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  • VoyageurSouth East Asia
    1
    Jour 77

    Day 77

    22 avril, Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    Ha Giang Loop Day 1

    The whole 3 day loop was a bit of a blur but I'll try my best.

    Woke up in maybe the comfiest bed I've had on my whole travels which made it hard to get out of bed but I mustered up the courage to make my way down for breakfast (I know - I live such a hard life). The lobby was super busy and a little overwhelming as there were about 40 people who were getting ready to leave on a tour. We were split into 3 groups and I was in the 3 day tour of about 20 people. I got my helmet and met my easy driver for the next 3 days, Quin (I have no idea how I'm meant to spell it).

    For the next 3 days we rode as a group, most of us with easy drivers and a few riding by themselves but we all drove in a kind of formation which meant Quin and I were chilling near the back. The thing about being driven around is you have absolutely no idea where you are. Coming from having to navigate myself for 3 days it was super weird hopping on and off the bikes and being taken to the next place with absolutely no thought. It was nice as you could really take in the surroundings and take as many pictures as you wanted without worrying about the road.

    We didn't really stop anywhere specific apart from viewpoints fairly regularly which was nice as sitting on the back of a ditty little scooter isn't the most comfortable thing in the world. One thing that was pretty mad was the amount of people doing the loop every single day. It's hard to know exactly how many people there were but definitely in the 100s with all the different companies so definitely felt super touristy. Another thing is that the police have checkpoints all over the loop looking out for tourists riding themselves without proper licences so we had 1 dedicated rider who would ride ahead of the pack and look our for police - letting our leader know so we could pull over before hand and shuttle people ahead of checkpoint on the back of an easy driver.

    We stopped for lunch and like every other meal we'd have on the loop it was a big family style dinner with shared plates. This was great as 1) it was yummy and 2) it is a super social experience. I think for me, my favourite part of the Ha Giang Loop was the people that I did it with. The views were beautiful too of course but it would have been a very different experience doing it solo.

    We eventually head to our first homestay of the loop and we get to chill for a while before dinner in the evening. This was where I met the group that I'd end up spending the whole time with. All 3 groups were staying at the same place but there was about 10 of us from the 3 day group that stuck together. After chatting for a bit in the dorm, we all played Uno together, adding a new rule every single game so by the end it was complete chaos (as every Uno game should be).

    It was now time for dinner where, again, it was time for a family meal. But before things got too repetitive we were introduced to an important part of any Ha Gaing Loop experience - the happy water. Happy water is a self brewed rice wine that everyone does shots of and is hugely popular all over Vietnam. What made it special is the drinking chant that goes along with it which I hope to be bringing home to the UK with me. The chant was also on the back of the T-Shirts we got at the end and some of the drivers were wearing them, letting us follow along - and a few of us lead our own. The karaoke started and more happy water was had. It was a fairly relaxed night and was pretty much coming to an end by 10pm.    En savoir plus

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  • VoyageurSouth East Asia
    Jour 76

    Day 76

    21 avril, Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    Cao Bang > Ha Giang

    Okay I'm starting to catch up now, so let's keep it rolling.

    Woke up, nice breakfast, packed up and hopped on the bus to Ha Giang. There weren't any tourist busses which meant I had to hop on 2 local busses. The difference between a tourist bus and local bus is pretty decent in terms of comfort, space, price, speed, and reliability so I settled in. The first bus wasn't too bad, but I had a very annoying person next to me that kept falling asleep and throwing her full body weight into me for every corner we went around - which being a very mountainous route was quite often. Honestly above the pain from my shoulder being hit into the side of the bus I was more impressed she slept through most of the full body attacks. Between the countless stops for people to hop on and off and deliveries to be given and received (including a full plastic bag of fresh meat placed on the floor) all the people eventually got off leaving just me and the only other tourist to wait around for the 2nd bus.

