Cat Ba Island.

Off the bat I have to declare two things. Cat Ba is amazingly beautiful. All of Halong Bay is dotted with Karsk formation islands, spears of ancient sea beds forced skyward and perpendicular to how they were laid down, now covered with thick, lush jungle. Cat Ba is the largest island in the bay and most of it's area is Karsk peaks rising from the jungle.

The second thing I have to declare is that it was FUCKING FREEZING when we visited. We didn't pack for the kind of weather we experienced here, but we toughed it out and had a good time.

Cat Ba and the surrounding area is, like Clayquot Sound, a specially recognized and protected bio zone, home to the world's only population of Golden Lemers and other species. About half the island is national park and the rest has little development - though this is changing with a massive resort hotel under construction on the south of the island. 

Our rooms were exceptional, large with two queen sized beds, great shower and stunning views over the harbour, all for $12 a night. One drawback is that there is no heat in any hotel on the island, though there was a duvet on each of the beds. As long as we stayed under the covers, we were golden.

We stayed for two nights and during our full day on island we got the full meal deal. We rented a scooter and first visited the "hospital cave". This is an amazing thing. One of the features of most Karsk formations is that they are made up of rock of widely varying hardnesses. As a result, erosion has created many caves within these structures. Inside this particular small mountain is a very large cave, large enough that the Viet Cong were able to construct out of concrete a three story hospital to treat wounded solders within the mountain.

We also stopped a the Cat Ba National Park and climbed a small Karsk mountain. The trail goes nearly virtical up the side of the Karsk. We went down every road on the island and arrived back in town whole. We finished the day with an hour and a half tour of the harbour in a small boat, though it really was too cold for it.

It's too bad the weather sort of chased us to warmer climes - I feel like it would be really worthwhile to explore Cat Ba more.

As I write we are on a sleeper (not) bus to Hue. 21 hours of travel from Cat Ba. Arg.

Super cool boats made from banana leaves.

View from our balcony, Cat Ba Island.

Hospital cave used Viet Cong.

Cat Ba National Park ( we climbed to the base of the tower Kim is pointing to in pic #3)

Hanoi

Hey kids. Miss me? Sorry for the break but I spent time being a tourist and, rather than filling my spare moments blogging, I read a book.

Hanoi has been a ton of fun. We stayed in the old quarter which initially can be a bit un-nerving. The streets were originally named based on the type of goods that were sold in that section of the street. (The convention of businesses of a similar ilk clustering still holds - all houseware retailers are found in just a few blocks of Bac Su next to a few blocks of kid's toys, etc.) As a result, Hang Na becomes Hang Dieu which becomes Hang Ga all within six blocks, and it is a street that runs strait north out of the old quarter, the name changing every one or two blocks. Desperately clutching a city map, we were able to see a lot if this great city.

Dispite how heavily populated Hanoi is, virtually every street is tree lined. Ancient looking trees lean out over the narrow roads and lanes of Hang Na, fine tap roots creating curtains which drape down to the car tops. Get into the wealthy areas around the presidential palace and huge mango trees shade the broad avenues. Hanoi has much urban space dedicated to park space and this is reflected in the quality of the air.

It is hard to believe that such a (relatively) clean and pretty city was, only 35 years ago, still having the shit bombed out of it by Amercan B52's.

After arriving we were searching for the area where we hoped to find a room and stopped a French couple - Adeline and Erwin we later learned - to ask directions. Once settled we headed out for dinner, stopping at a corner bar. After being seated we noticed that these folks were at a nearby table. After a bit of chit chat, we joined them and spent the evening eating, drinking and chatting.

Our first full day in Hanoi began with a little orienteering. I was up early and found Hoan Kiem, a small lake in the centre of Hanoi around which a broad walk circles. I also tracked down the major roads that cut through the old quarter, in all their sobriquets. We visited the "Hanoi Hilton", went down most alley ways in the area, and ate some pretty good food. Lonely Planet leads one to believe that great food is everywhere at hand in Hanoi, but my experience is that it talks a bit of finding. It is worth the looking. We joined Adeline and Erwin for a drink before taking in the famed Hanoi Water Puppet show. I hardly slept at all during the show, just ask Kim. The four of us finished the night with dinner.

 In the morning of our second day we had a short visit with Ho Chi Minh - no shit, they have pickled him and put him on display ala Lenin. Damn, he looks good. We were visiting on a Sunday and tens of thousands of folks joined us for a visit. We followed this up with a brief stop at the Musum of Literature, the oldest university in Vietnam (1000 years plus). This attraction drew thousands as well, though as it is a fraction of the size of Ho Chi Minh's tomb, the crowds soon forced us out. I felt like the coach of some sports team whilst trying to find the museum. We wandered down a warren of lanes hoping to run into the road the museum is on. That road is at one point named Nguyen and then becomes Thai. So I was encouraging Kim to look for a Thai (pronounced "tie") or a Nguyen (pronounced "win").

We later braved the Hanoi Public transit system to travel cross town to purchase our tickets for Cat Ba Island. Took a bit of doing and lots of kindness from strangers whose language we don't speak, but we worked it out. We wrapped up the night with a hot pot dinner with our new pals.

One of the great past times for me in Hanoi was to sit at a streetside restaurant and watch the traffic. There are a crazy number of vehicles on the streets and almost no traffic lights. No driver stops before entering an intersection. Everyone just goes, weaving and dodging, stopping short as a last resort, but only briefly, before scooting ahead. And it works! If Vancouver had this much traffic and most drivers observing the rules of the road, it would be grid lock. But taking a taxi across Hanoi is a fairly speedy experience. Unless there is an accident (I'm making an assumption here as we didn't see any accidents) everything flows surprisingly well.

I mentioned the fact that similar businesses are clustered. Another example is at the market in the Hang Na area. This market, unlike most outdoor markets we have seen in Southeast Asia, is in a three story, newish, big building. In this building is a section that is about 150' by 150' and is completely populated by 6' wide stalls, all of which sell booze. There must be  50 or 60 of them and they all carry the exact same products at the exact same prices. ?????? How does this work?

On to Cat Ba in Halong Bay.

Some Hanoi architecture.