AJ’s Story: Day One
We got up early, went to our favorite pastry and coffee shop in the Hanoi. Packed our bags for the next leg of our journey. A two day cruise in Ha Long Bay. A limousine with tan leather reclining seats picked us. We are riding in style to the coast through marshy farmland. This is certainly much better than the train. Jaimie jokingly asks if the busses in Thailand and Laos will be like this.

I’m readying my dad jokes replacing “Ha Long Bay” with “How Long Bae?” but I’ll wait for Jaimie to finish her coffee and croissant so that she can tolerate my cheesy jokes. She’s so lucky to spend 4 straight weeks almost exclusively with me!

Our boat is exceedingly nice, we might have overpaid for this jaunt but it certainly did not disappoint. The boat is about 40-60 feet long and has about 30 people on board Plus 5-10 staff. Hardwood floors and large private rooms with exquisite views.

We make our way to Cat Ba island, which is fairly large. Our guide lists several famous movies that were filmed here, including King Kong, not sure if it’s the Jack Black or Tom Hiddlestone version he’s talking about. Either way the island is a tropical jungle island you’d imagine in a movie. We hike up through a cave and meet for a beer at the end of a short hike.

As we leave the island the clouds part and it is briefly sunny just before the sun sets towards Hanoi. Jaimie and I enjoy sitting in our room watching the jagged limestone isles pass by. Each one unique but also similar to the last. We anchor in a large bay on the north side of the island. Soon after we docked, a small boat approached or cruiser. Oh no, could it be pirates? No, as it turn out it was only small women selling snacks and booze, I wave her away. We have everything we need on the boat. But then Jaimie asks if she has any white wine. Yes, it’ll be 500,000 dong she says. I bargain her down to 360k. A third the price on board the boat. I’m impressed with her ingenuity, and her speed. Before we could ask for Pringle’s she disappeared into the sea.

The sunsets on our day in Ha Long Bay. Everything is quiet, alone on the water tucked behind the towering isles with a few other cruise ships in the distance. We are completely still with the water, boat, and surrounding limestone cliffs.

The other passengers are friendly. Several other people are celebrating anniversaries, on their honeymoon and one Taiwanese couple even got engaged while we were there. The cell service was poor, so we were actually the first people they told. Before even their own parents.

On the second day, I woke up early for tai chi, which consisted of 15 minutes of me imitating the crew member doing slow movements with no instruction. After that breakfast. We enjoyed an hour long kayak ride around the small islands which allowed for a closer look of the shoreline. After the ride I was ready for brunch (breakfast #2). The sun comes out as we are making our way back to the Ha long bay harbor area.

Jaimie has come down with a stomach ailment. Most likely something she ate on the cruise, being on a boat for so long or just the compilation of strange food over the last 10 days. Either way, she’s not feeling well, a somber end to our cruise.

We pass infinite isles, each rocky and shear washed away by the tides, but beaming with resilient life. Then a quick ride back to our Hanoi hotel.