And 23 Hours Without Internet
Thursday, December 15. We even had Wifi in the car for the 3 1/2 hour drive from Hanoi to Halong Bay. I thought being away from email, SMS and all that was pleasant. Mary thought I’d miss it. I think she may have been projecting.
Pravda Vitezi
That’s a long time to be in a car, particularly with a loquacious tour guide (they feel it is their duty, and I’m fine with that). What’s interesting about that is that, to paraphrase the old Czech saying, ‘Truth will out.’ Yes, as all the reports we see on TV, etc., the Vietnamese are very friendly toward Americans, despite the American War. However, much as they try to gloss it over, the resentment is there, and we found it in not only our tour guide but another ‘tourist handler’ at the Sofitel Hotel Metropolitan. These are two very polished, very professional guides at top-notch establishments, but their facade isn’t impervious. ‘Do you see where the left side of the bridge doesn’t match the right side? That’s where the American bombs fell,’ is just one example of many. Understand that I don’t hold it against them. I understand. I’m the first one to point out the white spots on the front of the Czech National Museum, where the Russians made the Czechs patch the bullet holes from the 1969 invasion.
Halong Bay
We boarded our boat a little before Noon.
Just take all the karsts that line the Li River and dump them into a saltwater pond. Throw in a few beautiful caves. That’s Halong Bay. Going down the Li River, you get to see these wonderful natural sculptures one at a time, at a leisurely pace. At Halong, you’re surrounded by them. I haven’t been so overwhelmed by a sight since my first glimpse of the Grand Canyon. I’m not going to load this down with a lot of photos, as they can’t really put across the impact the real thing has — just like the Grand Canyon, actually.
I haven’t been taking the time on-the-spot sketches, but can’t help myself here.
The boat, the Halong Jasmine, is a retro gem, built recently, but in a 1930’s style. I don’t know much about that style, but the boat is charming as well as comfortable. The staff was also very accommodating. An example: When I sat down to work on a watercolor in the lounge and they turned down the lights for a slide presentation, a staffer came over to my table with a lamp. I got to finish my little watercolor of a couple fishing in Inle Lake.
The Halong Jasmine slid along at a walking pace — perfect for viewing the landscape.
Meals were a mixed bag. Lunch the first day had a very mild chicken curry, but some of the chicken was underdone. Dinner offered beef tenderloin steaks, which were overdone. The rest of the food, mostly Vietnamese, was just fine. But you don’t take a dinner cruise for the food, so all things considered, this was a wonderful trip.
In the afternoon we were taken by tender to a fishing village 80% of Halong’s population was relocated by the government — given houses for free, and training to start a new life; 20% elected to stay and fish in Halong Bay. This was presented as a part humanitarian, part ecological/save the historic and natural beauty move. Six of us were rowed around the area by a woman in a bamboo boat made of fiberglass and wood. After the village, we were taken to a cave owned by the cruise line. Very pretty.
Friday, December 16
In the morning the tenders take us to a tall island in the middle of the bay. 400 steps up there is a platform with a clear view all around. It was hazy, with on-and-off showers, but spectacular.
Then back to the boat for breakfast. We’re told that in order to make our plane we need to be back before the boat’s scheduled return, so we are packed aboard a tender with everyone’s luggage and are zipped ashore about a half hour early.
That wasn’t necessary, but in the final analysis was OK. Turns out the local travel agent had me booked on the flights to Hanoi, Hoi An, and Siem Reap as ‘Steve Kotrch’ instead of the name on my passport. Well, the lady at the counter in Hanoi would not let that pass, and resolving that snafu took extra time that would have been much more tense if we hadn’t arrived extra early. A quick swipe of an Amex card, and we were on our way. Let the travel agent make everything right, we’re on to one of the prettiest Vietnam cities in the guidebook!
Except it’s flooded.