow. No doubt the staff are now regaling all their friends with tales of my fairly inelegant exit :-)
Then we had to climb up a loooooooong way to the cave entrance. The cave is massive. We spent about an hour walking around the one-way path inspecting the various formations before getting back to another dock where the boat was waiting. Again it was a climb up, with the assistance of my darling and two fellow passengers.
We sat up on the top to watch as we sailed to the next stop. It was really cold and we were very glad we were wearing our winter underwear and warm hats our daughter had given us! The island where we stopped had a small, I suspect artificial beach created by making two concrete groynes and shipping in sand to fill in the space between, and a long set of steps leading up to the top for a lookout. Since it was too cold to swim (though three foolhardy souls elected to do so, must have been polar bears in their previous lives) and one set of long stairs a day is my limit, I elected to stay put while everyone else went ashore. When they got back, one of the other passengers said I got his vote as the smartest person on board, as the lookout didn't really provide any view you couldn't see from the boat with less effort :-)
After the beach we went to a place where again the foolhardy could go kayaking. I had a lot more company this time!
Dinner was again nice without being outstanding. There was more variety, with chicken, prawns, beef, salads and vegetables. One salad was kind of wierd (creamed potato with chopped apples) but tasty. After dinner we sat around talking with some really nice fellow travellers, an American retired couple and a single retired English lady who was celebrating her 60th birthday with a year of travel.
Bed was very comfy, the room was tiny but the best sleep I have had in VN.
Breakfast next morning was fruit, eggs and toast, and then we had to clear our cabins. Some passengers went off on a tender for Cat Ba Island, where they were staying an additional night, and we sailed serenely back to Ha Long Bay. As we picked up more passengers from the Cat Ba tender than we left off, it was clear we weren't all going to fit back on the same bus and there was some delay while the guide organised a second bus. But we still didn't have any more room!
Lunch was at a restaurant on the outskirts of Ha Long town, again tasty without being standout. Then it was back on the bus for the trip to Hanoi.
Surprise, surprise. We stopped at another souvenir shop (this one had bigger bulkier items no-one could possibly want to fit into their luggage) and when we had all squeezed back into the bus, the guide announced there would be a ten-minute delay while the driver, who had spent the break smoking and drinking tea with the other drivers, wanted to buy some paintings!!!! Needless to say we were unimpressed. Then about half an hour down the track we made a detour off the main road so the driver could drop off the paintings at his home. We were nearly an hour late getting into Hanoi, and would strongly recommend if anyone can afford it that they hire a private car and driver for trips in VN unless they enjoy getting up close and personal with a dozen other people.
Ha Long Bay is definitely a great place to visit, and very relaxing, even if the weather is cold.






