Ha Long Bay

Getting off the train in Hanoi very early in the morning we are transported back to the Ann hotel. We have some rooms reserved basically just for changing clothes taking a shower etc. Cleaning up. Breakfast at the hotel is included and as usual a beautiful array of various items Western and Vietnamese as well are to be had.

 Then it's a four hour bus ride to the dock where will get on a private boat for our overnight cruise around Ha Long Bay. Arriving at the dock, it’s a hubbub of activity. Boats coming and going.

Finally we get on to the tender that’s going to take us out to our cruise boat. We are all required to don life jackets. Then our luggage is loaded behind us. Arriving at the ship we're wished a happy new year.

Once we check into our cabins which are really very nicely appointed, we meet on the upper deck in the dining room.

My cabin

And there’s a bar! Lunch is fantastic; check out the pictures.

As we are cruising along we get some opportunities to take some pics of the bay and the activities in it. Unfortunately the weather is not great; it’s kind of cloudy and hazy. But still there’s a lot of interesting things to take pictures of And you get to learn how to photograph in these weather conditions.

The boat drops anchor and we get back on the tender to go out to the fishing village where we have a choice of either kayaking around in the bay or taking a boat that is being rowed by one of the local natives. I am up for the boat being paddled by somebody else as that will allow me to take photographs which you couldn’t really do if you were in a kayak paddling it yourself. Again I like taking pictures of people but I also got some shots of the harbor and the amazing sea stacks that are all over, and some of the fishing boats that are around that area.

After our little tour of the fishing village and the associated areas we are transported back to the Calypso. There that evening we are given a cooking lesson and allowed to make our own seafood spring rolls. Dinner that night was fantastic. Look at the shrimp cocktail. And other delicacies that are served to us.
Shortly after dinner I go to bed because we have to get up in time to be up on deck at 5:30 to catch the sunrise.