Halong Bay - strangely quiet

Halong Bay is probably the best-known spot in Vietnam, and as a result, it almost certainly has the most visitors. Last time Flo and I were here, there were more boats than in the Spanish Armada. They all left Halong at midday in a typically chaotic fashion.

This time, none of that today. I'm not sure why, but there were only a few tourists . So much so that there were only 10 on our boat. Us 6, an older couple from Brazil, and a young couple from Canada.

The trick was probably to use a boat from Cat Ba Island and not Halong Bay town, and to start at 0830, not midday.

We were out all day, cruising, then kayaking, then swimming. Nice buffet lunch on the boat, more swimming and cruising, and then finally a visit to a fish farm, that bore no resemblance whatever to European fish farms. It was a small family business with very few fish. So few we could almost count them.

I had asked before we arrived what Flo thought they were farming , and I ventured it might be shrimp, crab, or lobster. I couldn't have been more wrong. They farmed big fish, really big fish that weigh 80 kg each. Sharks, Groupers, and tiger fish. The sharks take 15 years to grow and sell for about $800 each.

We walked along the wooden, slippery planks that separated the tanks. No health and safety officers here. Of course, the kids loved it, and the adults found it fascinating, too.Baca lagi