Ha Long Bay - what a tranquil place.

We arrived here after a 4 hour bus journey from Hanoi. Our tour consisted of spending 2 days and 1 night on the Opera Cruise - a large junk boat. We also spent time in a floating fishing village - some of whose inhabitants have never set foot on firm ground - and trekked through the Hang Sung Sot (cave of surprises) - a series of large limestone caves.

The view of Ha Long Bay from Hang Sung Sot was spectacular. The cave itself is about 25m above sea level, but to get to it, we needed to climb a series of steep stairs which are covered by shady trees and foliage. The inside of the caves is illuminated by different coloured lights, which does add to the appeal. We also saw the c*** rock" - a penis shaped stalactite growing out of the ceiling of one of the caves. Seen bigger…..

Later we were given a cooking lesson in how to make Vietnamese spring rolls - will definitely be trying that again when we get home. A karaoke evening was also arranged for us after supper, which we politely declined, but which was enjoyed by the German travellers. However, after the 5th or 6th song, the entire audience had vanished. So much for the dulcet voices of our Teutonic friends….

The next morning at 6am, I took part in a Tai Chi class on the outer upper deck. This activity is very popular in Vietnam and I must admit that I also enjoyed it - just needed the black silk pyjamas and kung fu slippers and I would have looked pretty cool. Jo chose not to join us, as she has the flu….and she isn't an early morning person (as you all should know by now).

Following on the exercise, a couple of us cooled off with a swim around the boat, after which we chilled out on the deck, before heading back to the harbour. From there it was a 4 hour bus ride back to Hanoi.

Later tonight we leave by train for the rice terraces of Sapa in the far northeast of Vietnam (near the Chinese border).