Tag 110: Ninh Binh, the dry Halong Bay

After spending the last three days in Ha Long Bay, today we visited the surroundings of Ninh Binh. It is also known as 'the dry Halong Bay' because it looks exactly the same except for the missing sea. First, we took a boat ride on a rowing boat through several valleys and three caves. Our boatman mostly rowed with his feet, which looked very funny. Our ride lasted about two hours and we couldn't stop marveling at this impressive landscape. After that, we had a cozy lunch at a local restaurant.

After being refreshed, we continued with our motorcycles to a temple cave, where we climbed one of the many mountains. The way up involved a lot of climbing. Once we reached the top, we had a beautiful view of the mountains and valleys.

We then returned with the bikes to the former capital of Vietnam. We were more than disappointed with it. Besides two identical temples and a large square, there was nothing else to see. After this disappointment, we went to the highlight of the day, a viewing platform that could only be reached by 500 steps. After a challenging climb, we enjoyed the most beautiful view of the day. Then we went back to our very cozy homestay amidst these great mountains.