Traveling in Southeast Asia

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Monday, 6 February 2023 - Left Hanoi and drove to Ha Long Bay, boarded a riverboat for a multi-hour cruise among limestone islands and islets in misty and cloudy weather, observed local oyster farms and fishing boats, explored Cat Ba Island with a short drive to Trung Trang Cave complex, hiked about 300 yards through dimly lit caves with stalactites and unique rock formations, then returned to the boat for more cruising, and ended the day with dinner on board as the sun set over the bay.

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Hạ Long Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The name Hạ Long means "descending dragon". The bay features thousands of limestone islands in various shapes and sizes.
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Hạ Long Bay has an area of around 600 square miles, including approximately 1,960 islands, most of which are limestone.
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It was very cloudy and sometimes a mist of rain.
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According to local legend, when Vietnam had just started to develop into a country, they had to fight against invaders. To assist the Vietnamese in defending their country, the gods sent a family of dragons as protectors. 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.
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We sailed through the bay and islands for a few hours. The scenery was beautiful.
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Oyster farms in the bay.
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Vietnamese fishing boat.
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Huge rock islands popping out of the water.
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Close up look at the limestone island.
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A fishing boat about to disappear behind a rock wall.
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The weather was bad - so some pictures look better in black and white.
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The boat dropped anchor and there was an excursion to the large island of Cat Ba and then a drive to the Trung Trang Cave complex.

A short climb to the cave entrance.
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The path through the cave is long - about 300 yards. And you see the typical cave rock formations.
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Many stalactites in very dim light.
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Minerals drip down the sides of the cave forming odd rock formations.
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Strange tubes formed in the rock.
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A small tree growing in the bay - at low tide.
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Back on the boat we cruised through the rocks for another hour before stopping for dinner.
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Some locals out fishing late in the day.
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The setting sun did provide interesting light making the water reflect green.
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The light was running out - one last picture of the giant limestone islands.
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