Halong Bay

Hello,

It's been a while, but I have made quite a bit of progress since then, so today there are three posts.

After Sapa, I returned to Hanoi. I took a day off there, which was nothing special anymore.

The next day, I continued by bus to Cat Ba, the largest island in Halong Bay and the number one tourist destination in Vietnam.

Unfortunately, as you can imagine, it was incredibly touristy here, but the beaches of the bay are incredibly beautiful.

The next morning, I booked a tour with Cat Ba Green Trail Travel. You can find them in the middle of the city. Here is the link, in case anyone wants to do it:

https://www.catbagreentrail.com

It cost me 26€ for the whole day. This included the day trip by boat, kayak fees, a hearty lunch, and transfer to the hotel. Highly recommended!

My guide, Kong, was also super attentive and totally adorable, taking care of everyone. His English skills were very good.

First, we sailed through a forest of islands, of which there are over 2,600 in the bay. Truly magical. The first stop was two hours later for kayaking. By then, I had already found three other Germans with whom I spent the whole day on the boat. Overall, I took more videos than pictures that day, so there are fewer pictures this time. With the kayak, we went through caves and past more islands into remote bays. It's really amazing here! Highly recommended as a holiday destination!

Later, we sailed a bit further on the boat to stop and swim in a bay. The water is a pleasant 18 degrees but it's too salty. You shouldn't swallow it. This is also where I had my first encounter with a jellyfish the size of a football, which got in my way. Fortunately, I only brushed against it with my hat and suffered no harm except for the scare. Although it wouldn't have been poisonous, I can gladly do without jellyfish stings or the like.

Finally, we stopped at Monkey Island. An island where things really happen. As the name suggests, it is full of monkeys. However, you have to be careful that they don't steal anything from you. These little creatures are very clever and have snatched the phones from some people's hands or taken their juice bottles with a grin. We climbed up the rocks for a good 30 minutes to the top of the mountain. As a climbing enthusiast, I naturally welcomed this and the view later was definitely worth it. There are also more videos of that.

In the evening, back at the hotel, I just quickly showered. I met up with the three people from the boat for a drink in the evening. It was a very successful day.

The next morning, I had to leave again because January 25th is New Year's and all means of transportation will be suspended.

More of that! Let's go!