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April 10, 2007

Halong Bay-Cat Ba-Haiphong

We're back in Hanoi after a few days away. We took a bus to Halong City and then got a slow boat that took us around Halong Bay. It was beautiful and so relaxing to be away from the noise and pollution of Hanoi.

Our guide told us that there are 4 million people who live in Hanoi, and 2 million motorbikes so walking around the city can make one tired pretty quick! Tonight I'm especially feeling the pollution, Josh and I walked a lot and my throat is hurting from the fumes of the motorbikes. I took a few motorbikes around town and am amazed that there aren't more fatalities every day. Vietnamese drivers seem to not believe in ever stopping, they slow down and honk even when driving onto oncoming traffic, to let people know to get out of the way. It's really an experience in itself!

While on Cat Ba island, Josh and I took a motorbike ride to Hospital Cave. The cave was amazing. During the war, the Viet Cong built a fully-operational hospital in this cave because they knew it couldn't be bombed by the Americans. The hospital even had a swimming pool and a movie theater for officers! The guy that shows you around is really funny. He's a former officer for the Vietnamese army and makes each person that comes visit sing "Vietnam Ho Chi Minh" over and over again. I took photos and will upload soon.

For anyone heading to Halong Bay, Cat Ba is certainly worth the visit. Five years ago, Josh and I traveled in Vietnam for a month but it seems we missed out on many of the national parks. I only wish we had more time to see more... there's always next time!

Ok posting this now to make sure it works and will post more in a minute.

Posted by insideoutmag at April 10, 2007 04:38 AM

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