Halong Bay

We took a tour south of Hanoi to go and sleep on a boat and see the islands of Halong Bay.  Now, I have been on tours before so I knew that the bus would take longer than the quoted 2 and half hours, and that they would stop at huge shops with grossly overpriced souvenirs, and that we would be herded like cattle from one place to the next, and that the wine and fruit party would consist of a third of a cup (an actual cup) and one fruit.  This was news to John, though, who has always been an independent traveler, so I think this may have been our last tour.  (I wish I'd known that the bed would have no mattress on it.)

But the bay made up for the shortcomings of the tour. It was spectacular.  The area has about 800 limestone islands jutting out of the sea, almost every one with vertical cliffs.  The shorelines have a distinctive shape as the water has carved away the base of each island and also has created a number of caves.

Everyone traveling to Vietnam wants to come here and stay over on a boat, which meant that we were one of at least 45 other boats in our little area each with a load of people wanting the same experience.  

The best part, besides just marveling at the islands, was a short kayak trip  paddling among the islands and watching the golden monkeys argue and scale the sheer rock faces.  Fantastic.