Ha long Bay - Day 3

Today we started early around 7:00 a.m. Ha long Bay is 160 kms away from Hanoi. On our way, we saw typical houses, small width and long lengths. The reason for such constructions they say is that at one time in Vietnam, the government forced taxes on long width houses. Lush green landscapes were seen from our car windows. Amit could not resist and finally stopped the car to capture the beauty of Ha Long. All our excitement was killed by the driver. He would not drive above 40 speed. To add to our frustration he was listening to slow and sad Vietnamese songs. Amit and I could not take it anymore and decided to take a nap.

We stopped in between to see many sculptures made of white marble. Also, many artisans were seen working on the traditional- crafts like embroidery, manufacturing of silk garments, etc. Then we freshened up in the restroom and started the journey to Ha Long Bay.













We reached Ha long Bay after long 4 and half hours, thanks to our driver. But all the disappointment vanished as we saw the most amazing thing. We were astonished to see small islands far away covered with fog and so many artistic boats surrounding the entire bay. It was a different world altogether like I felt I’ve entered the magnificent World of Pirates!!!!









Mr. Tiet got our tickets and we were taken to our own sweet private boat. The boat was wonderfully decorated by wooden carvings. We enjoyed the view from the deck. On the way of cruising through the bay, we had an overview on Stone Dog, Incense Burner ( Dinh Huong), Fighting Cock ( Ga Choi). They all had their own stories of formations.









Finally, we arrived at the core of the islets, where the caves and grottoes Thien Cung (Heavenly Residence Grotto), and Dau Go (Driftwood Grotto) were there. I had only seen the images on the internet and I was getting restless to see and feel the real caves. After climbing the rocky steps for about 5 mins, we entered a narrow gate; where the cave 130-meter long belt opened up. We were amazed to see in front of us the splendid beauty which was made from stalactite and stalagmite. Huge and magnificent almost unreal rock formations blew our minds. Unfortunately, I thought that the artificial lights spoiled the beauty and feel of caves.



















We returned back to our boat and saw the entire table was served with fresh and delicious seafood – Shrimps, crabs, fish, squids, soup, Spring rolls, french fries, cooked vegetables, juicy fruits, tofu and vine bottles. Without thinking I started feasting. But Amit being vegetarian could not stand the sight of shrimps as he quoted “I see eyes on the table, I don’t think I can eat here! “ He ended up eating bananas and sipping beers instead.





We meaning I enjoyed the food with the most splendid view of the islands with wind and drizzling rains while Amit was busy on the deck clicking pictures and making panoramas.

























Later we were taken back to the pier and left for Hanoi. We were sloshed and woke up only when our car stopped in front of our Hotel. Without wasting any time we left to explore Hanoi city and markets. I was excited as finally I found some clothes that fitted me. I went crazy and got 4 dresses. The city was energetic with travelers roaming around and local people enjoying their food and drinks on the streets. Later we had our dinner at the Cityview restaurant which was at a height where we had the most marvelous view of the city lake and the intersection of the main roads. On our way back to Hotel, we entered a tattoo shop. Amit was very inspired by the tattoo designs and unexpectedly wanted to get one tattoo made. We spent some time there and as it was already 11:30 p.m. we decided to head back to our Hotel and sleep since we had our flight to Hoi An next day early morning.