    Luckily we didn't have to wait long but unluckily the bus was slowly getting fuller and fuller. I say full as if its an objective thing, but no full is how many people can fit in the space of the bus, not how many seats there were. Our bags were strapped to the roof to make more sense and we were well over capacity with one guy standing next to the half open door. The door was half open as the bus' AC either stopped working or the driver wanted us to melt. Melt we did and I could not wait to arrive and get off the bus. Exactly 10 hours on the dot later, I arrived in Ha Giang about 40 minutes from my hostel which I couldn't care less about the walk as it wasn't in the sauna of a bus.

    When I checked in, there was a lobby full of people who were waiting for a bus, and by the time I had showered the entire hostel was pretty much empty as most people arrived during the night in a night bus from Hanoi. I went for dinner by myself at an Italian / Vietnamese place down the road that someone volunteering at the desk suggested and I ended up unintentionally ordering a mountain of food. After a long while I managed to finish everything and was left extremely full and satisfied.

    Thinking I was ready to get an early night, I started chatting to the same person at the desk and I got invited to go out for karaoke with the group of volunteers at the hostel. We went to a private karaoke place and we had this crazy fancy room which made me feel like a VIP getting the first class treatment. After a few hours and some soju, we called it a night and I headed to bed for real this time.    En savoir plus

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  • VoyageurSouth East Asia
    1
    Jour 75

    Day 75

    20 avril, Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 33 °C

    Cao Bang Loop Day 3

    Righto let's try and knock this one out fast as I'm still many days behind.

    Breakfast? Check. Another cuddle with cute little Sam and a very heartbreaking goodbye? Check. The coolest parrot in the world that waddled up to me and wanted me to stroke it? Check (yeah I know right this place was awesome and I didn't want to leave). There was really only 1 stop today so I wasn't in a very big rush, so I waited for the rain in the morning to pass before heading out as I couldn't be assed to get wet.

    I made my way back along the sketchy track but now it was filled with mud and puddles of water - which just required even more of my unmatched skill to maneuvere (I say riding an automatic 110cc).
    Honestly for the first leg of the journey, this was the best quality driving I had done so far. It was absolutely stunning and I had to keep stopping to get a picture of the luscious green landscapes.

    I arrived at Pac Bo cave which is famous for where Ho Chi Minh returned to Vietnam from China for the first time in 30 years in 1941 and stayed for a few weeks. And, it is at one end of the "Ho Chi Minh Road" that stretches almost the whole length of the country. It's a popular spot that Vietnamese people will take the time to visit atleast once in their lives. When I arrived it was fairly quiet and I hopped on an electric buggy from the car park to the area.

    Not really knowing where I was going, I followed the path along the stunning turquoise water known as "Lenin Creek" and up along the first pathway off the main loop. None of the signs were in English so I did my best to translate them but it meant I didn't super know what was going on. I reached a little hut which I thought was where Ho Chi Minh lived but apparently he lived in the cave so I'm not super sure who's hut it was. Behind the hut, the path continued and having not learnt from yesterday I decided to keep going as I wanted to see where it went. Another sweaty climb uphill resulted in a dwindling path so I cut my losses early and headed back the way I came.

    It seems whilst I was off gallivanting in the forest, everyone in Vietnam had arrived to this 1 place. It was a Saturday but it seemed that every school also decided to make their school trip here aswell. It was safe to say I may have been the only white dude in hundreds of Vietnamese people - so I definitely got a good few curious looks and a lot of enthusiastic hellos. I had a gander at the famous cave, with his bed / workstation and a cooking pot. Down by the creek, there was a spot where he would fish as well as a rock that he would use as a table. Becoming super exhausted I grabbed a cold drink of sugarcane juice by the exit and left to find some lunch.

    I drove down the road for a bit before stopping in the first place I could find with food. It was completely empty and the food was sitting there so I decided to go vegetarian for the meal, not wanting to risk any food poisoning. The rest of the ride back wasn't very scenic and mainly took me through towns until I arrived back into Cao Bang.

