Travel Log: Ha Long Bay and Hanoi (March 19 - 23, 2007)...

Note: This post is part of a series regarding a recent trip.  Please read this preface to the series prior to this post for context.

I can remember my first thought upon disembarking the plane from Da Nang in Hanoi: "Did we land in Vancouver?".  The temperature was a relatively chilly 15 degrees (Celsius, but about 60 degrees Fahrenheit) a far cry from the mid- to late- thirties (close to 100 degrees Fahrenheit) we were accustom to in Hoi An and Saigon.

We only stayed in Hanoi for less than 48hrs initially in part for us to attend the 2nd Annual Vietnam Investment Forum, and few other meetings with local partners (Microsoft Vietnam was one) and government agencies (Vietnamese and Canadian).

Hanoi, when we were there, was a lot more damp and dirty than Saigon, particularly in some of the market areas, but it certainly boasted some proud government buildings and official foreign government embassies and residences.  The challenge for Thuy was understanding and speaking the Northern dialect of Vietnamese that she was not accustom to and trying to translate for the rest of us "whities" at the same pace as we were getting used to from the rest of the trip.  It became a very stressful experience for her, but by the end of our few days in the North she was really getting the hang of it.

We arrived in Ha Long Bay after spending about 3.5hrs in a tour van filled with a bunch of Japanese tourists and one American.  Darren can't wait to try the "Thit Cho" that is advertised in all the local restaurants here... translated directly as "Meat Dog".  Yes, that is Fido on the plate...

We didn't know what to expect as Mel had booked the Junk Boat charter online with only a few photos.  However, she did see that this company had a lot of good comments on TripAdvisor.com so we went for it.

When we arrived and were taken to our boat (through customs) we were very pleasantly surprised.  We had the "Ha'i Long Dream", a 100ft junk boat that resembles a large double deck canal boat, chartered through a local company.  It is one of the few boats that offers accommodations for only two couples that is adequate for multiple days in the water.  The staterooms are actually very clean, and the private bathrooms adjoining are nice with standup showers.  It is nice having your own private boat, that includes a crew of 6 (captain, guide, three "mates", and a cook).

After waiting at the dock for about 40min (Thuy's Canadian passport with a Vietnamese name, born in Saigon always throws them for a loop) we were underway.  10min later we were served a great 10 course meal full of different types of fish, crab, clams, rice dishes, noodle dishes and more.

It doesn't take long to get right into the middle of the rocky and craggy islands in Ha Long Bay.  Though overcast the air is fairly warm and there is only the most gentle breeze.  The big diesel engines purr quietly below us as we push through the water at about 7-8 knots (I'm guessing).

After lunch we landed on a small Island that was renamed by Ho Chi Minh himself as Ti Top with a lookout post on top of about 425 steps.  My guess is that we went almost straight up 400-500ft on steps that were made for Asian sized feet... not our size 12 flippers.

After that we cruised into what is probably one of many hidden little coves protected by a short cave worn into the side of a mountain island over the years by the ocean.  It was beautiful, but unfortunately was also very popular with the other tourists.  Some of them broke the tranquility with motor boats cranking around the little cove.  Word has it there is a group of 50-60 monkeys that live on that island.

After leaving this little cove we motored on for about an hour and found our moorage for the night, which was another little cove protected on three sides.  Apparently it is only one of four "suggested" overnight mooring spots.  We pulled in and had another great meal... this time only 9 courses though of freshly caught caught fish and shellfish.

Later that evening the crew showed Darren and I how to fish for squid.  Darren caught his first 8s after being handed the pole and when on to catch about six more that night, including a pretty large one 8" long.  I couldn't catch one for the longest time, then ended up catching a big one and four smaller ones.  The crew steamed up the squids and we had them as one of our "off-the-menu" courses.  Darren and I ended up fishing for most of the evening... pretty addictive actually.

Sleeping on a boat is great, except we had what we thought was the pinging and gulping generator running beneath us in our stateroom all night.  The pinging and rattling kept Thuy up most of then night, and kept me up at times too.

... by the next morning we got up, and Thuy went to open the window right beside the bed to look out into the view of the Island cove... it turns out that it was actually the window pane that was rattling, and not the generator (which ended up being just a light hum).  I think we'll sleep better tonight.

The next day we had a great big breakfast with toast, marmalade, eggs, ham, cheese... and then motored into one of the three main fishing villages in the Ha Long Bay area.  This one happened to be the biggest and even had a museum sponsored by the Norwegian Government.  Very interesting stuff there, including exhibits of how people live in the area, their boats, tools, etc.  There is even a small elementary school (floating) amongst all the other floating homes.  The kids are pretty cute, and it was pointed out that kids learn to swim and row before they are able to read and write.  Darren pointed out that they probably don't learn to run and ride a bike though until they make it to the mainland...

Oddly enough, as we're going through the islands I can see a larger river boat go by (with a big water wheel), and my laptop actually got a (secure) wifi signal from it... "The Emeraude".  I'll look it up later online to see if they offer a "connected" cruise.  The boat itself looks like it is straight out of New Orleans.

The following day and a half continued with 9-10 course meals and visits to remarkable caves, lagoons and weaving through more Islands.

We finally came into port at about 11:30am on the 22nd, then waited an hour or so for the 4hr drive back to Hanoi where a warm shower at the Hilton Hanoi Opera was waiting for us.

We stayed overnight before we left to go back to Saigon, but said goodbye to Mel and Darren who flew back home from Hanoi the next day.

Pretty short stay, but we did stay in the famous Hilton Hanoi --- not to be confused w. the "Hanoi Hilton" which was actually a brutal prisoner of war camp in the north named tongue-in-cheek after the hotel as a sarcastic reference to the service and quality of the facilities (or obvious lack thereof) during the Vietnam conflict (which frankly pre- and post-dated American involvement).

To facilitate navigation this is a summary of posts in this series:

• Vinh Long (February 28 - March 4, 2007) - (Link) - (Photos)
• Saigon (March 5 - 6, 2007) - (Link) - (Photos)
• Nha Trang (March 7 - 9, 2007) - (Link) - (Photos)
• Siem Reap, Cambodia (March 10 - 13, 2007) - (Link) - (Photos from Siem Reap and Angkor Wat)
• Hoi An (March 13 - 18, 2007) - (Link) - (Photos)
• Ha Long Bay and Hanoi (March 19 - 23, 2007) - (Link) - (Photos from Ha Long Bay)
• Saigon (March 23 - 25, 2007) - (Link) - (Photos)