Halong Bay and Sapa

Since escaping the bustle of Hanoi, we have seen some really beautiful parts of Vietnam. We spent three days in Halong Bay, which was really stunning. These are not my pictures as my camera won´t connect up, but it really did look like the postcards! We did a boat trip that included kayaking (very relaxing), hiking up Cat Ba Island National Park (very beautiful views), swimming, a lot of eating and staying and beaching at Monkey Island (I´m not THAT keen on monkeys close up...). It was really nice and relaxing, only slightly tempered by a MENTAL Guatemalan guy who was also on the boat, but other much nicer people too! A whole bunch had been through China and we not overly positive, but in a way that made both Cat and I want to go and see for ourselves!

Straight back from Halong Bay via an extremely delicious restaurant (I am now addicted to fruit in coconut milk puddings) we got the overnight train to Sapa. Despite not much sleep, arriving at six thirty am, it seemed to be at it´s most beautiful. It is much cooler, as it is high up and surrounded by mountains, with masses of terraced rice paddies, which are a very bright green. Similar to Chiang Mai, it has many Hmong people, who wear very traditional dress and, inevitably, attempt to sell us EVERYTHING. Miraculously we maintained energy after an uncomfortable train ride (very narrow bunks for sharing with ALL of our stuff, combined with an agile old lady or had no problems treading on us on her way up and down to bed, as well as a rather unpleasant smell...) to go on a one day trek today. The weather was beautiful, and I have a whole load of photos which probably don´t do it justice. Another well deserved meal today - I may have to do a Vietnamese cooking class as well....