    I had oficially survived my 3 day adventure and hopped in the shower before going for dinner. I loved my dinner so much my first night here I decided to go back and order the exact same thing (and finish watching Castaway) before heading to bed.    En savoir plus

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  • VoyageurSouth East Asia
    11
    Jour 74

    Day 74

    19 avril, Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 31 °C

    Cao Bang Loop Day 2

    I'm about a week behind writing these so my recollection may not be all there.

    After a terrible night sleep from being woken up by the roosters (which I didn't mind) then being kept awake by the rattling of footsteps through the thinly constructed walls and floor (which I did mind) I mustered myself out of bed not super ready to attack the day. Although, being able to open the shutters in my room and look out at the fields was quite nice. I had a quick breakfast of pancakes and fruit then checked out and headed towards the cave.

    The cave was right by the waterfall but I had to kill some time before the dam at the waterfall opened at 11. The cave was okay. It was pretty decently sized but honestly I've been in quite a few caves now and I'm a little bit over them. After a brief run through I headed towards the waterfall, stopping at the Stone Village where all the houses felt very small European village. After a quick drink and a walk around I finally headed to the Ban Gioc waterfalls.

    I parked up at a considerably more busy carpark than yesterday, paid for my entry and wandered in. Apparently it's the 4th biggest waterfall on an international border which is a very specific but nonetheless cool fact. It was also a big tourist hot spot as the waterfall is only "good" between 11 and 2 so everyone comes in those times. People were selling pictures riding horses whilst wearing cowboy hats. Definitely not my vibe but when I got to the waterfall I found a bench and sat for a while, watching the boats do circles in the water. When the dam opened it revealed even more to the waterfall around to the side too. Eventually I felt I had taken in the waterfall and got ready to do a bit of walking around when I saw a half fenced off pathway leading up towards the waterfall, and then a minute later I see a couple people making their way down. I asked them what's up there and they say that after about 15 minutes and a bit of a climb there's a nice little view away from the people and the boats. Perfect.

    I made my way around the fence and in about 5 minutes I reached a bit of a dead end with not a super view and not the walk through the field that the couple said there was. A bit confused I turned around and found my way onto the path they were talking about. They warned me to remember my way back which was good advice as the path was pretty feint and quite diverging. Eventually I got to where I assume they were talking about and scurried a bit too close to the massive drop and waterfall below me but got a nice view out of it. Not wanting to forget the way I came (plus very hungry) I made my way back only getting a little lost and headed out.

    I got some Pho across the road from the entrance and followed it with some ice cream before getting on my way as I had some kilometers to cover and it was well past lunch time. Something about the roads on the loop is that generally they were in really good condition but there were so many animals in the road. Whether that was dogs, chickens, buffalo, cows, or goats something was always laying in the street or ready to jump out and it made it quite a challenge to dodge anything with a death wish. Luckily there isn't much traffic except for the fairly frequent farmer walking a small herd of buffalo down the road (which I honestly couldn't tell you why).

    After a while I made my way to a walking track that was meant to give a good view at the top. I parked up and had to walk behind this dudes house in this tiny village but then I got to the path that lead up. Feeling springy I jogged up this one till I got to a nice rock with a perfect seat for the view down the valley. Thinking that was it, I sat for a bit admiring the view before realising that the path continued and I was curious where it took me as I thought I was already at the "spot". Have you ever heard the phrase "Curiosity killed the cat"? Well I certainly felt like the cat. As I wandered up the path it was becoming clearer and clearer that this was becoming less and less trodden (but still fairly obvious) as people assumedly turned back. Unfortunately, my curiosity wouldn't let me stop going and I just *HAD* to see where the path lead. I kept venturing for maybe 30 minutes deeper into the jungle, with seemingly no end to this path. I then realised I had no phone signal and no one knew where I was if something were to happen, so being quite sweaty and dirty from battling through the jungle I turned back and followed the path back. Unfortunately, the path had split in 2 directions and I wasn't super sure the way I came as most things looked like trees and there wasn't many markers. Knowing I wasn't lost but just a bit confused, I made my way up one of the tracks to see if it led to anywhere recognisable. I ran into a disappearing track and small herd of cattle blocking the way so I decided to head back the other route. Eventually it led back to where I recognised and even though I was never off the track, I still got a bit panicked I'd end up lost so you can say I learnt my lesson. I got back down completely sweaty and headed out.

