From Hanoi, we took a tour to Ha Long Bay. The ancients described this dappling of limestone islands as the Descending Dragon. The story has it that Hanoi was chosen as a new capital based on a dream of a dragon flying towards it and it was called Ascending Dragon and Ha Long Bay was formed by a dragon crashing into the shoreline of the sea.
We took to the seas in a modernized version of a Junk. We had sails, but we also had a motor and airconditioning if needed. Along with our party of six, our junk carried eight other tourists - two more Canucks, two Thai, two Koreans, and two Russians.
We ate and drank and sailed around little islands stopping at a few sights. The islands are riddled with caves and we had the chance to go inside one of them, but it wasn't that interesting and our guides childish riddles made it a little painful at times.
Our junk carried several small open style Kayaks. (The kind that you can't sink even if you try.) And the highlight, for me, was taking them out on short little trips. We explored the edges of several islands and even had the chance to paddle through a tunnel into a bay that would otherwise be hidden.
Claudio Lopez turned a year older on the trip. It was a beautiful place to celebrate a birthday.
That night, while most played charades and I strummed the old guitar I found on board, the staff watched TV. So it was that we were at sea in a little Junk, when we heard the Tsunami warning. Not where you want to be.
Still, despite a 6'3" bed squeezed into a room not much larger and the possibility of the world's fastest Junk ride, I slept like a baby.
1 comment:
This entry caused me to imagine you at the prow of the Junk, lashed to the mast and careening madly towards the shore, perhaps like the dragon before you, creating a whole new harbour. I am profoundly glad that was averted, I like the harbour name as it stands.
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