Glimpses: Ha Long Bay

A few more glimpses of Ha Long Bay before I move on towards other sights in Vietnam.

Bãi Cháy Bridge, the first cable-stayed bridge in Vietnam
forms an amazing backdrop for the city

Sidewalk restaurants pop-up during the night, a relaxing way
for residents to spend the evening at the waterfront

A night market at Ha Long City

Some of the wares at the night market

The hotel complex on Tuan Chau island where I stayed

View of Ha Long city as I sailed away from it

View of the entrance to the bay

An impressively large sea-faring vessel on the seas

A secluded beach on one of the rock islands

Sung Sot Cave: The dissolving limestone dripping down 
to form a column (as seen below)

Sung Sot Cave: A column formed by soluble limestone over eons & 
the process continues (as in the photo above)

A floating home against the backdrop of the rock walls

At sunset

Fresh catch to be served to willing diners

Descending Dragon Bay

A rock island in Ha Long Bay

Now, imagine a seascape dotted with thousands of such rock islands. Literally, as far as your eye can see. That's Ha Long Bay for you. 

As my boat sailed past these towering rock islands, I could imagine myself in a 'Pirates of the Carribean' movie. There was silence all around broken only by the hum of the engine. The rock islands stood like silent sentinels watching us go by. 

Overview of the bay showing the numerous islands. 
(Not 100% accurate as images have 
been stitched together)

Ha Long Bay (Descending Dragon Bay) is a designated UNESCO World Heritage site about 150 Kms from the capital Hanoi (approx 3 hrs drive). This makes it an easily accessible and popular holiday destination for Vietnamese and foreign tourists, alike. 

The bay is unusual and attractive because of the limestone karsts and islands that are strewn in the waters. Ha Long is just one part of a larger ecosystem of these rocks along the Vietnamese coastline. The awe-inspiring islands and karsts have been formed over millions of years of geographical activity - tectonic shifts, flooding, erosions etc. 

Today, the islands are characterised by thick vegetation which I'm sure is home to numerous birds and small animals, the base immersed in the sea, to a host of marine life. None of these I could get a closer look at as all the islands are not accessible. The islands are also marked by caves and grottos formed by eroding rock and soluble limestone. 

A cave entrance at sea level

A large hollow where boats were tethered

There are a few islands where tourists are allowed. These are ones with large cave systems which have been developed to make it more accessible to tourists. I visited one - Sung Sot Cave or Surprise Grotto. The tale goes that when the first visitors to these caves entered it, their reaction was of surprise and amazement. Simplicity itself. :)

I was a little apprehensive at first, as I didn't want to enter a small enclosed space with hundreds of people in them. But I was, shall we say, surprised at the size of the caves. They were huge, with high ceilings and fantastic limestone formations. 

Surprise Grotto is on Bon Hon island and probably the largest cave that exists in the area. It is therefore a popular cave with tour operators bringing loads of tourists here. Small mechanised boats bring you from the yacht to the jetty on the island. Then you have to climb a series of steep steps to reach the cave entrance. It is a moderately difficult climb and manageable for anyone in 'okay' shape. 

Jetty where the boats drop tourists off before the climb to the caves

Developing tourist spots is a good thing but maybe one can do this with a little less enthusiasm. This cave seemed very sanitised - no birds, bats or any thing else within or outside. Most of the natural structures inside were lit by flood lights giving the place a surreal look. To give the Vietnamese credit though, they had made access to the caves as easy as possible i.e. the steep climb to the cave was aided by well maintained steps which helped immensely. 

A viewpoint far up the rock climb

Scene from the viewpoint

In the bay there are a few floating villages too whose people are expert seafarers. They survive by fishing and marine culture. With the tour boats cruising by the villages and some even docking at them, the villagers now also sell trinkets and other tourist paraphernalia. 

It is said there are over 1,500 people living in these many floating villages. Though when we cruise past them, it didn't look like more than 50 people could live in one group of these floating units. The villages were very interesting as they seemed so fragile and miniscule as compared to the huge rocks and the vast waters surrounding them. 

Ha Long Bay can be visited by yacht tours which are very popular. They normally dock at the Tuan Chau marina, a fairly recent development that is continuing to expand. There are different types of yachts, varied budgets and itineraries that you can choose from. Be sure to get a recommended and reliable option as safety standards are not always up to the mark. 

Yachts docked at the marina

A cabin in one of the yachts

I took a half day tour with Paradise Cruises which is one of the larger operators in the area. They also have different duration tours including overnight stays on the yachts. 

A view of the city from afar

I didn't have much of a chance to check out the city and its sights in the one day I was there. But, I'm glad I at least managed to sail the waters of this vast and impressive bay. 

My cruise trip ended with the sunset over Ha Long Bay. 

A singular experience - getting a visa to Vietnam

In October 2014, I had made a short trip to Vietnam - a brief visit to Hanoi and nearby Halong Bay. To me, Vietnam has always been an attractive proposition as it's one of the less travelled spots and therefore (as I hoped) be less commercial and touristy. Especially, in comparision to regional neighbours like Thailand or Hong Kong or even Cambodia.

