A Trip to Ha Long Bay

Our first full day in Ha Noi was spent, not in Ha Noi, but on a day trip to Ha Long Bay. This was a trip I was really looking forward to -8 years ago, there was a typhoon the day we were supposed to go, so the trip never happened.


This time, perfect weather. The only downside of the trip was the 3.5 hour bus ride to get to the boat dock and of course another 3.5 hours back to our hotel. In terms of distance, access to the bay is about 130 km out of Ha Noi; in Canada, this would constitute at most a 2 hour trip, depending on speed limit and traffic. Here, the highway speed limit is lower (like between 60-80 km/hr) and even less when travelling through the many towns along the way, and the roads seem to be in a constant state of construction (kind of like parts of Saskatoon in the summer). Of course, there are always the fun traffic games of dodge-bike, chicken, passing in corners, and guess which side of the road we’re going to drive on. And those take time!

So, basically, there was a lot of sitting on the bus, which didn’t have a lot of leg room. The air conditioning worked fine at the front of the bus, but apparently not at the back, which made the trip back to the city really unpleasant for some people. My first act of glory upon getting on the bus in the morning was to crack/dislocate/bruise/somehow injure a rib by tripping, landing heavily into my seat, and smacking my side against the window frame. No deep breaths for me anymore!

But Ha Long Bay itself was worth the long ride. A UNESCO World Heritage site, this is a submerged karst mountain landscape. In other words, limestone mountains, which have been gradually shaped through erosion, and chemical reactions, rising out of the ocean. There are a huge number of caves in the 1,969 islands, and more are being found every year.

We arrived at the boat dock, and after a wait for 2 passengers arriving from another bus, finally boarded the boat. The first item was lunch, which we fell on like ravenous wolves. When we lifted our heads from our plates, we realized that we were now well into the innermost ring of islands.

Our first stop was at a floating fishing village, where we had the option of kayaking or taking a small boat ride into a wet cave (cave immersed in the sea). Ken and I kayaked around the area, and were able to get a great view of the rock formations and clear water. The day was hot, the water was warm, and with no spray skirts, we were quite soaked by the end of the trip. We managed to partially dry out on the top observation deck on the way to our next stop.

Sung Sot Cave is a dry cave (out of the water) discovered in the early 1990s, and now modified and lit to receive tourists. The cave has a number of chambers, connected by constructed stairs. The tour guide warned us that the cave would be cool….it was cooler than the outside, but extremely humid, so everyone was still sweating by the time the tour was through. Inside the cave, the guide pointed out stalagmites and tites which resembled various animals, body parts, and other items.

After a leisurely ride back to Ha Long City, we boarded the bus for another long ride back to Ha Noi. When we got there, in spite of the late hour and sore butts, a few of us decided to go out for a Ha Noi institution -bia hoi. But, more about that in a later post!