Vietnam
Ha Long

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    • Day 12

      North tour - Day 6 & 7

      September 4, 2022 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

      Finally we have arrived to the sea at Ha Long Bay. The city is super modern but the tourists are missing ( still post covid…). The sea water is very warm (30degC) but also quite dirty. We will stay here for 2 days a d then start our next trip to the South! 🤩🤙Read more

    • Day 11

      Halong Bay

      November 10, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

      Ahcho in……HALONG BAYYY
      Woop woop! Also eigentlich in Hanoi. Aber vo dete us simmer mitem Bus 4h uf Ha Long womer wieder es wunderschöns Zimmer gha händ, den hämmer en Tagesbootstour ad Halong Bay gmacht. Wie unglaublich ihdrücklich das isch… öpis womer immer nur uf Föteli gseh hed mal mit de eignige Auge dörffe z‘gseh! Ich bin beeihdruckt, eifach so schön da. Ufem Boot heds Zmittag gäh und mer sind überall chli umegfahre und händ die schöne Kalksteiinsle und Küste erkundet. Go bade isch üs leider verbote worde wills det vill Unfäll git, vorallem wenn mer vom Boot direkt is Wasser gumped. Defür simmer no go Kajak fahre und händ so die ville Inseli und Buchte chönne erchunde. Das isch ja mal cool gsi! 😍Read more

    • Day 12

      Tag 7 Ankunft in Ha Long

      June 26, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌧 27 °C

      Am nächsten Morgen stiegen wir in den Bus nach Halong und hatten eine etwa 4-stündige Fahrt vor uns. Schon beim Zwischenstopp konnten wir den atemberaubenden Blick auf die zahlreichen Inseln in der Halong-Bucht genießen. Anschließend fuhren wir in die Stadt und suchten nach einem Hostel für uns. Da es gerade keine Touristensaison war und die Hitze in Vietnam herrschte, hatten wir kein Problem, ein Hostel zu finden. Nachdem wir angekommen und unser Gepäck abgelegt hatten, machten wir uns auf den Weg ins Stadtzentrum, wo wir unser deutlich verspätetes Mittagessen einnahmen, das überraschend gut schmeckte. Danach schlenderten wir entlang des Strandes und genossen die Aussicht auf die Inseln in der Halong-Bucht. Die alten Fischerboote und Holzschiffe, die im Wasser schwammen, waren interessant anzusehen und fügten sich perfekt in die malerische Kulisse ein. Für den nächsten Tag buchten wir eine Bootstour durch die Halong-Bucht, inklusive Kanufahren und Besichtigung der Höhlen. Zum Abschluss des Tages genossen wir noch ein leckeres Abendessen und entschieden uns, uns von den anstrengenden letzten Tagen auszuruhen.Read more

    • Day 84

      tag 84: warme weihnachten

      December 25, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌙 13 °C

      in den letzten tagen schliefen wir in einem airbnb in halong.

      24: nach dem frühstück besuchten wir eine kleine version des europaparks. viele loopings und selfies mit vietnamesen und vietnamesinnen später machten wir uns sushi und schauten einen film.

      25: da wir uns eine riesen packung reis kauften, assen wir drei tage ganz viel weissen reis. unser programm war heute am strand picknicken. bei einem haar hätten wir den sonnenuntergang verpasst! wir haben gegessen, gelacht und einen schönen weihnachtsabend verbracht.

      morgen gehts wieder weiter!
      Read more

    • Day 19

      Sapa mit worst-case Ende

      February 17 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

      Den Tag haben wir super mit einem Trekking durch die Reisfelder und Dörfer rund um Sapa gestartet. Leider haben wir fast nichts gesehen, weil es so neblig war.

