A Chinese Junk, Gourmet Food and 3000 Islands in Halong bay, Vietnam
We drove from the resort on Cat Ba to catch a boat to Halong City where we would transfer to our junk for the cruise of the bay. It was an hour + to Halong city on the first boat (which the captain let me drive at one point) which was very scenic as most of the journey was through part of Halong Bay. As we neared the city our boat joined a near endless procession of tour boats going to and from Halong bay city proving just how popular an attraction it is!
Indochina Sails in Halong bay, Vietnam
We got off the first boat and waited around for a while until we were shown onto a launch which shuttled us and the other passengers to our Junk. The boat was really nice - 2 people to a cabin with a private bathroom on the lower deck, and the upper deck had an outside seating area at the front and a posh indoor restaurant at the back.
The boat set off and we cruised for a couple of hours, sailing away from the city and in amongst the stunning islands
Apparently Halong Bay was created when a giant dragon went on the rampage, and on the way out to sea smashed the islands into there current shapes with its thrashing tail (something like that anyway).
We saw the famous 'fighting cocks' islands - two islands vaguely resembling two birds fighting - which is one of the icons of Halong Bay, unfortunately i couldn't get a decent photo because of other tour boats which inconsiderately decided to park themselves right in front!
We also had our first meal on the boat pretty soon after we left, it turned out to be a feast, 9 courses mostly sea food including things like 'Elephant clams', fish, squid and shrimp. Even though I'm not the greatest fan of sea food it was delicious. We kept jumping up during the meal to take photos of various islands as the boat cruised past.
We admired the scenery and let all the food settle until the boat arrived at our first stop off, an incredible cave high up in a cliff face of one of the larger islands. We did the tour of the cave then it was back onto the boat and off to the next stop, an island with a beach at the base and a view point on the top of the islands peak. Me and El climbed up to the view point which gave an amazing view of the bay whilst Mum and Dad had a swim in the cold looking water of the bay off the beach.
Then it was back to the boat again where we had another huge meal (10 courses this time) and cruised to a cove where we dropped anchor and stayed put for the night
After dinner we tried fishing for squid off the front of the boat using bright lights to attract them - it didn't work and the most we saw was some squid ink in the water when one of the other passengers hooked one but promptly lost it.
In the morning we were woken up by the crew knocking on our door so that we could have breakfast before piling into a small boat to visit an enclosed cove accessible only by boat through a cave going all the way through the cliff face. Monkeys live on the cliffs around the cove and our captain attracted them with food. It was a cool little excursion.
Back to the junk and cruised back to Halong city taking in the scenery on route inc. another Halong Bay icon; an island that looks like a man's head, it took a good few hours and we were served yet another large meal which was described as a light brunch even though included 5/6 courses! We had to stop to let a massive cruise ship past in the open water between the islands and Halong City.
Once off the boat it was a 4 hour mini bus ride back to Hanoi
Source: Travelpod.com
Recommendation in Halong bay, Vietnam: Indochina Sails
About the Author
Bobby Nguyen
Marketing Manager
27, A6 Dam Trau Quarter, Hanoi, Vietnam
Tel : (84-4) 984 2362
Fax : (84-4) 984 4150
Website: www.indochinasails.com
HA LONG BAY Vietnam
halong bay vietnam
halong bay vietnam
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