Halong Bay day trip

We hired a tour guide who came with a driver to take us to Halong Bay from our hotel in Hanoi. The trip by car takes about 3.5 hours with a stop at a tourist souvenir centre for about 20 minutes which stocked the same items that are available in the markets and shops in Hanoi. The car ride certainly was an experience with constant lane changing (often on the wrong side of the road ) as we passed through many small villages and rice fields. Some of the cargo being carried on the back of motorbikes had to be seen to believed and the the most astonishing item was a washing machine being transported!

Arriving at Halong Bay the number of boats available to take passengers on a cruise is incredible and despite the large numbers of tourists we boarded our boat efficiently with 8 other tourists. 

A seafood lunch was served on the boat while we headed out to the Bay and I was a bit concerned that the amount of boats would spoil the experience. But due to the vast size of the bay it was certainly peaceful as we motored around the countless limestone pillars and islands. 

The weather was perfect and our tour guide told us that it is such a gamble with the weather and often after arriving the boat rides are cancelled due to the bad weather. Certain tours stop off at the many floating villages along the way but we instead stopped of at a huge caves called  "Hung Dau Go" ( Cave of  Wooden Stakes ) which gets its name from where the Vietnamese use to store sharpened wooden stakes to fight of the Mongolians in the 13 century. 

The caves are reached by climbing 90 steps and once inside there are 3 chambers with many stalactites and stalagmites which our guide had much fun pointing out various formations that looked like certain objects. Some were easily seen but others required a vivid imagination!

Our boat for the the afternoon

Just so many limestone formations 

The symbol of Halong Bay  - Fighting roosters or Kissing chickens

A calm and clear day

Emerald waters of Halong Bay

Despite the large number of boats - peaceful spots could be found

Peaceful Halong Bay

Floating village

Fishing boats

"Dog" on a rock

Hung Dau Go caves

Hung Dau Go caves

Hung Dau Go caves

Hung Dau Go caves

Hung Dau Go caves

The tour boats at the caves

Hanoi - Vietnam

Taking advantage of the Labour Day holiday in Singapore, we headed off to Hanoi for 5 days. As the holiday was also been celebrated in Vietnam the mad traffic most people mention about Hanoi was rather tame in terms of quantity but the lane changing and driving on the wrong side of the road lived up to expectations.
We stayed in the West Lake area which had many large homes lining the lake and was a short taxi ride into town.
The city is divided into different tourist areas and we spent most of the time walking around the French Quarter and also the Old Quarter.
The Old Quarter is the main tourist shopping area and the shops are filled with lacquer products, silk items and woven items made by the hill tribes of Vietnam.
People watching was very entertaining in Hanoi especially the locals going about their daily routines - from the fresh rice noodle sellers, flower sellers , vendors cooking in the street to men having their haircuts and shaves done on the footpaths.

Because of the holiday many families were taking advantage of the days off and were spending the  the day beside the Hoan Kiem Lake.

Martyr's Monument

The Huc Bridge over Hoan Kiem Lake

Thap Rua - Tortoise tower on Hoan Kiem Lake

Peace memorial

Le Thai To monument

Balloon seller

Basket and hat seller

Opera house

Vegetable market

Cooking pork patties in the street

Hanoi Cathedral

Rice noodle seller

Traffic free- for- all

3D cards vendor

One of the many barbers on the footpaths

Hoi An

About a 40 minute ride by car out of Danang is the town of Hoi An. It is recognised as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO as Hoi An is an ancient town that is an exceptionally well-preserved example of a South-East Asian trading port dating from the 15th to the 19th century.
The main part of the city is closed off to traffic during the day and early evening allowing tourists to admire the beautiful old buildings that line the narrow streets and laneways. Many of the houses and shops  are painted in a mustard colour and shutters on the windows in bright red and blue. The old town is dotted with beautiful silk lanterns that are lit up at night and many of the shops sell them as souvenirs.
We spent about five hours wandering around Hoi An and would certainly go back for the charm of the town and also the wonderful Vietnamese food.

Laneway in the oldtown

One of the many Bougainvillea covered shops

Lanterns out the front of a shop

One of the many tailor shops in Hoi An

Children in the street

One of the many lantern shops

Temple 

Flower seller at the market

Lively street in Hoi An

Bright shutters were on most buildings

Plaque reminding people  that no cars or motorbikes are allowed

The lanterns at dusk

Entrance to a temple

Shops along the waterfront

A wedding couple

One of the many locations they chose for the wedding photos

Detail on a lantern

Decorations on the bridge across the river

A long weekend in Danang

Danang is one of the major port cities in Vietnam and the biggest city on the South Central Coast of Vietnam. Danang is also a up and coming beach holiday destination and is favoured by the wealthy Vietnamese as a holiday spot. Flying time is roughly three hours from Singapore. Danang seems to have put infrastructure in place for future developments unlike places such as Phuket in Thailand. We were staying at the year old InterContinental Danang Sun Peninsula Resort which is about 35 minutes from the airport and away from the main holiday strip. The hotel had its own beach and is set in the side of the Mythical Monkey Mountain. The Hotel also draws inspiration from the French who occupied Danang previously and local architecture.
The resort would have to be one of the most beautiful resorts we have stayed in in terms of setting and attention to detail in the buildings and surrounds.

Monkey sculptures featured throughout the resort

Pods for outdoor dining

Foyer entrance

Traditional sculptures

Opposite the entry foyer

Traditional basket boat

Traditional basket boat

View of the resort from the beach

The Cable car to take you from your accommodation to the restaurants 

Quite a step ride

View from reception

Interesting spot to relax

Temple in the grounds

The Long Bar