We woke up at 6:30am to get on our bus to Hạ Long at 8:00am from a "Sinh Café". With the bus, or better the big Van, we went together with the other participants of the tour and some others of another one. To shorten the time, the tour guide told us some more or less interesting facts. For example, the name "Hạ Long" means descending dragon. Once, the city was the capital of Vietnam.
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| The Back of the Dragon |
After 2 hours, we had a short break in a big store for tourists where you could buy anything, from pictures over clothes to vases. For example, Carina bought a traditional red Vietnamese dress which suited her really good :) And she got it for about 43 Euro which was about 27 Euro cheaper than normal. Next time, we may ask for the "native" price first ;)
At 12am, we arrived at Hạ Long Bay. First, we had to stay about half an hour at a checkpoint, because four people of our group came with a different bus. After they arrived, we finally got on the boat and were welcomed with juice made of water melons.
We also got lunch, which was a mix of Western and Asian cuisine:
- beef with paprika and rice
- pork meat on sticks with chips
- boiled oysters and squid
- Vietnamese cabbage
- fresh fish out of the sea, from which no one, not even the waiter, didn't know the name
- water melon and Chinese apple
After lunch, we went to a fishing village where we went by kayak. Carina and me took a 2-persons kayak and we went around a bigger island. By the way, Hạ Long Bay has 1969 islands in every size, from small rocks to big islands. When we got out of the kayak, we swam some minutes in the sea, before we had to get back on the boat. By that, I got my first scar of the day on the knee from sharp oysters which had stuck on the pier. Well, you know what they say: "Scars are the first tattoos of a real man." And I sure have a collection of them already :D
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| It's Time for Wine ^^ |
In the afternoon, we got some red wine, litchi, water melon and other fruits to boost us. Afterwards we stopped within a bay, so we could swim. I was the first (and bravest *cough*) and jumped right from the deck on the top of the boat. Amazed by my performance, the others just did the same ;)
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| Walking in the Air is not difficult as it seems ;) |
The feeling to jump right into the water was just ... amazing! Two seconds of pure adrenaline that made me feel alive :) Then I used the time to swim through the sea, lay myself on the water and just listen to the sea, like in Hội An (see
previous post).
Three minutes were just filled with peace and calm. But everything has its price, so I got stung by a jellyfish which had tentacles with a length of about 2m. Also Carina, who jumped some minutes afterwards, was stung too, but she had luck and it wasn't so bad like mine :D
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| The enemy ... |
Well, after a bit ice and a bit of ointment from the tour guide later, I was able to move somehow. And so I got my third wound right afterwards, when I nearly felt from the slippery stairs and cut my arm at a piece of iron sheet from a lamp on deck. Maybe this was my divine punishment for forgetting to ring my bell this morning ;)
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| Can you guess what image the rocks in the center represent? :) |
For dinner, we had again a very big meal. Before, we also learned how to make and roll "Nem" (you know, the Spring Rolls with meat). Well, actually my family and me did them already a lot by ourselves in Germany before :) The menu this time:
- pumpkin soup with coconut milk
- fried corn pieces and boiled oysters
- soup with meshed meat and some vegetables
- grilled shrimps and boiled water spinach
- cucumber and tomatoes with white dressing
- chicken with some vegetables
- dragon fruit and Chinese apple
The night was really great for me, because it was very stormy and because we slept on the boat, I could feel the power of nature :) Man, that's how I like to sleep ... when the world around is in chaos ;)
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