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Halong Bay , Vietnam. We board a nice boat with cabins with bathrooms. It is misty and the islands are grey ghosts. I do not lock my cabin. The crew notices and approve my trust in them. We stop at a tourist site. Indochina Sails on Halong Bay Coming back to the boat I see small boats with kids. I give each kid a toy but am short one for a boy. Running to my cabin I grab a toy car. The boy's boat is right outside and I throw him the car. He is very happy. A crew member, an old man watches ... Read Full Story

History of the name "Halong" "Ha Long" is literally translated as "Bay of Descending Dragons." Prior to the 19th century, this name was not recorded in any document or archive. When mentioning the present-day Quang Ninh Sea or Ha Long Bay, old historical books often referred to them by the names of An Bang, Luc Thuy or Van Don. Not until the late 19th century did the name of Halong Bay appear on a French Marine Map. "The Hai Phong News", a French newspaper of the time, had an article, "Dragon appears on Ha Long Bay ", reporting the following story: In 1898 a ... Read Full Story

A third foreign tourist has been confirmed dead after a pleasure boat overturned during a storm in Vietnam's picturesque Halong Bay last week, police said Sunday. Local immigration police officer Pham Van Truong said a total of two British tourists, a Frenchman and a local guide died in the accident on Thursday and that a Vietnamese tourist was still missing. "There was very heavy rain at the time of the accident," he said. A French tourist on the boat said there were 31 people on board, including South Africans, Japanese and Australians, as well as the Britons and Frenchman who died. Police had earlier ... Read Full Story

The first thing that I wanted to do when I got to Hanoi was leave. I ran into my man Stewart, who I had met previously in Hoi An. He had just booked a trip to Halong Bay with Active Travel Vietnam company. I ran and grabbed Oskar so we could book the trip to go along. Halong bay is a UNESCO protected area in the East China Sea. It’s famous for the rock outcroppings that poke out of the sea and for the one hundred or so tourist junks (ours is in the middle somewhere) that float around the area. We booked a ... Read Full Story

Even if we hadn't already spent a week in the bustle and hustle of Hanoi, the mist-shrouded limestone peaks of Ha Long Bay, echoing birdcalls and water lapping our ship would have been enchanting. But by the time we arrived at this UNESCO World Heritage site in northern Vietnam's Gulf of Tonkin, we badly needed a break from the mad motor-scooter traffic of the nation's second-largest city, the swarming pineapple vendors and the ceaseless capitalist hustle. Three days of swimming, kayaking and just chilling on the deck of the Dragon's Pearl, with drink in hand, were the ideal respite and one of the high ... Read Full Story