Filtered sunshine made my boat trip though Halong Bay a bit more mysterious.
The
rocks faded away and enhanced the feel of size and distance.
It is the cool time of year, so it's very inviting
and comfortable in the open air.
Beauty beyond words, that's Halong Bay. It has a certain charm that calms the soul.
I expected more people and crowds of tourists, but many must have been scared off by the typhoon early last month.
It took some effort to get here... an overnight bus from Hue, another bus from Hanoi, a boat and then yet another bus... the journey took about 25 hours total and was completely spontaneous and unplanned. I would not change a thing as everything was done so efficiently.
Obviously, the scenery is spectacular and it's very interesting to observe the floating fishing villages along the way. I find myself tempted to sell everything I have and join with the boat people in their peaceful and simple existence.
Cat Ba Island offers many more activities than I expected.
Also, I am learning that this island has many stories to tell.
Vietnam was not exactly on my top 10 list for exotic places to visit. It was more a case of curiosity for me, probably since I grew up in the Vietnam War era (60's and early 70's) and watched Walter Cronkite announce "That's the way it is" every night after watching the careless bloody battles, agent orange massacres and villages being blown apart with carpet bombing. I was at the age when I was asking the question "why is this world that way?"
I didn't know much about the war in Vietnam and all I care to know now is that the USA didn't belong here. It was an ugly war without good guys or bad guys... it was simply a political disagreement with how things should be. Obviously, the "threat" didn't justify a war, but that's just "the way it was" back then.
