Images, lots of them, you know the deal by now.
Kinda getting Mississippi Riverboat vibes here; I’m assuming it’s one of the overnight stay boats.
I should explain this next bit.
I skipped the kayaking & the subsequent swimming, and instead stayed on the boat, and the only reason I can give for why is that I just had a bad feeling about it. Nothing looked unsafe or dangerous, certainly the risk was lower than those bloody scooter rides, with more safety equipment than the bike ride, but … Bad feeling about it.
So I stayed on the boat, stayed out of the water, and enjoyed the scenery. I wasn’t the only one; There were a few other non-kayakers, and a whole bunch of non-swimmers.
There was an afternoon snack thing, and I ended up chatting to a couple from France/UK about their travel & mine. They’d booked the trip so long ago that they’d forgotten the itinerary, and indeed had got the name wrong when talking to a tour guide yesterday; They’d said Ha Long Bay, and the guide had suggested that they go somewhere else, because it’d be incredibly crowded, so they were pretty pleased to discover that they’d already done just that.
It was a really good day. I was relieved that the to my eyes ridiculous system actually works, and indeed is capable of on-the-fly correction when errors occur. And the tour itself was amazing; The chance to see these landscapes without crowds & in a relaxing way is what I was looking for.
The system continued to work, with those of us staying on Cat Ba separated from the rest of the group, put onto a smaller minibus, and dropped off at our various hotels & hostels.
This one, The Oversleep Hostel, was recommended by the folks at Old Quarter View Hostel in Hanoi, and it had good reviews. It’s also got the same branding and general design philosophy as OQV, so that may explain the recommendation. But I have a comfy bed for a couple of nights, and that’s the important bit.