      Nach einem super Abendessen wollten wir mit dem Nachtbus nach Halong Bay fahren, da war es die lettzten Tage ultra schönes Wetter. Leider mussten wir mit einem Minivan anstelle des Nachtbusses starten, da der Bus angeblich kaputt sei. Folgende Lügengeschichten wurden uns aufgetischt: In einer Stunde sind wir beim Bus, nur nochmals 30 Minuten, der Bus wartet bei der nächsten Raststätte, etc. Nach 7h Minivan fahren sind wir dann in Hanoi gestrandet; kein Schlaf bis 4 Uhr morgens.

      Mit einem deutschen Touristen haben wir dann für 3h ein teures Grab nach Halong genommen und sind früh im nassen&trüben Wetter in der Geisterstadt angekommen.

      Das grüslige Wetter verfolgt uns, hilfe. 🥲
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    • Day 52–55

      Ha Long Bay

      March 6 in Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

      This place looked abandoned i’m happy we had the villa otherwise we could have been very bored.
      There was a basketball hoop which i loved, we played with some Vietnamese lads.
      James and Noah cooked most nights which was lovely we had steaks one night, beautiful.Read more

    • Day 53

      Ha long bay

      May 2, 2019 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌙 26 °C

      Ich befinde mich gerade in ha Long. Gestern schloss ich gegen Mittag meine Motorrad Tour ab und fuhr mit dem nachtbus hierher. Die Motorradtour war unglaublich und ich würde sie jederzeit wiedermachen. Ha Long macht einen ziemlich großen Eindruck, das Meer ist erstaunlich kalt im Vergleich zum Süden Thailands und das Wetter ist auch eher milder... ich werde hier 2 Tage verbringen und dann mal schauen wo es hin geht.Read more

    • Day 4

      Welcome to Halong

      September 29, 2019 in Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 33 °C

      +++ Halong +++

      Was gibt's darüber zu sagen, außer dass es sehr Tourilastig ist. Ich fand es nicht gut. War dennoch abends s im Getümmel und auf over the top.
      Now, cat ba!

      °°° Aufenthalt: 1 Tag °°°
      °°° Unterkunft: Shaarpeer °°°
      °°° Transport: Bus & Taxi °°°
      Read more

    • Day 49

      Halong Bucht

      December 24, 2019 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

      Nach unserem Reinfall in Ho Chi Minh suchten wir ein schönes Hotel in der Halong Bucht in dem wir Weihnachten verbringen konnten. Zu unserem Glück, werden rund um Halong Stadt viele neue Luxushotels errichtet. Da viele noch im Bau sind, werden die bereits geöffneten Hotels sehr günstig angeboten. Das Wetter passte sich ebenfalls der Weihnachtsstimmung an und zeigte sich in den ersten Tagen grau und neblig. Somit blieb uns nichts anderes übrig als es uns mit ein paar Weihnachtsfilmen gemütlich zu machen.
      Als wir uns die vielen Felsen in der Halong Bucht mit dem Schiff anschauten, zogen die Wolken auf, der Nebel weg und somit perfekte Sicht und einen tollen Ausflug.
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    • Day 121

      Ha Long Bay, Vietnam

      February 5 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

      We ferried back to mainland Thailand and rode north towards Chumphon Airport. With only one flight per day to Bangkok (9am) we stayed one night at a nearby hotel. Chumphon Airport only had one gate; we checked our luggage and cleared security in less than three minutes. Our AirAsia flight was only 45 mins but they served Boba Tea and Ice Coffee. The best service! The flight arrived at a small airport in Bangkok so we had to self-transfer to the international airport across town (BKK). On the shuttle ride we met a retired couple from LA who told us they too had taken a family gap year with their kids ten years ago. It’s always fun to meet fellow long-term American travelers, since they are so rare. The immigration line at BKK was extremely long but luckily, we had plenty of time to kill. We relaxed in the Oman Airlines lounge – it had the best food (Ken could eat Thai food indefinitely but I really love Arabic food so I was in heaven). Then: Vietnam Airlines to Hanoi, a brief two-hour flight.

