the chinese woman, whose only english she spoke to us was "welcome to china" a phrase that about killed us since we were passportless (we had turned them in to a dodgy travel agent in Hanoi for cambodian visas) I wonder what would happen if you turn up in china with no visa??!

Carriage 4- the train ride to hell

playing ~ at the pier of Halong Bay

No Trumpet Playing! It actually means you can't use your horn. I will say that Vietnam has a lot of noise pollution. Drivers lay on thier horn from the time they put the key in the ignition to the time they park it seems.

The roof of our boat

our own little private beach

after a day of kayaking we warmed up by a camp fire
the kayaking group.. from L-R...kay, me, silvia, kay's son adrian, thaun, and dave

me getting friendly with our boat crew- check out that skill, steering with his feet!

playing on the beach

the classic sails of Halong Bay

Thaun, our "kayak instructor" and Dave

We climbed over all these ships to get to ours

Dave plays on the boat as we admire the fishing village we past

the deck of out boat

We take in the brisk air on the roof of our private boat

A pagoda sets on top of the cliff at Halong Bay

Cave

This view is the epitomy of Halong Bay---> colorful sails and jutting rocks pierce the sky.

Dave took us for a spin in the boat

Halong Bay means Descended Dragon

Dave relaxing on the roof of the ship in Halong Bay. What a Day~ this is the roof we jumped off for our swim~

our boat

Dave and I's first day as a twosome...the group had now split...I must say that the two of us together are quite a dynamic...he is friendly, wholesome, and adventurous, and then there is me.. Here I am aboard our boat in Halong Bay getting friendly with the captain...he didn't know what to think...I worked on our kayak guide the rest of the trip...

embroidery

this waiter, who says he is "25" years old, passed me notes at the restaraunt that served strange game items- everything from duck to rabbit to wild boar... he thought I was beautynful.. so i made his day and his hard English effort with a wee kiss...

where is your kick? obviously he is off

Dave join aerobics in the sqare...later this evening he and I joined some local kids (20-25 years old maybe) for a game of basketball / keep away...we were chased off by the local police....I guess it wasn't allowed....it is always so nice when you are so warmly accepted in a foreign place...moments like those make my desire to see the world even greater...and it makes me wish that I could do nothing more than meet people day by day and share these grand experiences....

These guys were fun, they kept trying and succeeding at impressing Dave, Heather. Jehanne, and I with match tricks, armwrestling, etc. They were really friendly and poured an amazing flaming Irish coffee...

old men hanging out playing checkers

checkers

conical hats

Hanoi at night: Thien Quang Lake

Dave was on this "James Bond" kick. Here he is in James Bond style

Taking a mud bath, it was kind of a bummer unlike Japan, in Vietnam, you bathe with suits on :(

and there were monkeys too, riding bikes. PETA should be all over this thing...

the horrific dog show

Cham ruins in Nah Trang

it was really disturbing

Cham ruins built in the 7th century

Cham Ruins of Nha Trang

because of the full moon, there were many people visiting the cham ruin temple

Neil and Dave do some relaxing yoga positions

The gang in front of the cham ruins in Nha Trang

Not a Bad Way to Spend Christmas Day!

Christmas Day, the beach at Nha Trang

that is also for real, him riding a bike with it balanced on his head

that is for real, a whole tray of bread balanced upon his head

yet to have my bathing suit, I decide to enjoy the beautiful water

Ahh- Christmas day..we have arrived at the beach and are getting ready to enjoy a great meal of spring rolls and curry...all while enjoying a beer

I could have stayed here all 18 days. A beach, massages, mud baths, hiking adventures, dancing, cheap drinks.... Vietnam Paradise