Ha Long Bay is one of the premier tourism destinations in Vietnam, for reasons which are obvious once you actually get to the place and have a good look at it. The famously chaotic dock where you get on your boat is not one of those reasons, but it can be fun none-the-less. The picture above is from one of the islands, looking back toward the dock at Ha Long City.
This above is the harvest at a "pearl farm" which is kind of a fascinating thing to farm, and no, there were no swine on the farm. Below are views from the top deck of the boat, where I spent most of my time. They call them "lounge chairs" for a good reason! Aside from taking in the scenery, the seafood was insanely delicious and the squid fishing highly amusing - if not terribly productive.
Boatloads of pictures from previous Ha Long trips are here.
Not long after my recent trip to Ha Long, sadly, a tourist boat sank there killing a number of tourists who were sleeping on board at the time. Considering that there are some 5 million people visiting Ha Long every year, this accident, while tragic, hardly makes the place a "dangerous tourist attraction" as noted by that most democratic of institutions, Wikipedia. Indeed, the van trip from Ha Noi down to Ha Long City makes even the ricketiest of boats seem like a welcome safe haven!
No comments:
Post a Comment