      We were wary that Vietnam might be uncomfortable for American tourists. We couldn’t have been more wrong. The second we landed in Vietnam we knew we were somewhere special. First, the currency is 1:25,000, so we went to the ATM and got a few billion dong. Our driver, who was parked in the front row in the first parking spot, smoked a cigarette as the sun set; the road traffic was absolute chaos. We stayed in a 4th floor apartment in the Old Quarter, which had a French influence and was just a sight to see. There were a million motorbikes zipping by everywhere. The sidewalks were filled with parked motorbikes and people eating on tiny blue plastic chairs. So much of the sidewalk obstruction forced us to walk on the road. Ken was a giant: every restaurant used small chairs (in the US we would call them “kid size.”) Every kind of store was at our disposal (knock-off apparel, food, flowers, spas) and since it was Tet Holiday (New Year’s) the streets were particularly festive with red lanterns, kumquat trees, and fireworks. Shout out to Uncle Moku: Vietnam had the most extravagant and luxurious orchid arrangements. Vendor ladies walked by pushing baby carriages, which were filled with donuts for sale. Coffee was at every corner, including egg coffee, which was coffee with a whipped foam egg on top. The waitresses continued to be obsessed with Everett (we’ve been here a week and have not seen any black people).

      Nearby was a local restaurant where Anthony Bourdain famously dined with President Obama - for $4 we got the “Obama Special'' - pork noodle soup, seafood egg roll, and Hanoi beer. The endless street food was tasty and usually $1-3 – our favorites were banh mi (like a Subway sandwich but better) and bun cha (rice noodles with fried pork).

      I was skeptical about the Water Puppet Show, a puppet performance originating from the rice fields. A tourist trap, I thought. Pleasantly surprised, the super unique theater performance told historical Vietnamese tales, including one about a famous turtle with a sword. Ken and I exchanged big smiles, as the four-year-old boy behind us kept shrieking in delight.

      Our time in Hanoi was too quick (two days) and we can’t wait to get back soon. We booked a 3 day-2 night cruise through the famous Ha Long Bay, about two hours from Hanoi. The ride there was in a comfortable 12-person van, but we quickly realized we were now on the “tourist route” (the driver literally gave us lanyards that said “tourist”) and stopped for an oddly long restroom break. Of course, the bathroom was in the back of a giant souvenir shop. The Ha Long Bay pier followed suit – filled with pre-packaged tour operators and thousands of tourists wandering around. We didn’t mind though, since we were familiar with these places and knew what to expect (standing in lines, overpriced everything, endless selfies, etc.)

      Several friends gave us mixed reviews of Ha Long Bay – in addition to being over-touristed, the water was polluted with trash floating around. After so many beach destinations we now see the unfortunate impact of single use plastic water bottles. All that being said, it’s a UNESCO Heritage site and we can see why.

      The scenery was world-class with towering limestone mountains jutting out of the water covered by rainforests. Our super fancy cruise boat (Venus) had a pool and an elevator! (Sidenote: I do most of the trip planning but in this instance, Ken booked the cruise. We climbed aboard and I gave him the evil eye, like, “What did this cost?!?!?!” And his sheepish response, “I booked the cheap boat I swear… they gave us an upgrade??” Ok guys, I secretly love when he books the accommodations because they’re always nicer than I would pick!)

      Owen, the cruise ship manager, was so professional wearing his full suit. We could tell he was secretly a jokester, yelling to the newlywed Indian kayakers, “Shark!” and to the Swiss college students fishing off the boat, “Do better, we need to eat tonight.” The assistant manager, Ving, with his impeccable English, guessed Ken was either American or Israeli:) Ving also told us the story of his father who was captured - in this very bay - and was held in an American prison camp for two and a half years.

      The daily activities included extensive eating (all-inclusive with fresh caught seafood), kayaking (Ken did all the work), swimming (did we mention the pool?), cooking demonstration (spring rolls – Everett’s was more like a burrito), bicycling to a village where we drank “happy water” wine (see the snake?), fed fish with our feet, and took a bamboo row boat through a cave (5:30 am wakeup call!).

      We are absolutely enjoying our first week in Vietnam!
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