Vietnam: Ha Long Bay

I have a distinct memory of my eldest brother telling me how beautiful Ha Long Bay is. I'm not sure when we had this conversation, certainly many years ago, but it has stuck with me. Once Sam and I put Vietnam into our travel plans, I knew I wouldn't leave the country before visiting Ha Long Bay to see what Dan was talking about. Of course he was right, and the 1,969 islands of limestone karst are a spectacular sight.

Limestone karst islands surround you on all sides.

Vietnam: Hanoi

We left Hue as Typhoon Nari was approaching Vietnam just to the south of us. Luckily, we were heading away from the storm and only experienced rain and heavy winds as a result. We boarded the sleeping bus in the rain and noticed that not all sleeping buses are created equal. The assistant driver assigned me to a seat way in the back (next to the toilet, but that’s not the point). This seat happened to be just a few inches shorter than the rest in terms of legroom – which is sparing to begin with. Sam, seated ahead of me, didn’t believe my seat was any different and we switched so he could see for himself.

Yes, the seat was very small.

Vietnam: Hue

Looking back, we were very fortunate to have had such lovely weather for our first day in Hue. We arrived mid-afternoon after a beautiful train ride and got a room with a nice view before heading out to explore.

View of Hue.