Well still not sleeping great, but the good news is, I was wide awake before the alarm. Before we head down for breakfast we have to pack up and have the suitcases outside the room by 7:00, no sleeping late on this tour. After a breakfast in the hotel, we boarded our 45 passenger bus (way too big for driving in Hanoi - but what do I know) and started our trek out of the city centre. Traffic is absolutely insane and I don’t know how people can stand to drive here. Somehow our bus driver (much seasoned I assume) got us out of the city and onto the hwy to take us north and east to Halong bay. Along the way we were given a lot of information from our tour guide, Ha, about the area. We learned that the name Hanoi means “bend in the river” and that Halong Bay means , “ ascending dragon”.
After about an 1.5 hours, we stopped at a large rest stop for a stretch and to use the WC. Back on the bus for another 45 min and then a stop at a Pearl Factory. Here we were given a tour and shown the process to growing cultured pearls. Very labour intensive and all done by hand, and the oyster of course. Only 30% of the implanted oysters produce pearls and those that do, produce pearls in all shapes, sizes and colours. The most prized our AAAA graded pearls in a gold color. I have seen pink, white, black and silver pearls before, but I have never seen gold, yellow or green pearls before. Just like a Disney theme park, we excited through the gift shop, where you could purchase any type of pearl jewelry you can think of for almost any dollar amount. I did not make a purchase. 
Back on the bus for a short ride to the pier in Halong Bay city where we get onto a water taxi that will shuttle us to the Indochina boat we will be on for the next 2 nights. We were joined on the water taxi by 2 other groups of tourists to make about 90 in total. All I will say is that our group is the biggest, but far from the most obnoxious or rude. Some people are so oblivious to others, loud, rude, pushy, egocentric and entitled.
Once on the Indochina boat we were given room keys, and checked into our rooms. We have an upgrade to a very nice room (upgrade story is long and not important). After we checked into the room, we went back downstairs and had a buffet lunch. After lunch we had about an hour to relax before getting back on the water taxi for a short ride to the Light and Dark caves. This whole bay has large limestone formations jutting out of the water, covered with ferns and ficus plants, technically each formation is an island. The caves are an area where the sea has carved a cave or tunnel through the formation. We got onto a boat called a sampan, which held to 8 people and was rowed by a local. They rowed us against the incoming tide through the cave and back. Apparently the one island we rowed past has grey monkeys living on it, but alas we saw none. The whole trip lasted about an hour, and then we shuttled back to the boat for a few hours of free time before supper. Enough time for a quick shower and a nice cocktail in the lounge. 
Supper was a 5 course set menu, which was rather nice and included: lobster bisque, salad, mussels in a creamy sauce, steak and vegetables, and fruit for dessert. As I still seem to be experiencing some jet lag, we headed back to the room for sleep, as we have another early day tomorrow.
Wifi is non-existent on the boat so will be uploading several days of blog at once.
January 17
Today is a tour of a fishing village, but I am not feeling well so opted to stay on the boat. Didn’t want to be out on a tour and take ill. So I am catching up with my blog and reading. I was the only person on the boat all day, aside from the crew.
January 18
Opted out of the cave tour today, as I am still not feeling great. After lunch we boarded the water taxi and headed back to the mainland. Back in the bus for the long trek back to Hanoi. We
Back in Hanoi we checked into the hotel and had about 30 minutes before venturing out to go to the Water Puppet Theatre.
January 19
Today we visited the Temple of Literature, a Confucius temple, and grounds. Inside were dozens of university age students, wearing traditional clothing taking pictures. We have seen this all around Hanoi, especially around the lake. Our guide says they are taking pictures for Tet, the Vietnamese New Year on the 29th of January. The turtle and the crane (that Bill is touching) are said to bring long life and prosperity. 
After the temple we went to the Ho-Chi-Minh mausoleum, celebrating the leader Ho-Chi-Minh. This is quite the place 3000 square m of grounds. Very strict here, no phones, walk in single file… we even got to see “Uncle Ho” in his resting place. Not sure how they embalm people here, but he looked pretty good for someone who has been dead for decades. 
After the mausoleum it was back on the bus for the hour ride to the airport, where we fly south to DeNang and visit Hoi An.
Tonight we were on our own for supper and so we wandered down the old town. We found a fantastic little restaurant serving traditional Vietnamese food (slightly different from up North). The people in the restaurant were super friendly and the meal and drinks were very reasonable. After supper we went for a walk further down the street to the river. On the river there are many boats for hire. Each boat is decked out with lanterns, in fact the whole downtown is decorated with lanterns. Very festive and beautiful. 
This featured blog entry was written by Basebrown from the blog Planes, Trains and Automobiles.
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