Halong Bay & Sapa Trekking.... "Read My Lips... No More Tours!!"

Don't get me wrong, we had a wonderful experience on both those tours but enough is enough. It is really hard to be an independant traveller in Vietnam. It would cost as much (sometimes more) to book the same tours privately. The system works to keep tourists pretty much on the same route. The good thing about this is that you keep running in to people you have met. We have made some good friendships here in Vietnam. Most of us are itching to get away from being babysat. There is just something about following a little person with a bright coloured flag..... "Hurry Up.... Hurry Up and Wait!!" Arghhhhh!

OK, that's off my chest, I can tell you about our two trips. Halong Bay was beautiful. Though the skys were misty we had pretty good visibility. Booked a three day tour which includes one night on a boat and another in Cat Ba City. We were picked up and crammed in to a mini bus (14 happy people and one bubbly tour guide). It was raining as we left Hanoi so spirits were pretty 'damp'. However, about one hour on the road the factories thinned out and the landscape became pretty interesting with the odd limestone mountain. After our 'Happy Stop' (read: bathroom) it was only a short journey to the gong show otherwise know as Halong Bay Pier. Hundreds of boats all bobbing around and waiting for our business. It turns out that little is arranged before you get there. Our (bubbly) guide left us in a lump while she bought tickets and proceeded to find an available boat. She did pretty well. After stumbling across a few other boats we made it to ours and had another bumper boat experience as everyone tried to take off at the same time. The crossing was beautiful. The scenery mixed with a great group of tourists meant a lot. As the mountains came out of the mist there was silence. It is an awesome experience. The tour included a visit to a huge cave as well as kayaking into a lagoon. We took lots of pictures as we had the only waterproof camera.... will e-mail them off. One of the group managed to tip over much to his wife's amusement (she wasn't the one in the boat with him). Shane and I even went swimming afterwards, on purpose. The others thought that only Canadians would do something like that. It was actually pretty warm (when you got out). Those of you who have been on this trip will know what it is like in that magical place. With the mist the sounds were muffled and we slept like babies.... Shane & I in one of the two nice rooms on the upper deck. The next day we were dropped off on Cat Ba Island where our kayak guide met us for a 'full day' kayaking. Shane & I were the only two on this part of the tour..... just us, our guide, our big boat and a cook. Pretty nice. Kayaking here is magical. The area we went to that day was much less crowded. With a guide we were able to meet some of the local fishermen and just go where we wanted to go. It was a great morning. Lunch was a spectacle with giant prawns, grilled fish, vegs etc etc. We felt quite spoiled.... then after lunch we were taken to Monkey Island to see the (6) monkeys and climb (a frightening) path to take a look at "the amazing and beautiful scenery". Four hours later we left the island! Had to wait for the rest of our group to join us and then they needed their two hours to climb and see the (6) monkeys and the "amazing and beautiful scenery". If we had known about the time we would have taken out the kayaks again. Language is a problem.... that and the fact that our guide didn't know much about kayaking. He swamped when we landed on the island.... and didn't know why?
Anyway.... we had a good tour of the area and our unused muscles were ready to take a break.
Back in Hanoi we had booked the next tour to begin that night with the overnight train to Sapa.
Wait... get on the bus.... wait.... get on the train.... wait..... sleep (?)... get up.... wait.... get on he bus... get out & store your bags.... eat breakfast.... meet in lobby at 8AM.... wait.... trek at 10AM. It's an experience.
Still a misty day but it turned out to be the best few days of the week. We trekked through a few villages (trek 20 min.... rest..... trek 20 min... you get the picture). Certainly less difficult than Myanmar. Rice terraces and little villages, water buffalo and locals in native dress. It would have been even more wonderful if those cute little local ladies (and children) didn't follow us the whole time trying to sell us anything they had. I did get a couple of things thinking that would stop them but it turned out to be a sign on my back that said "Look, she's buying!" Eventually our sense of humor won out and we all had fun. Got some great pictures.
The next day was part of the same. Scenery was equally magnificent.... saw how the locals lived in a very unique way. However, our homestay turned out to be a small guesthouse with visions of growing up to be a bar. After dinner they turned on the DVD player and the other guide started calling people in to come and dance. He must have been getting a cut of the beer sales. The party was right outside our (curtained) bedroom. The guesthouse was right next to a sign that clearly shows the rules of the village. Number 3 in the 'don't' section says don't make noise after 10PM. Arghhhhh!! Anyway, after a few complaints, it did stop. Got a few dirty looks from the other guide and some thanks from the homeowner across the street.
The second night was spent back in Sapa which is a great little hill town. Ran in to three of the girls from our Halong trip and enjoyed a good visit. Next day we went to Bac Ha to enjoy their Sunday market. Very colourful outfits. We enjoyed that a lot. Scenery was very different again and the villages were more prosperous. Imagine a thatch home with a stable attached and a satelite dish on top & motorbike outside. You get the picture.
Anyway.... we are back in Hanoi after another overnight train trip. Will stay here till the 22 when we fly to Bangkok.
Update before we leave.