Ha Long Bay

 Hanoi Fine Arts Museum - Lacquered Ha Long Bay

Choosing a way to visit the jewel of Vietnam is not an easy task: so many options, so many boat operators, and so many different prices. We shopped around and decided to trust a very dynamic young Vietnamese lady (actually they all are dynamic in this country!). So from Hanoi we started our journey in a minivan full of Germans (here they are...we found them in Vietnam if not in India and in Philippines), and fortunately (well nothing against the Germans but when they are in group, they kind of speak German) with two Spanish, one Australian and his shy but nice Vietnamese friend.

After 4 hours of bus, we finally reached Halong City and got transferred to our  boat. It was a very beautiful one with sails in the Chinese way, all wooden living room and bedrooms. The deck was the best place to enjoy the views of the famous and definitely amazing Halong bay. Thousands of limestone islands pop in the sea, like layers of mountains. Sun is a blessing there as most of the time it is foggy and cold. We got lucky enough to enjoy a good enough weather. The second night we stopped in a resort truly unbelievable in an isolated island. From there we took the kayak and explored the bay. Some parts, La han bay therefore not protected by Unesco, are used for oyster farming. Some people live on a floating platform, completely isolated for long periods, to farm them. Most of them have a dog for companion, poor dogs trying to walk on the floating wooden platforms...Anyway, those guys must earn nothing, even though they spend their time in one of the most beautiful place in the world. Thanks to our organised tour (a bit of irony there as we are not fan of schedules but we realised in Vietnam, sometimes, there is just no other way to visit places) we went to see a pearl farm. It was quite interested to see the process and the different colors of pearls they get, depending on the food and the type of oysters. But back to the cruise, our boat sliding around the islets, for the last few days of our trip in Vietnam.

Pearl farm

We found Him again in Halong bay: Shiva!!

Fantastic Cat Bay resort!

Final note on tourism in Vietnam

Vietnam is really a special place to visit. By history they have developed a two-way system in which tourists hardly get access to local prices. We are used to take local bus, train, eat local food, etc....but in Vietnam, a local bus controller will ask you to pay double or triple the normal price. When eating in the local eateries, on the pavement, we realised we were at least double charged. It meant that eating in a clean and nice restaurant was cheaper! It is not  a big deal when you translate in pounds, of course, but it gives a kind of bitter taste sometimes. On top of it some areas like the Mekong delta or Halong bay can not be easily visited without a tour operator. 

This is probably why most of the tourists do not come back to Vietnam, in comparison with Thailand or other countries. 

We met some very smiley and nice people, but they are the youngest ones. The older generation has definitely been marked by hard times and for most of them tourists = $ only.

They can't be blamed as reading about the history of Vietnam, one can't help wondering how this people could be so resilient and brave. Since WWII, they suffered war after war...and the first 10 years of communism until 1986 were an economic disaster. Foreign investments have brought money since the 90's, and a better future for the 50% of Vietnamese who are below 25 years-old. 

But the conclusion is that it s more relaxing to be among curious and chatty for the pleasure of being so Indians, chilled out and sweet Filipinos, partying type and professional Thais, hospitable and smiley Malays......rather than ultra dynamic and business-oriented Viet.