Pleasantly Surprised in Vietnam
Trip dates: December 23, 2016 - December 29, 2016
We arrived in Hanoi midday from our overnight train and it was the day before Christmas. We were staying in Old Quarter so we spent the afternoon wandering around, getting used to crossing streets, and sampling different foods.
Our hotel threw a Christmas party for their families and guests that night. It was a voluntary event that felt mandatory, as they called our rooms to remind us to join them about five minutes after the party started. We were worried initially as several hotels had mandatory gala dinners for stays during the holidays and thought we had somehow been suckered into one. Luckily, our hotel was just super nice. They had assorted snacks, drinks and fruits available with holiday music playing and a Christmas tree so it ended up being just a nice gesture and an excuse to celebrate for the kids.
As the night wore on, the noise level outside got louder and louder. Most people in Vietnam are Buddhist and don't celebrate Christmas, but it seemed like everyone (locals and tourists alike) was relishing the excuse to party.
We met up with our friends Lena and Wit, who were on their honeymoon but rearranged their plans so that they could meet up with us (thanks guys!) and checked out the madness that was Old Quarter on Christmas Eve. We thought the area was busy before but it was nothing compared to the evening! We didn't stay out too late partaking in the festivities though, as Eric and I were going on our Halong Bay cruise the next day and had an early morning departure.
Now before we get to the cruise itself, let's talk briefly about the booking of the cruise. There are SO many Halong Bay operators, and half of them all have the same name with slight variations. I looked at who knows how many companies and reviews and was so unexcited to do a cruise afterwards. The consensus I was getting from reading reviews online was that Halong Bay is super touristy, overcrowded, the waters are filled with trash, and the boat accommodations were awful no matter how much you were paying. If you pay for a 3 star boat, you'll get 1 star accommodations and if you splurge for a 5 star, you'll probably get a 3 star room. Ugh! It got to the point where Eric and I were seriously discussing whether it was even worth visiting or not.
Luckily, we had several friends that had visited Halong Bay and all thought it was worthwhile, so we were able to be talked out of our funk. We eventually decided to go with Shamanda's recommendation but then lo and behold, we tried to book with a discount code and there was no longer availability less than 24hrs later. Suspicious? Just a bit. Frustrating? Absolutely. We finally settled on Sails of Indochina (not to be confused with Indochina Sails) since their itinerary seemed to be more off the beaten path, they were moderately priced, and they were a smaller and newer company so I thought maybe they would try harder and be better about customer service. We kept our expectations low though and when Christmas arrived, we really had no idea what our next couple days was going to be like.
We woke up bright and early on Christmas morning and... Eric is running a fever and has bad stomach pains. Yeesh, worst time to get a bout of traveller's diarrhea. Luckily, we had medication so he took some but it was not a promising start to the day.
We were "picked up" by a dude on a motorbike, who we followed out onto a main street where we then waited half an hour for a bus to pick us up. It was a shuttle bus to Cat Ba island and when we boarded, they asked us for tickets and return information. Uh what? No worries, get on. Umm, OK then. The bus ride took a couple hours, driving through some pretty industrial looking areas with Vietnamese music blasting the whole time - poor Eric I don't know how he survived in the state he was in. We eventually arrived at a ferry terminal that took us to Cat Ba, where we then followed everyone else on to another bus. People would randomly get off as we drive around the island. We had no idea where we were going and were just hoping that at some point, someone would be holding a sign with our names.
Lucky for us, that was exactly what happened when the bus reached its destination. We transferred to a private minivan which then took us to a pier where we were wordlessly ushered onto a wooden junk boat and took off. After a bus ride, a ferry ride, another bus ride, and a minivan ride, we had finally arrived for our 3D/2N Halong Bay cruise and we didn't even know until we had already set sail!
Turns out that the tour we booked is a private tour, so it was just Eric and me and the crew, which consisted of 3 Vietnamese guys that spoke practically no English. In some ways, it was kind of like we were doing a homestay but on a boat. It was a very tranquil couple of days, with a lot of pantomiming and lost in translation.
our crew and only companions for three days
The boat itself was a traditional wooden junk boat. There wasn't much in terms of amenities, as you can see in the pictures below. There wasn't running water which made using the restroom an undesired experience, but there was electricity! Our stay was reasonably comfortable, although everything often felt damp due to the humidity and that was less than pleasant. Eric was pretty out of it for most of the first day due to being sick but the drugs kicked in quickly enough so that he was able to enjoy the second half of the cruise.
As far as itineraries go, we cruised mostly around Cat Ba island in Lan Ha Bay, with some detours into Halong Bay (I think). We saw some other junk boats with the occasional big party ones cruising by, but it was generally pretty quiet. The first day was pretty grey and cloudy and misty, but the sun peeked out on our second and third day and what a difference it made!
We kayaked on the first and second day but, due to language barriers, we don't really know what we were supposed to see or where we were. We might have been by monkey island or some caves, or maybe not? The water wasn't as polluted as I expected, maybe because we were in a less frequented part of the bay, but it was still pretty gross and not one that I'd go swimming in. Especially while kayaking, we could see this oily sheen on the water's surface that didn't look too appealing.
In addition to kayaking, we also spent a good chunk of our second day bicycling on Cat Ba, to and from Viet Hai village. Viet Hai seems to be a preserved commune/tourist village, but again, no real information available so this is just guesswork. Most of the families run a little shop out front so we stopped by one for a drink. It was also an opportunity for us to use the restroom and wifi, since our boat had limited amenities.
All in all, we're pretty happy with our tour from Sails of Indochina. Due to the language barrier, we wish that there was more prepared materials to help communicate the itinerary and sights of interest. I also would have appreciated a real toilet with running water, but I think that's a little harder to manage on the traditional wooden junk. Otherwise, it was a really lovely and peaceful couple of days with amazing food! The meals that were prepared for us on the junk were some of the best that we've had so far this trip, and by far the freshest seafood we've had! If you're thinking of visiting Halong bay and looking for something a little bit different from the big commercial junk cruises, give Sails of Indochina a looksie. There are some improvements that can be made, but it was definitely a worthwhile and unique experience!
After our time in Halong Bay, we returned to Hanoi the same way we left, sans the loud Vietnamese bus music (thank goodness!). We had one more full day in Hanoi but we didn't do much since Eric was getting over his stomach bug. We explored Old Quarter a bit more, and ended up wandering down an alley where I got a super cheap manicure and Eric got a super cheap but super professional haircut. The hair cutter was such a detail-oriented perfectionist that I actually got my nails done and still had to wait for Eric to finish!
We're so happy we wandered into this side alley because 1) everything was way cheaper but mainly because 2) we felt like we got a small glimpse into what it would be like to live here. While waiting for Eric to finish up, I ended up just sitting and hanging out with the family where I got my nails done. They could have kicked me out once I was done, but they were really warm and allowed me to hang out, even though they couldn't speak much English. They even offered me some of their snacks and I helped them complete a banh mi transaction with another vendor!
Before arriving in Vietnam, we had pretty low expectations for the country as we had heard and read so much about how everyone is trying to scam you here. After visiting though, we really enjoyed our time here. Sure, you have to watch out for pickpockets and scams and people trying to sell you goods and food on the street but that's just part of life in Asia. We didn't feel like the vendors here were too pushy and actually thought that people were much warmer and friendlier than compared with Cambodia. Maybe it's because we instinctively feel comfortable in Asian countries, or maybe it's just because we were pretty lucky and didn't get scammed. No matter the reason, we were very pleasantly surprised by Vietnam. The only regret we have is that we didn't get to try more of the Vietnamese cuisine but no worries, we'll just have to come back and visit again!
