Ha Long Bay

After returning to Hanoi after Sapa we got straight on the bus to Ha Long Bay which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There are around 3,000 limestone islands and around 1,600 people still living on floating houses around the islands. This is a popular tourist destination and unfortunately for some reason the Government has stipulated that all the tourist boats to be painted white which is such a shame as the traditional wood boats look much better. We were undecided about whether or not to do the trip as we had heard mixed reviews but we thought we might regret it if not. It was a long journey there by bus but once we got on the boat we set sail towards the islands. We stopped off to do some kyaling which was a bit scary as the area wasn't roped off so there were big boats all over the place and I was worried we'd get run over! We then went to Thien Cung grotto which is a cave in one of the larger islands. It was nice as it was just our group in the cave and it was lit up with nice lights. After the cave we were taken to a man made beach where you could swim if you wanted to. We had a guide who was suppose to speak English but no one could understand a word he said! He was very sweet but we didn't learn much and nicknamed him Billy Bull Sh*t!

That night on the boat we had dinner and had a few drinks. It was nice to mix and chat with a lot of other back packers that night and get some tips from them all. After quite a few beers we retired to our cabin, which was actually better than some of the hostels we'd stayed in in the past!

The next day, we had breakfast on the boat. There wasn't much to do on this day as the boat just sailed back to Ha Long bay harbour. So we just sat and chatted to the rest of the tour group. We couldn't really go on deck and enjoy the scenery as it was raining all morning. We had lunch on the boat just as we got back to the harbour and then set off on another long bus journey back to Hanoi. Ha Long Bay was nice, but it wasn't really a 2 day tour as you feel like you're travelling there and back more than actually being on the boat.

We were dropped off back at our hostel in Hanoi, where we were getting our first night bus onto our next destination, Hue.

Things we have learnt:

• Ha means descending and Long mean dragon. Ha Long = Descending Dragon.

• Most of the floating village people never step on dry land.

• All the boats look rubbish painted white.

• You don't learn much when your guide can't speak English.

• There's a man made beach there.