One of the most well-known natural attractions in northern Vietnam is the UNESCO-listed Ha Long Bay. This unique bay has almost 2000 limestone islands of varying sizes. They jut up out of the water and are covered in green plants, which makes the whole place look otherworldly. The name "Ha Long" means "Descending Dragon" in Vietnamese and there is a legend that the gods sent a dragon down from the heavens to help defend the kingdom from its enemies. After winning the battle against the invaders, the dragon decided to come down and live in this beautiful bay.
Our 2 night cruise on the Peony 2 was just one of hundreds of cruise boats in the bay. There are cruises at all price points to choose from. It's a scenic place, but there are many, many other people out here enjoying the scenery. At night you can hear music booming from the bar decks of all the boats, although it is usually pretty quiet after about ten o'clock.
Which is a good thing because our cruise had a 6:40am breakfast time. (You had to get up even earlier if you wanted to join the 6:10am Tai Chi class). Actually the itineraries of the cruises all seem to be very similar - on the first day you settle into your cabin and get oriented to the boat.
In the afternoon you do a kayak or swim excursion from the back of the boat, and then in the early evening you learn how to make Vietnamese spring rolls.
On the last morning of most one-night cruises, passengers go ashore at Cat Ba island to hike through Trung Trang Cave.
During the Vietnam War the cave was used by the North Vietnamese Navy as a telecommunication base. There were a couple of really cavernous halls inside the cave that were definitely large enough to house many soldiers. There were also a couple of small shrines with offerings inside the cave.
Cat Ba island is also home to the Cat Ba Golden Langur, a very rare primate that only lives on this island. We didn’t spot a live one since it is critically endangered and there are only about 70 wild individuals living on the island. But we did see a beautiful mural showing what they look like. The langurs have been hunted to the brink of extinction because of their value as a "traditional medicine". But the animals are protected by law now, and efforts to stop the poaching have brought population numbers up slowly. Hopefully with the focus on eco-tourism, the locals will be able to help preserve the habitat and prevent illegal poaching to preserve this species for future generations.
We opted for an extra night on the cruise so that we could take an additional day-long excursion down to the less-visited Lan Ha (Orchid) Bay.
There were definitely fewer cruise boats down here, since it is much further from the main cruise port. Because the base of each island is slowly eroding over time, the karst formations appear to hover over the water, like this tall thin one that looks like it could fall over any day now.
When the tide is low there are spots where it is possible to see all the way under an island to the other side. Small boats can fit right through this opening.
Down in Lan Ha Bay we went ashore and rode bicycles to Viet Hai, a remote fishing village.
The village population is only about 300 or so people. The sense of community is strong here, and villagers used to live a very simple life in small homes made of clay or bamboo, or even on floating homes that are anchored in the bay. Tourism has begun to bring in more jobs and higher incomes. The town has a newly built road, school, and a medical center. But fishing and traditional agriculture are still very much a part of village life here. Water buffalo were peacefully grazing in the pasture (you can maybe just barely see them in this photo, to the left of Kevin in the background).
The tour kept us pretty busy with a packed itinerary but whenever we weren't out on day excursions, we did have a bit of time to just relax back on the boat. Our cabin was extremely comfortable; we had a private balcony with amazing views.
The food onboard was also delicious. But in case we got hungry for a soda or a snack we could always buy from one of the many floating “7-11 boats” being rowed around the anchorage by some incredibly strong ladies. They all had a long pole with a net at the end that could reach as far up as the 2nd deck. You put the money in the net and then they deliver the food back to you in the net -- a pretty clever system, actually.
We were so fortunate that we had good cool weather for our cruise and excursions. It was a little overcast and hazy, but at least it wasn’t raining or foggy. We spent a lot of time outside on deck chairs just admiring the incredible views. But after three days on a boat we were looking forward to getting back on land and seeing more of Vietnam. So long, Ha Long Bay!
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