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- Jun 26, 2024, 10:35 AM
- ☁️ 29 °C
- Altitude: 9 m
- VietnamTỉnh Quảng NinhHa Long20°57’11” N 107°1’33” E
Day 18-20
June 26 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C
Day 18
This morning we had a really nice slow start to the day with a lie in and a spot of lunch before piling into the bus again to travel from Hué to Phong Nha!
This took us about 5 hours but luckily we stopped every now and then to stretch our legs and get some snacks!
We arrived in Phong Nha late in the afternoon and with little to do in this very small town we opted for a night of cards and chatting and a good hearty sleep before our adventures the next day!
Day 19
Today we woke up early to make sure we had time to grab some breakfast before heading to paradise cave! The caves in Phong Nha national park are literally the only things to do in Phong nha so despite the tour being quite pricey it was either this or nothing and I actually ended up really enjoying it!
We arrived and hiked up to the cave (not far but in this heat it’s a killer) and then slowly descended down into the cave. The cave itself is 36km long but they’ve only opened 2km to the public but it’s really impressive. Huge stalagmites and stalactites casting very dramatic shadows onto the walls of the cave. It really was beautiful. It was quite similar to what I saw in Japan but this was on a much larger scale.
It was really weird, in the caves everyone was obsessed with me. All the Vietnamese men wanted pictures with me and all the Vietnamese ladies were coming up to me and hugging me and laughing - I definitely missed something because I have no idea why and no one else got this treatment it was really bizarre!
We then made our way back out before having some lunch where we ran into the ladies again. Making a swift exit with them all waving me over we jumped onto a boat and cruised down the river for 30 minutes enjoying watching the locals spear fishing and the children playing in the water until we arrived at Phong Nha cave. Entering by boat we enjoyed looking at the dramatic landform whilst gently floating through it was lovely!
We then headed back to the hotel for a really quick shower before heading to the station for another overnight train. This has definitely been the worst one we’ve been on so far, not very clean so I used my sleeping bag liner to sleep in just to keep the dirt out!
Day 20
Stumbling off the train at 5.30 am we groggily got onto the bus for a 4 hour drive to Halong bay. Luckily I managed to have a nap on the way which woke me up a little bit but we still all felt a little jaded!
Arriving in halong bay in the pouring rain we checked in and had a few hours to shower and chill before heading out on our boat trip!
The rain stopped and the clouds cleared and we got to enjoy a lovely boat trip around halong bay with hundreds of small islands and the cityscape in the background it was really pretty!
We then got the chance to kayak which of course I did! Just as we kayaked away from the boat it started pouring with rain so we all ended up having one big water fight and racing our kayaks. Eliza and I who were sharing a kayak suddenly realised we were sinking so we tried to bail all the water out but it wasn’t very successful until I found out that our plug wasn’t in properly and that’s how we were taking on so much water! We managed to shakily get back to the boat without sinking but the whole thing was absolutely hilarious and a lot of fun!
Bargaining with one of the ladies on board I managed to buy a new t shirt so at least my top half wasn’t soaked but I didn’t have any spare shorts!
Heading back to the hotel for a shower and a relaxed evening with plans of going out to dinner a bit later on!Read more
Traveler There seems to be a lot of travel between places. Are the distances long or is it just slow going? Thats hilarious you being singled out for photos with the locals. If i recall a similar thing happened in Egypt. Time is flying you are nearly half way through the trip now!
Traveler Halong bay looks absolutely stunning and not overrun with tourists which is what I feared. That obsession with you reminds me of the monks in Sigiriya in Sri Lanka who kept wanting photos with you!
All looks amazing. [Sarah]