Tag Ninh Binh
The goal of the day was to reach Hanoi, but it’s only 90 kilometers from Ninh Binh so we could take things easy. What we missed when we went to Tam Coc was Hang Mua, a temple high up on one of the karsts overlooking the river. Spending the morning there was a given choice. Though the karsts are not particularly tall, they are steep and the climb up was pretty hard work with the sun beating down on you. Once at the top though, that hard work pays off because the view of the landscape below is pretty spectacular. … Read the rest
Ninh Binh itself is a pretty small town and not much to see inside the city. The reason people come here is to see the countryside. The landscape is somewhat reminiscent of that of Halong bay with the same kind of karst cliffs but instead of islands in the sea, they stick up out of fields, rice paddies and rivers. The best (or at least most famous) place for seeing this landscape is Tam Coc, some seven or eight kilometers from the city centre. You rent a boat for two or maybe three people and a local person rows (using … Read the rest
The road, raised on an embankment, cuts straight through the Vietnamese countryside. On the right are yellowish green fields with grazing cattle here and there, and a few scattered houses. In the far distance a row of mountains frame everything in, and up above pure white clouds tower majestically in the clear blue sky. To the left the square pools of the rice paddies are almost indistinguishable from the river that curves it’s way through the landscape; old barges that look too big to fit between the rice paddies floating lazily by. In the middle distance the karst cliffs rise … Read the rest
After two wonderful days on Halong bay it was time to leave. The guy at the tour company told us the ferry back to Tuan Chua left at 8 am, 11 am or 3 pm. We figured we could take it easy in the morning and slowly make our way to the ferry terminal at the other side of the island and catch the ferry at 11. It took us a bit longer than expected to pack our stuff however, so when we left the hotel we were in a bit of a rush. When we were just a few … Read the rest