    After no more official stops, I made it to where my homestay would be that night. I had to ride down this bumpy dirt and gravel track which required some good evasive techniques but eventually I ended up at 1 last stop a minute from my homestay. The stunning "Angel Eye Mountain" is a limestone karst with a cave going all the way through meaning you can see the sky through it. Plus it stands tall in a wonderful lush green plains below it. I got there just at sunset as well which meant 2 great sunsets 2 days in a row, lucky lucky me!

    I checked in to a relatively expensive but super nice homestay and got ready to chill for the evening. They had about 5 or 6 dogs that were very excitable and great to play with, running around like crazy. It wasn't until I met a small curly hair little dude that my heart melted as all he wanted was to cuddle up to me. Turns out his name was Sam! It was really meant to be. I had some dinner, with little Sam sleeping on my lap then went for a shower before cuddling up to Sam again whilst I watched some Netflix (Castaway is a pretty good movie). Overall it was a really nice evening except for the stupidly low wooden beam in the bedroom which I hit my head against not once but twice, sending me to the floor on the 2nd time and leaving behind a bump right on top of my head.    En savoir plus

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  • VoyageurSouth East Asia
    Jour 73

    Day 73

    18 avril, Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    Cao Bang Loop Day 1

    After getting a nice waffle, fruit, and honey combo for breakfast I renter a scooter from my homestay. I went with a little 110cc automatic but I probably should have went for a semi as it would have been cheaper and I would have plenty of time to practice. Depsite it being on the expensive side, it was definitely worth it as it was the nicest bike I had rented in Vietnam - even the mirrors were good. Plus, I got a brand new full face helmet with a nice clear visor. I would have bet my life nothing would go wrong with this scooter so I was filled with confidence which is always a good sign at the start of a 3 day solo motorcycle loop. The owner, Lin, showed me the whole route on a map and pointed out exactly where I should stay and what I should do each day. With my notes written, bike revving, and bag packed I headed out.

    My first stop was of course the petrol station to fill up but after that I was cruising through the beautiful Northern Vietnam. Being on a scooter is so much nicer than being in a car as you actually feel like you're a part of your surroundings rather than in your own little world in a car or bus. I ventured through the Ma Phuc Pass which gave an incredible start to my adventure. All the stops in Cao Bang seemed to be sign posted as part of UNESCO which was really useful, and there was a nice information sign at each place to explain what was going on.

    My first stop was at the Incense Village. There were 3 small villages not for from eachother that all specialised in a very specific thing. The Incense Village was quite cool as you could just smell the aroma of incense in the air, but I must have gotten unlucky with the day I came as there wasn't any incense out and about being made, I think this is because it needs sun to dry and there was too much of a risk of rain - especially with the thunder storms last night. I watched some locals all come together to build a new house or building then went off to the next village.

    The Paper Village was up next, and I happened upon this nice lady's paper factory. She showed me some paper products she had made, as well as showed me how to paste the paper on the wall so that it could dry. My pasting was horrible on my first try but went better on the 2nd. Afterwards she invited me inside for some tea and some happy water (11am is way too early for spirits). She didn't speak English so we communicated through Google Translate but it was clear it had some limitations as some messages made absolutely no sense. She was kind enough to make me some food which was made from vegetables she had grown herself as well as meat she had raised herself, telling me that she wanted to be as self sufficient as she could be as she was poor. She showed me some pictures of her family and after paying her 5x what she wanted for a beautiful hand made paper fan (which was still not much money to me) as a way of saying thank you, she wished me good luck and good health and I went on.

