We could see the scenery of Halong Bay in the distance from our hotel.

We went on a boat ride on the first day. We explored a few caves (with 100s of other tourists!). Andrew learnt the word ‘kudo’ (there were lots of Yoe Tabiyos around!).

The scenery was magnificent. However, Kei and Andrew had been forewarned by Thuy about the part of the tour where two 10 year old boys (maybe younger) row about 20 tourists on a rowboat to see an underwater cave. Therefore we did not participate in this part of the tour. Are there child labour laws this country?

Halong Bay seems to have been overtaken by tourism, however there still appears to be a fishing industry with small-time fisherman eking out an existence as we imagine they always have.

Our boat broke down about an hour into our journey and just short of the cove on a secluded island where we were supposed to swim. Instead the boat dropped anchor and everyone jumped in for a swim in the middle of the bay. The water was warm and calm. After the Vietnamese couple (they had lived in Germany since the early 1980s) and Astrid (the Dutch girl) jumped off the TOP DECK, Kei and Andrew had to follow suit. It seemed like 30 seconds before we re-emerged out of the water after jumping from such a height. Andrew challenged Kei to a race around the boat. Kei claims she ‘let Andrew win so he wouldn’t get cranky’, however if this was the case, why did she let the Chinese lady come second, and then cut her foot when climbing the ladder to get back on the boat (indicating she had exhausted herself in the race) ?????????

On the trip for the 2^nd day it was just our own little group of 7 (no Deppachu to scare us!!). The Vietnamese couple and the Dutch girl Astrid knew each other from university in Aachen (German border town). The Chinese couple were from Beijing – why didn’t her husband get in the water too?