We drove for four hours this morning from Ha Noi to Ha Long Bay, and the drive was certainly worth the while.  Along the way we saw farmers planting rice in the traditional way.  Occasionally we also saw a mechanized plow but there was no sign of any automated planting.

We arrived in Ha Long which, much to my (and many of my colleagues’) disappointment is starting to look like a Western resort – highrises of concrete and glass crowding a beach. The government of Viet Nam has placed strict use conditions on Ha Long Bay, but apparently not on the town. It would have been lovely to see development look a bit more southeast Asian. But the country also needs money and the West – and perhaps China? – has lots to spend here.

We boarded the MV Emeraude along with a young family of five and three British workers on vacation from Singapore – in other words, the vessel was essentially ours.  We had small but well-appointed staterooms, complete with toilet and shower. There was a comfortable deck on the third level and a dining room on the first.

Ha Long Bay in the Gulf of Tonkin is a UNESCO Heritage Site, characterized by limestone karsts that jut out of the water. It was a misty day; each time we passed through a small channel another collection of karsts would appear in decreasing sharpness the further away they were.

People live in floating villages on Ha Long Bay, making their living fishing and selling to tourists. We were not alone on our voyage but in many ways it felt like we were. We moved through the water virtually silently from one misty view to another.

A major attraction on Ha Long Bay is Sung Sot cave, the largest of the Ha Long Bay caves.  We climbed steep stairs – of course! – to discover an other-worldly landscape. A path led the way through the cave which with its dramatic lighting appeared ready to serve as the set for another Indiana Jones film.[PHOTO_ID_L=cave-photo-5.jpg] I have posted several photos here – I could have posted many more! – but they really do not convey the size and many fantastic formations of the stalagmites and stalactites along the way.

Walking at times was a little challenging, but all of us who chose to tour the cave made it up and down and through without incident.  We ended the day with a fine dinner and a screening of Indochine which was filmed at least in part on Ha Long Bay. I lasted about 20 minutes then started nodding off which proved problematic – I missed so many subtitles that I became hopelessly confused, so went to bed instead.  I shall have to watch the movie once I’m home!

After mooring for the night among many other tourist boats, we strangely had the Bay to ourselves for our return to land. The morning was clearer than the previous day and very still and silent and ethereal. A lovely way to bring our tour of Southeast Asia to a close.