Descending Dragon Bay- Halong Bay

I'm looking through my photos and I can't actually believe I've just been in Halong Bay, woooft! The trip wooshed by, beautiful friends made along the way. I went with a junk-boat cruise called Halong Dragon Cruise for a 2night/3day trip. After a hot and humid day kayaking and squid fishing, we drank the hours away on the deck in the floating city of boats.
 A struggle getting up for breakfast the next morning and then across to Monkey Island to see the monkeys and get our tan on. We made our way to Cat Ba island, the largest of the islands in Halong Bay, and cycled the 5km through the limestone mountains to our bungalow for the night which was in-credible! All the wildlife. David Attenborough eat your heart out. It was a pretty remote village and I wish we'd been able to stay longer. I mean b-jeezus look at those photos.
I'm off to the north-west next to a place called Sapa.
Lazing about Hanoi waiting for the lightening storms to end there. Crossing so many things of dat list!

24 Hours in Hanoi

I took photos all morning today before I sat to look through them to have my camera tell me there was no card in it. I don't know whyyyy it wasn't in there. What a bloomin idiot. I also got spectacularly lost which was especially upsetting because I've always prided myself on my inner map of the world. Something of a quiet talent. Hanoi, you beat me. 

I found a secret cafe, a little hidden treasure that looks out onto Hoan Kiem Lake and it was perfect timing as the sun was setting and I'd just un-lost myself. You have to navigate through a silk shop, a set of regular steps and then 2 floors of a steel spiral staircase. Traumatic for those of you with vertigo. Ahem. 

Louise 1-1 Hanoi. 

Then it was eating time. My mum reckons I need to be told to eat to keep my strength up. I don't know who she thinks she's talking to! I found a Vietnamese vegetarian restaurant called Cai Mam and made a friend in the waiter who told me that Scotland were "bad to vote no" and that I should eat more (kindred spirits I think!). 

I'm off to Halong Bay tomorrow morning on a junk-boat cruise. It's been top of my bucket list for a very very long time so here's hoping it lives up to my expectations! 

Happy Monday, folks!

And some more from Bangkok...