Reaching North Vietnam
Alex set up our trip to Vietnam with a south to north plan. We entered Hoi Chi Minh City on February 10th and two months later we climbed off a sleeper train in Ninh Binh to begin the northern part of our adventure. We were particularly excited about north Vietnam. Ha Long Bay and the surrounding area is legendary for the spectacular limestone karsts rising out of the sea. Similarly, Ninh Binh has even larger karsts uniquely surrounded by lucious green fields and gentle waterways. Finally, Sapa, which sits far east, high up in the mountains near the Chinese border, sports lush valleys and rugged mountain peaks. In our case, the north promised much – and delivered!
Ninh Binh's World of Wonder
Ninh Binh is a middle-sized city that sits about 60 miles south of Hanoi. While Nihn Bihn is a fine place, it is the small towns and villages to the west that will attract a lot of attention. The Trang An Landscape Complex and the stunning Tam Coc water tours are Unesco World Heritage Sites often called “Ha Long Bay on land” for the stunning karsts peaks which sit on the Red River Valley. You can also ascend to mountain views of the area that are equally breath-taking. We spent 5 days in the this area floating, climbing, caving, riding bikes and trekking the countryside. While we were active, the small town of Tam Coc offered up something we really needed – peace and quiet. After many busy and noisy bigger cities, we recharged are batteries in Ninh Binh. It is one of the favorite spots of our entrire trip.
The Northern Coast - Cat Ba Island, Ha Long Bay, Lan Ha Bay, Bai Tu Long Bay
You have probably seen pictures from Ha Long Bay, Vietnam…even if you didn’t know it. The multitudes of crazy hay-stack limestone rock towers emerging out of the tranquil water. It is truly even more stunning in person. This was our initial target for the area, but with much talk on social media about overtourism in Ha Long, we began to alter our plans. We visited the large jungle island of Cat Ba – a short ferry ride from the Hai Phong mainland – which put us at the doorstep of Ha Lan Bay, the lesser known (and less crowded) step-sister of Ha Long. After a week of water and mountains on Cat Ba, we grabbed a ferry north to Ha Long City via Ha Long Bay. The most beautiful $20 ride you could ever imagine! We spent a few days in Ha Long City – a multimillion population center that China has essentially built in 10 years – taking in the sights. Then we became indulgent and boarded a 3D/2N sailing on a smaller luxury cruise boat into Ha Long, Lan Ha, and Bai Tu Long Bays. We haven’t been too extravagant during our travel, but I must say that having 3 days of quiet sailing and evening sunsets in a surreal setting was worth the $$. We managed to beat the crowds and had a great experience. Check out the pics. We sadly left the cruise boat and headed directly to Hanoi for reindoctrination to busy big city life.
Hanoi - Vietnam's Historic Capital
Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City (aka, Saigon) are the big-city bookends of Vietnam. The two most populous cities split between north and south. I/we had heard lots of bad things about Hanoi and weren’t sure how much time to give it. It didn’t help that it was voted the “#1 Worst City in the World for Air Quality” just the week before we arrived.
What you should know is that Hanoi is the capital of VN and is over 1000 years old and rich in history. We stayed near the Old Quarter (Sword Lake) which dates back to the 14th century. Now, it is a chaotic and somewhat intoxicating mix of the multitudes – locals and tourists, motos and cars, food carts and souvenir vendors, etc. The city is stlyish, with well-kept architecture from the French colinization periods and sheek modern additions, and the people seem to enjoy making fashion statements.
Our time in Hanoi was short, but we were fortunate to be in the city for Vietnam’s 50th Reunification Celebration (post-American War 1975). The streets were full, parades marched, bands played and, of course, food was everywhere. It was a blast! We definitely left Hanoi feeling we could easily spend more time getting to know the place a bit better.
Sapa - Northern Mountain Mecca
We exited Hanoi on a hot, sunny day with air so bad that visiblity was limited to about 100m. We grabbed 6-hour bus ride and escaped into the gourgous hills and valleys of Sapa. In less than a week, we had made the swing from the giant limestone rocks jutting from the Gulf of Tonkin to a massive urban hub of 8.5M and now to towering mountains covered in green terraced-fields in Sapa.
Sapa was not exactly what we expected….it was bigger, busier and a bit more urban. It is a small city that has become quite popular with the international backpacking crowd. The city is full of hotels, restaurants, coffee shops, bars, spas, and Hmong villagers selling their cultural wares on the sidewalks. It is a veritcal city and your legs notice it. The nice thing about Sapa – and why it shines so brightly – is that it is easy to escape into nature and quickly leave the noise and commercialism behind. Sapa was our last official travel site in Vietnam and it was a great way to end that part of our Asian adventure.
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