Ha Long Bay, or as translated, “Descending Dragon Bay” is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located approximately 3.5 hours east of Hanoi. During our visit to northern Vietnam, we had the opportunity to take an excursion on one of the many junk boats that make its home among the 3000+ islets (though many locals claim there to be only 1969 due to it matching the year of Ho Chi Minh’s death). The bay is world famous for its striking limestone karsts of varying shape and size that are spread throughout the area. According to geologists, the limestone in Ha Long Bay has gone through over 500 million years of formation through varying conditions and environments. The karsts themselves have endured through a more rapid process of accelerated formations as a result of the past 20 million years in a home that hosts a very tropical and often wet climate.
According to local legend, when the Vietnamese were fighting Chinese invaders, the gods sent a family of dragons to help defend the land. This family of dragons began spitting out jewels and jade.These jewels turned into the islands and islets dotting the bay, linking together to form a great wall against the invaders. The people kept their land safe and formed what later became the country of Vietnam. After that, dragons were interested in peaceful sightseeing of the earth, and then decided to live here. The place where the mother dragon descended was named Hạ Long, the place where the dragon's children attended upon their mother was called Bái Tử Long island (Bái: attend upon, Tử: children, Long: dragon), and the place where the dragon's children wriggled their tails violently was called Bạch Long Vỹ island (www.ngm.com).
We began our trip with an early bus pick up from our hotel in Hanoi, and within ten minutes, we had gathered an additional 10 travelers before setting off on the 3+ hour ride to Ha Long City. The trip was through varying landscapes, including urban areas, rice and corn fields, and many villages and small towns. As we neared Ha Long City there were views of the great limestone karsts scattered across the distant landscape. Once we reached the port, we were organized by our tour guide and on a boat in a matter of 15-20 minutes (incidentally, just enough time to make a bathroom pit stop and reject about 37 offers to buy postcards, books, candy, chips, and other paraphernalia from the local sellers). The area is obviously quite touristy due to the great attraction to visit the Bay by just about every person passing through Vietnam. We were on our boat and off to cruise the Bay at about 12:20pm. Once on the boat the attendants served a locally produced seafood dish and dessert (we opted out of this due to the many food issues each of us contends with, as well as thinking that the last place we would want to fall ill would be on a boat far from the comforts of a nice hotel and clean bathroom). After a quick snack, and while the remaining passengers were eating their prepared lunch, we set out for the deck and sat for a long while taking in the views and just acknowledging the immense beauty that surrounded us. It’s really a difficult thing to describe, and taking pictures to capture it is equivalent to trying to capture the Grand Canyon in a few photographs…although those of you who know us well, know that we can never resist taking lots of pictures when we travel.
We cruised over to our first stop at Thien Cung Cave (Heaven’s Palace). The cave was discovered by a local fisherman not too long ago. According to the story, the fisherman was out and about his daily business when he was distracted by a monkey clamoring up the limestone. He followed the monkey to see where it was heading when the monkey suddenly looked as though he had slid through the rock. Upon further investigation the fisherman discovered a small opening high on the cliff which led to this particular cave. According to local legend, a beautiful young lady named May (cloud), caught the eye of the Dragon Prince and he fell in love with her. They were betrothed, and their wedding lasted seven days and seven nights in the very centre of the grotto. In honor of the wedding, small dragons flew about through the stalactites and stalagmites, elephants danced together happily, snakes twined themselves around trees and two stone lions danced with their manes flowing in the wind. A large elephant, smartly dressed, waited for the bride and the groom.Many of these images, as well as lots more can be observed as one walks through the different chambers of the cave. Though we have traveled to a fair number of underground caverns, caves, and other geological wonders over the years, both of us really were astounded by the stretch of beauty within this particular area.
The second cave we entered, Hang Dau Go, is one of the most beautiful caves at Ha Long. The name, Dau Go or Giau Go, has direct ties to the history of Vietnam. According to the locals (and our guide), while preparing for the Mongolian attacks in 1288, General Tran Hung Dao, sent a convoy to this area to cut wood from this region of Ha Long Bay. Wooden stakes were then fashioned from the wood and hidden in Dau Go cave. The stakes were then embedded in Bach Dang River to form a barrier against the attacking Mongols. According to legend, General Tran Hung Dao dealt a great blow to the Kublai Khan when he tricked the Mongolian army into chasing him deep up Bach Dang's channel. When the tide was down the enemies were stuck in these wooden stakes driven into the river bed. Dau Go was also the site where general Tran Khan Du hid his force while waiting for the Mongols led by Truong Van Ho in 1287.
Once we were back on the boat we made our way through the immense karsts to the floating village of Cua Van. Cua Van Village is home to about 200 households with nearly 800 people. They all earn their living through fishing and aquaculture. With an outstanding lifestyle of fishermen and merchants, the most crowded population in the fishing zone, Cua Van Village is considered the "capital" of the World Heritage Area and has been selected as the location of the first "floating cultural centre" in Vietnam. Interestingly many of the people who live in this and other Ha Long floating villages, have never set foot on land.
Our next stop along our cruise was a view of the famous rock formations in the bay. We stopped by “Fighting Rooster Rock,” “Incense Rock,” and one referred to as “King Kong.” Many of the formations in the bay have local names, and often include more conventional identifications with which visitors can relate.
After our final cruise around the bay area, and many hours on the boat, we headed back to port, reaching back to Hanoi later that same night immensely tired, but also thankful for having had the opportunity to visit and observe such a beautiful place.
Hòa bình và Tình yêu!
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