May 7, 2012
Before I moved to Vietnam, one of the things that
most impressed me about the country were pictures I had seen of Ha Long Bay.
The beautiful pictures showed romantic views of limestone islands sitting in
gorgeous blue water, and I knew this would be a place that I would have to
visit!
Much to my surprise, when I arrived in Ho Chi Minh City I realized that this magical
place was pretty far away. Unfortunately, after a year of working in, and
traveling around, this impressive country I had yet to accomplish my goal of
visiting the bay. Recently, while on a business trip to Hanoi, I took a few extra days and finally
got to Ha Long Bay.
I booked a tour with a local Hanoi travel agent recommended by a friend. I
knew that I didn’t want to go for a cheap, low budget tour on my first visit to
the bay so I decided to go for one of the nicer, but still affordable, options.
When I had everything booked I could barely sleep because I was so excited.
A bus picked me up in Hanoi in the morning and we made the long
drive to the boats. I was surprised how long the drive took as I originally
thought that Ha Long Bay was closer to the city. Still, the ride was
comfortable and we made it to the water with few complaints. Plus, while we drove
along, we got the chance to introduce ourselves to the other travelers who
would be joining us on our adventure.
We boarded a small boat at the somewhat chaotic and
crowded marina and rode out to the larger boat we would be spending the night
on. The boat was beautiful with a rustic, wooden exterior that fit perfectly
with the timeless location that surrounded us. Although the boat looked like a
more traditional vessel, inside it was equipped with all the modern amenities
that you would expect in a modern hotel room. The beds were comfortable and the
rooms were surprisingly large for being on a boat.
Slowly, the boat moved into the area of the towering
islands. Although I had seen many pictures I was unprepared for how truly
impressive the rock formations are in real life! They were truly amazing to
look at and compared to nothing else I had ever seen.
Eventually, the boat came to a stop where the rocks formed
a kind of natural harbor. Here we exited and got the opportunity to check out a
large cave toward the top of one of the large islands. The inside of the cave
was massive, bigger than any other cave I had been to and I was surprised that
it was in as good of shape as it was, considering the amount of tourists that
pass through it daily. While I thought the cave was nice, the best part was the
view it afforded from its high location. The boats resting on the calm water
next to the islands were truly a sight to see, it reminded me of something you
would see in a ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’
movie!
After exploring the cave, we had a couple of hours to kayak around in the clear, blue water. I had really been looking forward to the kayaking and it didn’t disappoint. Although the outside temperature was cooler than in HCM city I was surprised by how warm the water was as I paddled along.
Once we were finished it was time for dinner on
the boat. We ate some delicious seafood as the sun sat around us and the rocks
were bathed in an orange light. Once night fell I retired to my room where I
peacefully went to sleep. I rested peacefully as the water was gentle and there
was barely a sound outside.
In the morning we watched the sun rise over the landscape,
had a simple breakfast and cruised out of the bay. Overnight, clouds had crept
into the area and we got the chance to see a more mystical, foggy side of the
bay. This was charming in its own way and I felt like an early explorer
discovering a new land.
Finally we made it back to the mainland, boarded a bus and
returned to the city. I didn’t want to leave such a magical place but I knew
this would be the first of many trips as I don’t think I could ever spend
enough time in this picturesque land that is truly a natural wonder.
Angela Schonberg
Source: Tuoi tre news
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