Ha Long Bay

Halong Bay had long been on our list of travel dreams. This UNESCO World Heritage site boasts 1969 islands (remembered by the year that Ho Chi Minh died) set in the sparkling blue waters of the Gulf of Tonkin. "Halong" translates to 'where the dragon descends into the sea'. Many stories exist about how the islands were originally formed, including from the fire breath of the dragon. An ethereal mist hovered around the limestone cliffs of the islands.

Halong Bay

Hundreds of tourist filled junks float around the bay. Ours was named Sunrise and was beautifully decked out with all the luxuries necessary for our three day cruise.

Our Luxury Room on the Boat

Our Vietnamese tour guide, Ting, taught us about each of the places we visited in his broken english accent. In the two large caves we visited (Amazing Cave and Me Cung Cave) Ting pointed out hidden shapes created by the stalactites and stalagmites, encouraging us to use our fantasy (or imagination, Fantasea was the name of our tour company) to spot them.

We spent most of our time kayaking isolated coves, sometimes passing under limestone arches to reach them. When we grew hot in the sun on the deck of the boat, we jumped off the top to cool off in the water or swim to sandy beaches (although these were very scarce).

Kayaking Around the Bay

Wherever we travelled in the bay, even when swimming, we were followed by Vietnamese ladies in small paddle boats trying desperately to sell snacks for a living. 

Mobile Food Supply

This didn't tempt us because apart from the breathtaking views, the highlight of our Halong Bay Boat trip was the incredible food that was served onboard. We were spoilt with plates of steaming cockles, whole fish, prawn cocktails with hand carved vegetable flowers, crab cakes in their shells, endless vegetable dishes, salads and fruit. We ventured down to the ships hull to take a peak at the kitchen (a tiny basic affair with wok and limited counter space) and were amazed at how they prepared so many delicacies with such basic facilities.

Prawn Cocktails

We took our exercise opportunities where we could, scrambling to the summit of Dao Titop (Titop Island) for a priceless panoramic view of the bay.

View From Titop Summit

The sunsets on the bay were otherworldly, both nights glimpsed briefly before our boat stole away into a sheltered cove for the night. Once dark descended at 6pm, our boat didn't move again until daylight. 

Halong Bay Sunset

Our evening entertainment included fruitless squid fishing off the back of the boat with a large spotlight and loud karaoke inside (perhaps an explanation for why we never lured any sealife close enough to catch).

On our last evening we visited a pearl farm and learnt about the fascinating process of pearl culturing.

Halong Bay Pearl Farm

Pearl Ready for Harvest