Ha Long Bay, named as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994 and 2000, is located in the northeast part of Vietnam. It is known for its towering limestone islands and emerald color waters. We were first here 12 years ago. The islands were not accessible to tourists at that time, so it was a treat to be able to go on a 2-day cruise and see both sunset and sunrise. The above image shows the kissing rocks.

Burt was able to capture Ha Long Bay with his drone from our cruise boat, where we spent the night. We were also treated to a cooking class demonstration where they made spring rolls.

Ha Long Bay was officially recognized as one of the new 7 natural wonders of the world on 11/11/2011. We were lucky to capture the sunrise early in the morning on Ha Long Bay. Emerging from the emerald green water are the towering karst formation limestone rock with jungle at the top. It was quite memorable to experience.

Our cruise boat (top left) is the one with the covered dining area and bar. The tour of the Dark and Bright cave in Ha Long Bay (lower-right) was a delight, and is located where Lan Ha Bay meets Halong Bay. Our lady boat captain was quite an entrepreneur and her photo (lower-right) is one of Evelyn’s favorites. Our boat lady knew when the best moments were for her guests to wear the Vietnamese hats she brought on her boat, and to photograph our group wearing her hats. She was also exuberant and photogenic. Of course, she was well rewarded with tips.

The wrap-up blog post (coming in 3 or 4 days) of this trip ends with a photo she took of all of us in Vietnamese conical hats on her boat.

Here’s a view of our cruise boat on Ha Long Bay(also spelled Halong Bay). While most of Ha Long Bay is quite touristy, this part is less crowded and quite pleasant.