We had to leave at noon for the train station to take one more overnight train, this time from Hue, to Hanoi, where we would catch a bus out to Halong Bay. While waiting at the train station we were befriended by a group of young college-aged kids who were waiting for the same train. They were so curious about us and where we were from and full of questions....even though their English was very limited (as is our Vietnamese). Em and I had both been starting to feel a little tired and rugged from the constant traveling and going, but meeting these energetic kids seemed to really lift our spirits and put us in a better mood before another long train ride.
The train ride had an interesting moment as well. Em and I were laying on the bottom bunk watching a movie on the laptop ("Source Code"... a movie about a guy that goes back in time over and over again to stop a train from blowing up....great choice)....when suddenly the train window in the hall outside our cabin shattered. And when I say shattered, I mean suddenly exploded and blasted glass into our cabin, all over us, all over our beds, luggage, glass everywhere. Other than a mild heart attack, we actually didn't have any cuts or injuries. It took awhile to clean up and we had to move to another (smaller) cabin, but we were glad it wasn't worse. We never found out what caused the broken window, some of the train workers figured it was kids throwing stuff at the train, but we never found anything in the cabin. Crazy Train!
We finally made it to Halong Bay and boarded a Junk Boat to for the day. Halong Bay is an area right off the Northeastern coast where these giant, rock, island like cliffs, jut out of the water, creating a series of water ways, caves, and breathtaking views. There are over 2,000 of these giant natural structures throughout the bay....it's increible. We stopped at a floating village to rent some kyaks and we had an hour to explore on our own. There was one area where we rowed into a low, dark sea cave, and when we came out on the other side we were in a secluded cove, surrounded by huge cliffs all around. The only way in or out was through the small cave opening.......beautiful and amazing don't even describe it. We were with a few of our friends from the tour group so we tied our kyaks together and swam around in the warm water. Another surreal moment and highlight of highlights. We made it back to the junk boat to continue exploring the bay, stopped to tour a large cave/cavern, and headed back to land.
At dinner that night.....Emily ordered a margarita pizza......it came with baked dough topped with ketchup, thick velveeta like slices of cheese (half-way melted with an expiration date stuck to it) and moldy tomato slices. I guess that's what we get for ordering pizza in Vietnam (oh how we're ready for real American food). Only one more stop to go!!!!!
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