    I had spent a couple hours there so didn't have loads of time to stop in other places as I wanted to get to Ban Gioc before sunset. I stopped off at the final village, the Forging Village, which was pretty cool as just riding through you could see their products. Mostly, it was various knives and cleavers which were "known for their quality and durability and not their looks" but honestly if I didn't have to carry round a cleaver for another month then take it on a plane, I would have loved to get one as I'm sure it would have done wonders in the kitchen.

    After that there were a few more stops listed but either I couldn't find it (The Magic Stne) or they weren't much (Little Ban Gioc & The Chestnut Tree). With the Magic Stone I tried to follow signs but the roads got so bad and the directions got so loose I gave up hope. Little Ban Gioc was just a nice river, and I stopped for an orange juice there. And the Chestnut Tree was meant to be this grand important tree from when the French came over and brought chestnut trees with them but either I couldn't find the right tree or the tree that was next to the plaque had been felled in the storm last night... whoops.

    I quickly checked in to my homestay before heading out again to the temple that was right next to the Ban Gioc waterfalls. Lin suggested to go here for sunset so I parked at the bottom and trecked up the hill into this temple that had a wonderful vantage over the Ban Gioc waterfalls (which were at low flow at the moment) and the mountains. I trekked slightly off the beaten path to this little hut further up the hill and that's where I sat and watched the sun set over the mountains for one of the best sunsets of my travels so far.

    I drove back to the homestay about 15 minutes away as I didn't want to be out in the proper dark and eventually had some dinner with a French couple before showering and heading to bed in my own little private room (for the same price as the shared room?).    En savoir plus

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  • VoyageurSouth East Asia
    1
    Jour 72

    Day 72

    17 avril, Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    Hanoi > Cao Bang

    So it turns out that this hostel (that I had stayed at for a few nights before) provides FREE BREAKFAST. And I didn't know this until today as Megan let me know last night. I'm not sure if I'm fuming because I missed out on breakfast or glad that I atleast got one free one.

    I then walked over to the bus office and checked in, before grabbing a quick Banh Mi as I didn't want to get on the bus and get hungry. The bus was pretty long - it left at 11 and didn't arrive till half 5 and oh my God my ass was sore. I'm not sure if it was the seats or what but I was so uncomfortable that I ended up putting my blanket under me for a last resort of padding. Depsite the discomfort I powered on and decided to be responsible and finally book my flight home. It's a little worrying knowing that I'm not even in the same county as my flight but I can officially confirm I'll be home at 6.40pm on the 17th May - exactly 1 month away (if I make the flight). I also enquired to 2 hostels about booking the Ha Giang Loop. It's safe to say I felt pretty prepared for once which is a new feeling for me.

    I ended up booking the same hostel as the other 2 people on my bus as they also wanted to do the Cao Bang Loop and said that they that this one rented bikes so I didn't bother checking anywhere else. The hostel was actually really nice and I ended up meeting a few people and heading to dinner with them in town. We chose a random place and the waitress said that one of the plates was her special so I just ordered it without even looking. What came was a whole plate of meat in a broth with 2 pieces of bread. It was absolutely delicious and I am so glad I went with what she suggested. I had to dip from the meal early and head back to the hostel as my uni was hosting a teams call about module choices for my final year. I didn't want to leave anything too late and miss out on the modules I wanted so a long 2 and a half hours later I ended up calling my friend Mann and talking about the choices before I made my final decision and submitted.

    Whilst I was sitting on the balcony on the phone, out of nowhere a huge thunder storm came our of nowhere and the rain poured as heavy as the wind blew, and there were bursts of lighting every few seconds for over an hour. I tried capturing some of the lighting but my phone is nowhere near good enough but I don't think I'll ever get bored of seeing the electricity dance across the sky. With that, it ended up being quite a real life back at home productive day and I was excited to start the 3 day loop tomorrow.    En savoir plus

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  • VoyageurSouth East Asia
    Jour 71

    Day 71

    16 avril, Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 34 °C

    Cat Ba > Hanoi

    I had a quick breakfast before packing up and hopping on the bus to Hanoi. The bus itself was fine but in doing some research about the border crossing into Laos it turns out I might need to get a VISA from Hanoi first. This would be fine, infact it would be perfect if it wasn't for the fact that it was Laos New Year and the embassy was shut till the 19th, and then it was closed on weekends too. So now it meant I would have to come back to Hanoi for a 3rd time to get a VISA, costing me more travel money and more time.

