We had decided before the trip that we definitely wanted to go to Halong Bay but because on our (Jen and Shell) previous trip we bussed it all the way there - 4 hours and when we got there the weather was deemed unacceptable and we weren't allowed onto the boats - even to sit in the harbour and so we had to look at the harbour from the land. We had lunch in a dodgy Chinese restaurant and were bussed back another 4 hours. So we were keen not to relive this adventure.
We booked the trip but when we awoke to a torrential downpour we talked to Flower, at the hotel's front desk and she was very optimistic saying "A little rain there and then stop." By the time we the car came to pick us up it had stopped raining, so the tour was all go!
All being from Geraldton, which for those non West Australians is about a 4.5 hour drive from Perth (our nearest big smoke city) this drive was like a trip up to Gero. We piled into the car with the same driver we had from the airport, who's name we learned was Vin. His English hadn't improved in 4 days and even though we had bought a phrase book and had been practising, our Vietnamese wasn't any flasher either! This looked like it might be along drive on charades.
He used his iTranslate app on his phone to ask us questions like
'Are you three sisters?'
'Which one is your daughter?'
'How old are you?'
'How old is the momma?'
and then told us some things like,'You 3 fat as pigs' and then would double over laughing! He repeated himself a few times in different ways because clearly we weren't getting the joke!
When we replied: "Oi Zoi Oi" (Oh My God in Vietnamese) and I fumbled madly for my translation app to explain that if you want a tip you might want to curb the fat jokes!
He assured us that "the Vietnam joke" and I assured him that "the Australia don't think funny"
So....... poor Vin had lost any hope of getting a tip in the first 30 minutes of the drive!
He did drive very well though through this CRAZY traffic in the rain.
We arrived in Vietnam's equivalent of Cataby (the roadhouse about half way between Perth and Geraldton where many chips and crumbed cheese sausages have been purchased and consumed) and bought chocolate biccies, pringles and lollies...... Yes, we're aware that we were perpetuating the fat stereotype! But, when in Cataby.......
The drive to Halong Bay took us through the most eclectic countryside scenery. The fields are picturesque with the Vietnamese women in their traditional conical hats working near their parked bicycle and next to a couple of bullocks. Then next to the field would be a pile of rubble that was there for no obvious reason.
It's like somebody once had a great plan for Vietnam and started lots of projects, but then lost interest and walked away with everything half finished and nobody can find the original plans. The Vietnamese don't seem to mind and maybe it's that they don't know any different or maybe there just isn't the money to complete anything or maybe, just maybe they like it like that and it's not for us to judge.
Four long hours later, the mountains of Halong Bay came into view. We went straight to our boat via tender. The whole scene looked like chaos in a harbour, but everyone knew what they were doing and where they were going and it ran like a well oiled machine which makes you think that maybe we don't need all our rules and regulations to get by in life.
Life jackets are so in right now
Our boat, the Paloma was a lovely old wooden jobby with three levels and a roof top deck for sunning yourselves in the overcast conditions.
We were greeted by the very friendly staff on board and seated immediately in the dining room where over the next 24 hours we would be force fed a trillion Vietnamese dishes - honestly, the food just kept on coming!
Our cabins were very cozy and comfortable. There were a list of regulations for the boat written in the compendium. Here are a few of my favourites:
1. Tourists should follow crew members instructions and not not move around in confusion.
2. Do not propaganda and perform any illegal activities in any ways.
3. Manners of service should be should be courteous, friendly and blissful. Always requesting passenger to keep hygiene in the right place.
Sailing through the calm waters of the bay was lovely, even if it was a little chill in the wind. We passed lots of boats like this one. This guy had a couple of boats rafted together. The dog in the background had to do a bouncy run unto get across.
The chap was clearly unhappy about being photographed by the millions of tourists floating by and must have thought that his only revenge was to whip out his peen...... you may have to zoom in quite bit to see it. I didn't notice it when I took the photo, so it was a nice little surprise when I downloaded the pics on my computer.
The Captain was a fairly relaxed sort of chap. He wore dancing shoes around the boat and he drove the boat with his bare feet.
Jenny loves being the prop in my travel photos and she was just as excited to have to climb over the lounges to get into "Rose, from Titanic's King of the World". We all appreciate it though.
And another Titanic interpretation.....
The bay is filled with hundreds of boats of all different shapes and sizes from giant cargo ships to tiny little fishing rafts and they all seem to share the water ways harmoniously, or at least the little ones know when to get out the way of the big ones.
This big tanker comes out the middle of the bay and all the little boats come and meet it for fuel and whatnots. It's a little bit like those sucker fish that feed off whales and sharks.
The story of how Halong Bay came to be is the stuff of legends. The story starts many years ago when the people of Vietnam were tired to being invaded from countries to the north like China and Mongolia, so the Gods sent down a dragon to help them. The dragon would fly down and breath fire to burn the invaders' boats and use his big tail to cause a tsunami to drown the rest. The dragon apparently spat out pearls as he flew around which became the thousands of islands in the bay. The dragon had baby dragons and they can be seen in a smaller bay where the islands are smaller. I know that the dragon is a traditional symbol of Vietnam and in fact, a lot of Asian countries, but I reckon that someone just saw this island ⬇ and made up the story. It's funny that the legend doesn't mention anything about water and wind erosion, nor does it mention possible volcanic activity, but who am I to question a legend that is thousands of years in the making?
Look at this lovely photo of me and me Jenny. It looks like she's just had a great idea......
We've been very good at trying new foods on this trip, even if it's just to have a bit from each other's plates.
Here we have Jenny on the pancakes, Marie with an omelette.... Not terribly Vietnamese, but delicious nonetheless!
No comments:
Post a Comment