Vietnam - Hanoi – Halong Bay November 21-29, 2002

Up close, the islands are really rugged and home to eagles and other small wildlife. But in the water around them, many villages spring up on houseboats.

This is typical, with a fishfarm underneath the house, growing shrimp or catfish. One of the problems here is that the children don’t get to school regularly, even though the government puts floating schools out on the water in the most populated areas.

L A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the caverns in the bay are fabulous – 40 meters high and several hundred meters long. This cave was discovered only in 1984.

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One thing we quickly learned about Vietnam is that the cuisine is very fresh – the shrimp are leaping around in water tanks and almost all fish are completely fresh – that is still in the water when you order them. We went from one good meal to another, with lots of rice, spring rolls and fish, all superbly prepared. Even the most lavish dinner was no more than 30USD for the 3 of us, and most were much less. The restaurant we ate at in Halong Bay was a family affair, and the clientele was completely local. The owner and his wife ate next to us and also have an 11 year old daughter, who came by and said hello to Bill. The food was fabulous, and the people warm and welcoming.

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