Cat Ba Island or Halong Bay otherwise
After more than three months in the land, it was time to revisit the coast that we both missed. We are heading to Cat Ba Island, an alternative (still somewhat) unknown to discover Halong Bay. After an umpteenth Vietnamese night bus ride by day (yes, don’t try to understand why we are lying in a semi-berth during journeys in broad daylight, it’s another culture huh!) we arrived on the island.
The first impression is not sensational. We know the Vietnamese and their taste for cement, and so unsurprisingly, the jetty is not quite the view it must be said. The same impression is confirmed when we discover the three beaches of the island, which are far from being magical. The shoreline is completely disfigured by resorts coming out of the ground like mushrooms. Indeed, the development of Cat Ba is notable and constructions are multiplying all over the island to meet a new tourist flow. Cat Ba, an alternative to Halong, welcomed 2,000,000 people in 2017 thanks to a new access by road, while this number was 800,000 the previous year!
However, the chickens remain positive, the main objective of this stage being the discovery of Halong and Lan Ha bays which encircle Cat Ba, as well as the center of the island, still preserved from buildings.
The best (and only) way to discover the island’s surroundings is to take a boat trip. We spend a wonderful day at fifteen on a boat normally designed for fifty people. There is no doubt that the boat must be filled in during the high season. On the boat tour menu: visit Lan Ha Bay (Halong’s little sister who has nothing to envy), swim in Halong Bay and its clear water (only moment of the day where the sun points his nose), kayaking in the partially submerged caves and enjoy the delicious lunch prepared on board by the crew! A choice that we will not regret because the guide will succeed in making us discover the treasures of Halong Bay away from the crowds of tourists, heavily present and year-round at the heart of this world heritage jewel.
The second day is devoted to a “hike” in the natural park of the center of the island (rather “big walk”, but not being fans of walking, and as it climbs harshly for more than one time, we can accept the term “hike”, end of parenthesis).
A breathtaking view of the green mountains covering almost the entire island is offered to us. There is also confirmation that there is only one single Cat Ba crossing from one end to the other. A superb point of view allowing us to leave the island on a beautiful impression, with in addition to the delicious seafood and fish cooked in the Vietnamese way. You know us, we finished our plate without being asked!
Tam Coc, rice fields you said you wanted!
A well-known stage of travel in Vietnam is the discovery of Tam Coc rice fields, also called Halong Bay land. Although we try to avoid archi-tourist destinations as much as possible, this stage still remained on the program. Audrey had not yet had her rice accounts, having crossed the country for the time being in the dry season. And a dry rice field looks more like an unshaded campsite on the Côte d’Azur! It is therefore delighted that we discover the landscapes of Tam Coc, fluorescent green rice fields at the foot of karstic massifs.
First day, arrival in this tourist Asian place, we take advantage of our bungalow with two hammocks (the dream!) With mountain views and rice paddies to paint, read, and rest.
On the second day, we decided to change hotels (the first being a nice rip off friends! One of the hammocks even gave in under the weight of Ben …) and rent scooters to reach the pier. Trang Anh, main entry point of this UNESCO World Heritage Site. Not too many options in this natural park, we embark for the ride in rowing boat for three hours, during which the Halong Bay land holds all its promises. Our rower, smiling, and helpful does not hesitate to jump into the water (after asking us permission!) to leave with his colleagues in search of a mobile phone lost by a Chinese tourist aboard a neighbor boat. The dedication to the service of the tourist, impressive!
We complete our stay in Tam Coc by visiting the bird park. A kind of landscaped park that welcomes at nightfall hundreds of birds coming to gather on three or four trees and which are the delight of bird watchers posted on the heights of the park.
Three hours of barque was not enough, we decide to accept the ride proposed by a small lady who heard our limited budget during a tough negociation with one of his colleagues (hear Ben yell “I’m not I’m not a dollar, this is robbery! tthis is priceless). Then here ladies and gentlemen, the little trap (not the big one because in the end we will have a good laugh and it will not have cost much) this “unconventional” walk . As soon as we start on our modest boat, we discover a backhoe building a new dyke on our canal. Little information that the rower did not really seem to know. She does not disassemble and makes us change boats on the other side of the dyke. Ten minutes later, our boat is trapped in a pile of water lilies, the rower therefore asks Ben to bring a paddle and to stand at the front of the boat to make our way through the plants embarrassing our passage. Thirty meters and a lot of effort further, the athlete was thankful by our rower and a friend to her having to enjoy to pass! So after a little over an hour (against the two hours planned) that the rower brings us back safely after proposing to Audrey … a massage! A truly original experience!
Satiated by our more or less successful boat trips, we end our stay at Tam Coc with a striking view of the rice fields and canals. And after a few tens of kilometers on an extra scooter, we improvise a visit to the rescue center for monkeys, mainly gibbons and langurs. We will note two things about this last visit, the first being that the road to the natural park hosting this center is superb, rice fields as far as the eye can see under a stormy sky (through rural villages not used to tourists, finally). And the second being that since that day, Audrey can be proud of providing a very beautiful imitation of gibbon (delivery on request when we return).
It’s at our hotel with a Vietnamese family of incredible kindness, that we meet Paul and Maryse, a retired Swiss couple who offer us a seat in their private taxi to return to Hanoi. Our chickens travel in luxury and voluptuousness now! (PS: we are waiting for their comment on our blog impatiently! 2.0 or nothing!)
Our trip to Vietnam is coming to an end and our feeling is very positive because we have the sensation of having managed to discover beautiful places by back roads. Difficult task in a country so touristy!
Also, what makes first and foremost a country is its people (this sentence must be read with a dignified air). About Vietnamese, plethora of articles lists their coldness and their lack of sense of service despite a tourist boom out of the ordinary. So we arrived with this image but envious to make our own idea that we embarked on the discovery of Vietnam. It is true that we have seen that, as everywhere else in the more developed countries, we find people more or less nice. It must be said that Vietnamese do not have what could be called infinite tenderness. They are rather hard and sometimes even a little rough! However, apart from the time Ben was ejected from two pharmacies looking for something to take care of his sweet, it is very quickly that we got used to the Vietnamese character. We can say with a smile today, we have met dozens of Vietnamese adorable and ready to help us.
We will award the score of 8/10 for this country where cement reigns supreme, and it is a Franco-Portuguese couple who speaks! Special mention for the Vietnamese gastronomy that will remain on the honor roll of by the fine gourmets that we are!
Next step, the long-awaited Myanmar, but that’s for an upcoming chickens article!
See you soon,
Ben & Audrey