#35 The First Days in Vietnam

On May 2nd to May 3rd, 2019, we traveled from the Philippines to Vietnam.

We were very tired from the flight and the time difference. Unfortunately, our hostel forgot to send us a driver. After waiting for 45 minutes at the airport, we decided to buy a SIM card to call the hostel. Luckily, getting a SIM card in Asia is cheap and easy. Just insert the card and you're good to go. For less than 7 euros, we got 8 GB of data and some free minutes.

After calling the hostel, the driver finally showed up. He dropped us off about 100 meters away from the accommodation. We had to walk the rest of the way.

On this short walk, we saw something not so nice and it still shocks us a bit to this day. Two halves of a pig hanging from a scooter, sleeping. They will never wake up again :-( Apparently, this is how meat is transported here.

Finally, we arrived at the accommodation and all we had to do was shower and go to bed.

The next day, we strolled through the streets of Hanoi and walked on the famous train tracks that we had read so much about.

Although trains pass by several times a day, there is a colorful hustle and bustle on the tracks. There are many small restaurants and cafes, and you often encounter women selling snacks from their trays. We decided to have lunch on the train tracks and watch the scene unfold.

For the following day, we booked our two-day Halong Bay tour. It was one of the highlights that we had been looking forward to for a long time. It was also the first time we slept together on a boat.

Halong Bay is a 1500 sqkm area in northern Vietnam. One of its special features is the limestone cliffs rising from the emerald green water and covered in dense rainforest. Since 1994, the bay has been recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site. It is 400 million years old and home to numerous species of animals and plants.

We were picked up at 8 am by our tour guide Hang and headed to Halong by bus. Ten people had cancelled the tour last minute, so there were only seven of us. A small and manageable group.

Once we arrived on the boat, we settled into our cabins and then enjoyed a very varied and plentiful lunch.

Meanwhile, the boat set sail and headed toward the bay. Our first stop was the Sung Sot Cave, also known as Surprise Cave. And we were truly surprised. The entrance and the first part of the cave are relatively small, but as we progressed further, we found ourselves in a giant cave formed by stalactites and stalagmites. It was indescribably huge.

Afterwards, we climbed over 450 steps to an amazing viewpoint overlooking the bay.

Back on the ship, we had a small Vietnamese cooking class on the sun deck. Speaking of the sun, it rarely manages to break through the cloudy sky here in Vietnam. Despite that, the landscape is still beautiful.

But let's get back to the cooking class. We learned how to make the famous Vietnamese rice paper rolls.

Despite the impressive nature and beautiful scenery, Meykel had the most fun squid fishing in the evening. He grabbed a bamboo fishing rod and caught 4 squids for tomorrow's lunch. The crew was very excited, and it was the personal highlight of the tour for Meykel.

The next day, we had a kayaking tour and visited a pearl farm, which we found very interesting.

We learned a lot about oysters and, of course, how to extract pearls.

The boat trip was impressive, and we were continuously provided with great food. Now, it will be difficult for us to top this experience. We are excited to see what comes next.

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