Cat Ba - Island

After a 12-hour night bus ride, we arrived exhausted at our hostel on Cat Ba Island. Finally, we could enjoy the long-awaited beach and sun after the adventurous start in Vietnam. On the first day on the island, we used the opportunity to swim in the sea and sunbathe on the beautiful sandy beach. It was on this day that we also experienced the aggressiveness of the Vietnamese sun. Despite applying sunscreen multiple times, we could clearly see and feel the sunburned areas on our skin. Cat Ba is much more touristy than the places we have been to so far. We were glad to find some restaurants where we could eat something other than rice and eggs. We had our first lunch on the island in a beautiful bungalow.

The next morning, Anna went to Cat Ba National Park to satisfy her wanderlust. There, she saw a snake, many butterflies, Asian squirrels, and other animals. Meanwhile, Emilie relaxed on the beach and treated herself to a coconut. She had enough of hiking since the trekking tour in Sapa.

Since Anna had rented a scooter for the trip to the national park (for only 3€ the whole day!!!), she picked up Emilie from the beach. We spent the rest of the day exploring the island together on the scooter and watching the sunset by the sea. In the evening, we went to a Halloween party where we met some fellow travelers we had encountered in SaPa or Ha Giang. It's fascinating and funny how you keep running into people. It was also interesting to see how people celebrate in Vietnam. After a quick search, we realized that inhaling balloons leads to a high.

For the next morning, we booked a boat tour to Halong Bay. Together with other travelers, we had an eventful day. The views were beautiful. In the middle of the bays, we jumped from our boat into the sea and swam to hidden beaches. We also tried snorkeling, but unfortunately, the water was too cloudy.

Later, we kayaked into narrow dark caves. At some points, we had to lie completely flat in our kayaks to pass through the cave. The view on the other side was breathtaking: turquoise water and high cliffs as far as the eye could see.

While swimming through the bays, we spotted goats on some islands, and many birds of prey were flying around. As the sun slowly set, the boat made a last stop for swimming. We swam together to a hidden beach where we enjoyed the last rays of sun and found some beautiful seashells.

When our boat returned to the harbor, there was a minor accident. Two travelers slipped while getting off the boat and fell into the water. Fortunately, nothing serious happened. Everyone was very helpful and took good care of the shocked passengers.