Halong Bay

I could be accused of "fake tourism" if I showed only shots like these of Halong Bay, a UNESCO World Heritage Site four hours northeast of Hanoi, not far from Haiphong, the major port heavily bombed by Americans late in the war.

Holes shaped like jigsaw puzzle pieces mark the limestone karst that enable hundreds of tourist, fishing and refueling boats to play hide & seek in a spectacular setting.

In reality, we saw just as many industrial tankers as natural wonders in the heavily trafficked shipping lanes navigated by our overnight junk cruise.

Not that Thom cared.

I might have thought twice about a kayak/swimming excursion if first I had seen the waste from our junk being emptied into the deceptively clean water the next morning.

After a night of not-drunk-enough karaoke, a national obsession, our "tender"--a small boat attached to the junk--took us spelunking to Hang Sung Sot.

Garry, who was pickpocketed in Hanoi,  gave up practicing family law in Canda for serious photography. Despite stiff competition from a couple of Americans, he took more photos than anyone in the  Sticky Rice Crew while Catherine did her own thing.

Nikolai and Vinni, the Danish couple, displayed a different dynamic.

Move over, Carlsbad!  Sadly, I somehow missed the phallic formation in the "massive cave of surprises."

 

Back at the junk, this young crew member did double duty, swabbing the decks

. . . before carving decorative veggies and serving passengers the rest of the day.

A real artist, I'd say.  That's a carrot fishnet.