    When I arrived in Hanoi I had a few errands to run so quickly got some more money from the ATM, exchanged some money into USD for Laos, went to the Post Office, and renewed my SIM card (annoyingly it was 30 days minimum). After that I was feeling pretty accomplished so I checked into the same hostel as I was in before as the beds were actually really decent. I ended up grabbing some food and drink before heading to the Laos Embassy just to check it was shut and the person I messaged who was in the same predicament as me hadn't gotten their days mixed. Unfortunately, it was indeed shut so I wandered over to a lake to chill for a while. A Vietnamese woman ended up sitting next to me and we chatted in basic English for a while before she had to go but it makes me appreciate the effort that people go to in order to speak my language.

    For dinner, I wanted to try the famous Bun Cha restaurant that Obama and Anthony Bourdain ate at. I got there and it was busy but I could sit down straight away as I was riding solo, and I ordered "Combo Obama" from the menu which was a special bun cha, a fried seafood roll and a Hanoi beer all for less than 4 pounds. I also think the restaurant is on the Michellin Guide which is insane to think I can eat here for so cheap. The food was good of course, but the best bit was all the pictures of Obama eating there all over the wall, as well as the glass box upstairs filled with the exact cutlery that they both used.

    After that, I grabbed some snacks and headed back to the hostel where I met a lovely Manchester lass who I ended up talking to for a few hours (instead of my planned movie night) before I went to bed and she went out for a drink with some friends.    En savoir plus

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  • VoyageurSouth East Asia
    1
    3
    Jour 70

    Day 70

    15 avril, Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Cat Ba

    After appreciating the fantastic work I did bringing my shoes back to life, I got ready and headed out for a quick Banh Mi before heading towards the National Park on the island. It was the same road that I drove on to the pier when I arrived but I was gonna be stopping off on the way.

    My first stop was unplanned and was to 'Hospital Cave' which as the name suggests, was a military hospital set up inside a cave during the Vietnamese War. They had set up each room to have mannequins dressed as they would have been so you really got a feel for the people that spent 10 years living in the cave. There were 3 floors in total but the bottom floor had all the different rooms like the kitchen, security room, dining room, bedroom, radio room, and of course a couple infirmary rooms. It was quite a short visit but definitely nice to see, and funnily reminded me of the War Tunnels at Dover but on a smaller scale.

    Next up I arrived at the actual National Park. There was a cave and a hike but I decided to skip the cave and head straight for the hike. Parking up and paying the entrance, there were quite well mapped trails through the woods that lead to some gorgeous views over the National Park. It was fairly busy but I took a while to sit down at each spot to take in the views. I had also decided to run through the trails (one because I like running) but also to test how my shoes were holding up. And just like the hands at the golden bridge, they were holding up perfectly. After some precarious scrambling, I ran back down and grabbed a cold drink at the café at the bottom before moving on.

    My next stop was even more unplanned, and I almost passed the sign for this random cave. I drove past the ticket office with no one in sight and made my way up the stairs into this cave. This was a super creepy experience as there was no one else about and being in a vast cave by yourself is a very eerie feeling. It also wasn't as built up for tourists as others were - this had lights but only some worked and the creepiest bit was where I turned the corner to see a long dark passage with a flickering light - just like in a horror movie. If this was a horror movie this is where you'd shout at the guy on screen to stop being stupid and not go into the creepy looking cave. Being stupid, I used my phone's flashlight to venture onwards before getting a bit freaked and turning around. A guy was waiting for me at the entrance and I ended up buying another ticket and headed out.