The first step was to get a visa. The downside of not being a tourist attraction was very evident when I started the process of getting one. There was no clarity in the information on the Vietnamese Embassy website, no traveller accounts on the world wide web that talked of getting a visa from India and worse, no travel agent who seemed to know how to go about it. It was like a black hole from which not even a glimmer of information escaped. 

There were lots of websites which offered to process a visa on arrival but they didn't seem authentic or accredited by the Vietnamese government and again there was no traveller info on the same. Later, I did find a post on Tripadvisor's community forum that said Visa on Arrival is available provided some pre-travel formalities are taken care of (Trip Advisor FAQ). But, it still seemed a little dicey and I opted for getting my visa before travelling into Vietnam.

The travel agent I was recommended, had no clue whatsoever, which I realised only after I had paid him a fat sum and he had got some basic documentation ready. Then each day was a like a day of discovery for him where he would tell me he needed one more type of document. Finally, when I did a bit more fact-checking, I found this great checklist on Thomas Cook's India website which had details of documents required. I sent it to the travel agent to get him organised. Not to mention, he also gave me tonnes of info on how rude and obnoxious the people at the embassy are or so he 'had heard' (!!!). As if I wasn't already stressed and apprehensive.

The visa stamping required a personal interview. So I trudged off to the embassy. I opted for the consulate in Mumbai. It's in the posh Hiranandani area in Powai. But, the postal address is all I had to go looking for it. There was no landmark given, no signboard when you get there and passers by are completely unaware such an entity existed. Finally, after some amount of going around in circles, I found it. 

I reached there early, by 9AM just to be on the safer side. I had no information on their timings of work. Well... the place was shut. Absolutely & irrevocably closed with no one in sight, not even a watchman or a cleaner or anyone in sight. There were no visa applicants waiting. I asked some people in an office next door who told me, "You never know if they will open. Sometimes they come, sometimes they don't." That left me speechless and thinking, "Must be a sweet deal where you can decide what time to get to office or not at all."

Finally, I went back down to the ground floor and checked with the building watchman who said it opens only at 10AM and added, "Woh log ayenge, aap wait karo" (they will come, you wait). I hung around and at about 9.45 AM someone came and opened up the place. He was a consulate official and asked me to wait for his colleague. That was another 20 mins. The visa officer came and without much delay took my papers. He was about 30 mins processing my documents and stamping my passport. 

The visa officer seemed quite surprised that I had applied for a tourist visa. By then a few more people had come for visas. It seemed that work/ business related visas were more popular and not so much the tourist ones. 

I was out of the consulate by 11AM with a valid visa stamped and ready for me to travel. Not a bad morning's work, I felt, not by a long shot. The fastest I have got a visa to anywhere. 

No fuss, no hassles and oh so polite the officials were. It pretty much set the mood for my holiday and Vietnam did not disappoint me. But more of that in later posts.

In a nutshell here's what is required for getting your tourist visa for Vietnam in India - 

1. A pre-filled visa application form - you can get it from the embassy/ consulate website.

Mumbai - http://www.vietnamconsulate-mumbai.org/en/nr070521170031/
Delhi - http://www.mofa.gov.vn/vnemb.india

2. Passport should be valid for at least six months from the date of submission of visa
application.

3. Two recent colour photograph, 35 x 45mm in size with white background.

4. Covering letter from the applicant on company's letter head stating his name, designation, purpose and duration of visit.

5. Proof of accommodation: hotel reservation including the name and phone number of hotel.

6. If staying at friend’s / relatives place, the applicant can stay maximum up to 15 days. If the stay is longer then the host needs to apply for the visa for the applicant at Vietnamese immigration.

7. Proof of airline reservation for a round trip.

8. Foreign exchange endorsement on the applicant’s passport / Credit card copy of the
applicant is required.

9. Updated Bank statement for the last 3 months is required.

10. One photocopy of the first and last pages of the passport.

11. Personal Presence is mandatory. There are two options in India - Delhi or Mumbai. You can get the addresses from the website (mentioned in pt. 1)

Again, Vietnam visa details on the Thomas Cook India website.

Only one aspect struck me a bit odd - the consulate asked me (via a note signed and stapled to my visa) to have a min of 1000 USD on my person before entering the country. Thankfully, I needed more than that for my trip, so it wasn't too much of a bother. Nevertheless, it seemed like an excessive demand considering pts. 5, 7, 8 and 9 above, were complied with. 

Note: While the information on visa requirements given above are current for now, it can change any time. It's best to check with the embassy/ consulate nearest to you before you travel.

Anyway, I hope this helps any one planning to travel to Vietnam. I'll leave you with photos of this beautiful and breathtaking country for now.

The famous ceramic mosaic wall in Hanoi &
a poster in the art style typical to Vietnam

Handcrafted greeting cards with pop-up figures

The marina at Halong Bay

Delicate inlay work in a Chinese antique furniture piece

A Vietnamese spring roll - very DIY