Halong Bay turned out to be every bit as scenic as I imagined. The junk was Chinese style complete with sails which stayed furled throughout. What was a surprise was the food turned out to taste almost exactly like home cooked healthy Chinese food with the exception of having simple salads and the odd habit of serving white rice only towards the end of the meal.
And the second surprise was the party-ing that went on at night. In the quiet of Halong bay surrounded by mystical karstic landscape, the night was punctuated with loud karaoke singing of hits from 70s all the way to 90s. Each junk had its own particular brand of music blasting through the dark wooden walls and airconditioning so that it was possible to hear each boat's merry making from quite a distance.
There was even an intrepid few who were swimming from junk to junk, asking to be allowed on board just for the thrill of jumping off the second level and diving into the cool waters in the evening. It was certainly a memorable trip from the peaceful cruise amid limestone scenery to the amusements on board of a very mixed bunch of guests from Europe, America and Asia.
More anon.
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