    On the edge of the beautiful lake that I went to a couple days ago, there was a wooden walkway that skirted around the edge. I didn't have enough time before to check it out but now I did. Parking up, I wandered over the flag lined bridge and made it to a small peaceful temple sat overlooking the lake. I grabbed a chair and chilled for a while overlooking the lake and the road. People came and went but the thing that made me leave was the unbelievable amount of bites I was getting - SO ITCHY.

    I rode into Cat Ba town for dinner, driving a different way along the coast back. I decided on a Korean place as I fancied a bit of a mix up and ordered some stuff that I could not tell you what it was called. What it was, was yummy, filling, and relatively cheap so I was a happy boy. After dinner I grabbed a KitKat ice cream and headed back for some sleep.    En savoir plus

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  • VoyageurSouth East Asia
    Jour 69

    Day 69

    14 avril, Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    Lan Ha Bay

    I woke up nice and early for some breakfast from my hostel then rode over to the tour office for 8.15am ready for the tour. Ha Long Bay is a super famous area of its 1000s of limestone towers in the ocean but is super touristic and busy. Having suffered from a not very fun boat tour in the Phi Phi Islands that was incredibly busy, I went for a tour of Lan Ha Bay instead as it was very similar, closer to Cat Ba, and a lot less busy. A family at my hostel heavily suggested this tour so I booked it last night and was ready for the day. Unfortunately when I was asked to pay I realised I had left my money belt at my hostel and couldn't pay. Luckily, he said I could pay later and I got ready to get on the boat.

    It was a fairly busy boat but there was enough room for most of us on the top deck so we could watch the scenery as we went past - although the seats weren't very comfortable. We cruised at a very slow speed which was great as it let us take in the view and the boat was fairly quiet unlike some of the other boats we had been on. I'll let the pictures speak for the beauty of the place, nomatter which way you looked you had a great view. We cruised past some nice little floating fishing villages before we stopped for a swim. As it was low tide, some small beaches around the islands would appear. Once we stopped I heard a massive splash and I realised that people were jumping off the top of the boat into the water. Hell yeah I thought and it wasn't long before I was in my trunks on the edge of the boat ready to jump. It wasn't as warm as Thaialnd was but definitely not cold, so I swam over to the little island - where I ended up cutting my knees on the jagged rock. I swam back to the boat and jumped maybe 4 or 5 times, and I had a great time each jump.

    Our next stop was for kayaking. We land at a little floating boat station with a few other boats and we queue up. I was riding solo so got paired up with a tall aussie bloke called Douggy. This was great as he powered us along the water and all I had to do was steer. We went through this cave into a larger opening and kept paddling till we got to another cave where the water was too low to get through. We parked up and carefully treaded through the muddy and sharp cave until we popped out into a fairly busy lake. Douggy also happened to have some beers with him, so beers in hand we treaded into the water and went for a swim to the other side and back. We had to be back at the main boat for 12.30 and it was now 12.15 so not wanting to miss our only way back we went back through the cave and hopped back in the boats ready to power our way onwards.

    The first cave we had paddled through now happened to be a major issue as the tide had started to ride so there was a fairly strong current pushing everyone who wanted to escape back the way they came. Boats were going sideways, people were hitting eachother with paddles, and chaos was underway. Douggy and I prepared for our battle against the sea, found our gap and paddled as fast and hard as we could. Weiving through stragglers and pushing off the sides, we managed to make our way through to the other side. Fully pumped, the battle wasn't over as we still had to make it back to our boat. Mighty exhausted we eventually made it back just in time for lunch. This was perfect timing as we had worked up quite an appetite. A family dinner style feast was had and of course it was yummy, it never isn't.

