Jess said Yes 💍

Today was the day Jess said yes!

I’d planned this location before our trip began although I knew this may come with a challenge. The viewpoint is the tallest over looking Halong Bay however frustratingly the pathway up was officially closed by the Vietnam council some years ago. Not wanting this to stop me, I read multiple accounts of how to access the route. Many had failed as the main entrance is now permanently gated shut and patrolled by a security guard. However… there must be a way I thought and it turns out there was. To access the viewpoint, the only way is to join the closed off pathway further along however this requires walking through someone’s garden. A small but open blue door resides between two small commercial buildings. Just inside the door was a dog on a short lead. Walking past the dog and up a small set of stairs we were greeted by many barking dogs. I’d read if it looks like you’re in the wrong place, you’re in the right place. Now alerted by the rather intimidating dogs, we met with a lady demanding money to allow us access through her house, through her garden and onto the path. We eventually negotiated a fee so she allowed us through pointing to a ladder at the rear of the garden. In a bit of rush due to being surrounded by the many barking dogs we climbed the ladder, scrabbled up rocks and pushed through overgrown vegetation before finally getting onto the clearly overgrown path. 20 minutes later we arrived at the top to see the most amazing views of Halong Bay.

There I got down on one knee and asked if Jess would marry me, to which Jess said yes! Despite the dramatic start and challenging trek, we had the perfect spot to ourselves all afternoon to enjoy our moment together.

We are both really looking forward to celebrating and relaxing on the cruise around Halong Bay over the coming few days.Read more