Hanoi Halong

At Halong Bay
By AV Latinggam

Vietnam is a country worth return visits as HEL and I found out as we entered the land of friendly people.

Being Asian, and looking just like them, I did not have a problem blending in with the crowds on the busy streets of Hanoi, a city in the North of the country. I was spoken to in Vietnamese. I can almost believe the statement ‘all Asians look alike’ spoken by a Peace Corp I met a long time ago.

The city was a busy one, especially with incessant traffic made up mainly of motorcycles and bicycles. Of course they were other vehicles big and small, but the two-wheelers were king. HEL and I became an expert in dodging traffic within a day, even using the imperious ‘stop’ sign by putting our palms-up sign!

Our destination was Halong Bay, about 170 kilometres from Hanoi. The fare was 1.6million dongs, the Vietnam currency in a four wheel and about 100,000dongs on a public bus. Translated they are about RM233 and RM15 respectively.

The sights of Halong Bay after five hours non-stop drive in a four wheel vehicle was worth it. Our Halong Tours were on a boat called Aurora, a 14-room contraption that was more wish than ship but was comfortable and served the purpose as it was.

Halong Bay seen from Surprising Caves

Halong a UNESCO World Heritage had an area of 1553 square kilometres with almost 2000 islets made of limestone.

We were told that the people living on some of the islands around the Halong Bay mostly derived their livelihood from fishing and that they were presently actively participating in tourism.

When tourism was introduced to Halong Bay, the people had benefitted in some ways, where the women and some men were paid to take care of kayaks in their village.

Our guide Peter Qiet shared, “We can’t carry our kayaks in our boat all the time so we choose a village, in this case Vung Vieng Floating Village,  to park our kayaks. We then pay someone in the village to take care of it, against theft and such like. We usually bring our tourists in and encourage them to go kayaking in and around the water village.”

He also said that the villagers benefitted through their little stalls, either on the floating platform or on small boats that they anchor near jetties to touristic spots.

We visited the Sung Sot Caves one of their favourite spot to anchor, where they wait and hope for customers. They sold various types of foodstuff, such as noodle cup and sweets, as well as water and carbonated drinks, a hit with the customers, who came down from the caverns all hot, sweaty and thirsty.

A cruise boat at Halong Bay

The Sun Sot Caves was quite interesting even though the stairs up the hills and in and around the caverns were steep. There were some interesting rock formations within, with one that looked like a turtle. Some people rub its head for luck and left money around it.

After the trek, Peter took us outside where a few stalls were selling t-shirts and souvenirs, the standard tourist fare, but the scenery was breath-taking.

“So that is how we earn our living, and send the children to school,” he shared pointing out the little boats that carried wares in and around the bay, busily selling their goods to the customers on the various and many boats showing off Halong Bay.

The tour of Halong Bay ended on the second day after a night on board. It was an interesting experience, to see the islands around us, like ancient hulks fossilized on the water, straining towards the sky. The eerie quiet when everyone had gone to sleep was like a giant’s bated breath until he rumbles again as dawn approaches. The boats, big and small did make quite a din….

Leaving Halong for Hanoi in a packed bus, where long-legged people grimly persevered for the journey, I looked back once more and said a silent goodbye. I learnt a little about the inhabitants of the area, the struggles and their hopes, their wish to better themselves during the brief visit, thanks to talkative Peter. We share the same struggle to surmount poverty and to progress. Maybe Sabah has developed more rapidly and we are on a better platform then they are, but in all else we are the same. Maybe the Peace Corp was right after all.