    It was then half of us were moved to another boat as some people had to be dropped off early. This was a great bit of news as it meant we had more space and we had lucked out with much comfier seats on the top deck. I chatted with a couple couples (literally everyone is travelling as a couple) on our way to Monkey Island. After spotting a majestic crow on our boat we arrive at the island and it was now that I realised that me cleaning my sunglasses for the whole journey with a purple towel had dyed my white sunglasses purple. Definitely not intended but I think it looks funky.

    We hopped off the boat down a sketchy ramp and after accidently leaving someone on the boat as they were in the toilet, we made our way up to the viewpoint. Passing monkeys, I wasn't too phased as I had seen quite alot already but everyone else was pretty fascinated but these ones were definitely much more aggressive as one tried to fight me for olmy Fanta. Our hike turned into a scramble and then turned into a climb but ended with a pretty glorious view of the island and the bay. We made our way down and back onto the boat and this was where the true tragedy of the day had struck. My Hoka trail runners that I had been wearing religiously across Asia had slowly been wearing away but the scrambling was the final straw as the sole started falling off. Determined to save them as I needed atleast another month of use, I hatched a plan for the evening.

    We got back and I rode back to my hostel and my first question was where I could buy super glue. Luckily, the restaurant closeby had exactly what I needed and for cheap too. My next question was if I could borrow a brush from my hostel. The dude at reception went out back and brought the perfect tool for the job with him. Needing to clean my shoes before I went for a repair (they hadn't been cleaned since I owned them) I hopped in the shower armed with my brush and my laundry detergent. After some intense dismantling and elbow grease, they started looking alot better. The water was still running brown so I left them under the shower whilst I showered myself and eventually there was no more evidence of dirt. After my shower, I gave the rubber soles a bit of a dry and went to town super glueing every bit of loose sole.

    This post has already gone on far too long but I ended up meeting up with Douggy, a couple Canadians, and a Chinese dude for dinner and a drink in the evening before heading to a club/bar thing for a little while before I had decided I have had enough so decided to head home. Having not been in the town before, it being dark, and there not being a phone holder on my bike, I ended up getting lost repeatedly before finally getting my directions right and getting back.    En savoir plus

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  • VoyageurSouth East Asia
    Jour 68

    Day 68

    13 avril, Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    Hanoi > Cat Ba

    The day started fairly uneventful, I checked out and grabbed some Banh Mi for breakfast and grabbed a smoothie as I waited around for my bus to Cat Ba. I grabbed my bag from my hostel then headed over to the office to get picked up. As I get given my little goodie bag for the trip I see Alfie and Daisy walk in. Turns out we both booked the same bus to Cat Ba without eachother knowing. The journey wasn't too long, we arrived to a boat terminal, got a short boat to the island then hopped on another bus to our accommodations. I booked a hostel slightly out of the town so I was dropped off first. After checking in, I rented a scooter as I wanted to make the most of the daylight that I had left.

    There's 1 main road across the island so I continued on that road in the opposite direction to which I came as it seemed to pass through the mountains and end up on the coast. It was an absolutely lovely drive and I ended up arriving at a lake which honestly took my breath away. I parked my bike up and admired my peaceful surroundings for a while, before calling my dad to show him the view. After that I continued to the end of the road and sat on the pier to watch the sunset over the islands, this time calling my mum to show her this view.

    It was starting to get dark so I started going back but the sun had set quicker than I thought so I ended up driving back in complete darkness as there were no street lights for 95% of the drive. Plus, there were loads of bugs in the air so I had to half wear my sunglasses to stop myself from being blinded by the lens and blinded by bugs - a very uncomfortable drive to be honest, I was glad to be back.

    The restaurant close by to my hostel was having a live music event so I wandered over and sat with a couple of guys as there weren't any free tables. These guys turned out to be really nice and invited me to play cards with them. One was from Spain and one was from Netherlands but they both worked in the same city together so were on vacation together. I ordered some noodles and a beer, and we all sat chatting and listening to the music. The music was definitely questionable with varying levels of skill but the last guy to perform, a Geordie, was really talented on the guitar and decent at signing too. We ended the night with a few games of pool before I called it a night.    En savoir plus

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