Sadly, we had to check out of our heavenly room on the club floor of the Sofitel Metropol in Hanoi. Yet as the entire time has been with my parents, we were okay with that because we knew there were more luxurious accommodations waiting for us in Ha Long Bay. After a 4 hour drive, we came upon the coast filled with limestone karst formations jutting out of the ground, similar to what we saw in Yangshuo and the northern Vietnamese coast, but this time, the hills thwarted out of the water, not the ground. This area is known as one of the most beautiful landscapes in all of Asia, and it didn't disappoint us.
We boarded our boat, the Ha Long Jasmine, and were escorted to our private suites which Anna Marie said were the only two on the boat. Whether that's true or not, it was amazing to stay in such an incredible room on such a small boat. Too bad we were only going to be on the boat for one night.
After the captain welcomed us and explained all of the obligatory safety procedures, Tony, Tania, and I jumped on a mini boat which took us to the Hang Sung Sot caves. After a 10 minute hike which paled in comparison to our climb to the Phong Nha caves, we entered a huge system of wide open caves which were lit with neon lights, just like we had seen in other caves across Vietnam. I slid my body through a "short cut" (aka a tight opening off the beaten path that no one is stupid enough to try and get through), Tony took-in life-like formations amongst the stalactites/mites (one rock looked just like a giant tortoise, on which people threw money for good luck), and Tania took several attempts at her "Happiness is what we all want" portion of our Vietnam video. It was an exhilarating site trip to set foot on one of the thousands of formations that fill this famous bay.
Inside the Hang Sung Sot Caves
Some people also took a mini boat trip into another part of the bay, but the Palumbos opted to relax on the big boat and catch up on some sleep. When dinner rolled around, we enjoyed a delicious buffet meal before the captain stood next to our table, asked the room to quiet down for a minute, and proceeded to sing a famous Vietnamese wedding song for Tania and me. We couldn't help but shed a tear as he delicately voiced the chorus "It's okay to spend the rest of your life with me." It was an incredible gesture that reminded us why we were on this trip in the first place. The captain then gave us a delicious piece of cake which we shared with our table and those sitting around us, which included a very funny and gregarious couple from Ireland (Sandy and his wife).
Sunset on the majestic Ha Long Bay
After dinner, Tony and Anna Marie taught Tania and me how to play bridge, which if you know how to play, you know that teaching it is harder than most anything on this planet. Think teaching someone how to drive a stick, speak a new language, and hitting a baseball, all combined, and you have the complexity of trying to teach someone how to play bridge. After a few practice rounds we played for real, and with some help, were able to grasp the general rules and strategies of the game. Now that we have that down, we can play all the time when we're in Phoenix. YAY!
Our home for a day, the Ha Long Jasmine
The morning was uneventful before we docked and jumped back in our van to drive to the Hanoi airport. On the way we stopped at some shopping centers which supposedly are filled with hand-made crafts from locals, but we were skeptical when we saw many of the same goods sold elsewhere in Vietnam and China. They did have some decent stuff, though, so we took advantage of this final opportunity to buy gifts for people back home.
Then we were off back to Saigon so the old people could spend one last night at the Saigon Park Hyatt before flying back to the US at 4am, and so the youngins could spend two last days in Saigon with Steve and Lisa before taking off for Malaysia.
All in all, we couldn't deny the beauty of Ha Long Bay, but the hippie side of us couldn't help but notice the incredible amount of gas and trash blanketing the top layer of the water. Since the bay is such a popular tourist attraction, the locals have populated the water with more boats than we could count, which obviously is going to soil the water beyond any natural condition. All we could think of is that our friend Lauren Horner (Hey LB!) needed to open a Waterkeeper office here and clean this place up before it's completely ruined.
Any way, no more tangents. We loved it up here, and if you can, try to spend a few days taking-in the awe inspiring views of Ha Long Bay. Just try and do it with as little impact on the environment as possible.
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