Glad I didn't pack the suncream...

Greetings from Hazy Halong Bay! This place might well be a UENESCO site of wonderment...but we can't see it! Again, glad we booked a room with a view. Halong Bay is an archipelago of 3,000 islands, the largest of which is Cat Ba island. This is where I thought we might spend a nice relaxing week in the sun, but alas, the weather is driving us Southwards in search of warmth and a blue sky. We ventured out on a sampan today for a few hours and had a jaunt around a few of the islands. We saw a couple of pretty impressive caves full of stalactites and mites, all nicely lit in neon. The boat ride itself was a bit chilly though, so we sought shelter inside the boat...only to be offered a pearl necklace. They are cultivated in the bay and are ridiculuosly cheap, but as I am only half the required age for such an adornment, I politely declined.

The Vietnamese, it seems, will try to sell you anything. Picture the scene - we had just travelled for 24 hours to get here from Sapa and were looking a bit grumpy and bedraggled, all saddled up with our four rucksacks, not having had a great amount of sleep on the train. And what were we offered more times than I could count? A lift on a motorbike. For both of us. With all our worldly posessions. I mean, be sensible! And aside from a motorbike, I didn't much fancy a cabbage or a pack of postcards at 5:30am either. And one refusal does nothing to thwart the attempts of the next vendor. You are simply offered the same thing again and again and again. And then you are followed down the street and harangued for anything upto ten minutes. Just trying to set the scene here, for anyone who has never visited Asia or India. Usually, I can cope with such business, but how dare anyone even try it when I've had no sleep?

Sometimes, the selling tactics are quite ingenious. One day a lady said I was beautiful and that was enough to have me buying a Vietnamese phrasebook before I could say "Khong!" (No). On another occasion, we bought a fake guide book for twice the price from a man who said that Andy looked strong! I suppose he does, comparatively. So I've been using that one a lot...especially when I can't fit my toiletry bag into my rucksack.

If this all sounds a bit moanie, it's just to make you lot at home feel better about us being on holiday for a year. Another disturbing feature of Halong Bay (besides the weather) is that it seems to be famous for cock-fighting! Very worrying, given the current climate of the avian world. There are these amphitheatres with pits at the bottom for the action. They get down and dirty too and put spurs on the ankles of the birds. Nasty business. A public health issue eh Dr. Hollinshead? I'm sure you could set up business here. In fact, my motorbike driver (I had to succumb in the end) said if I studied a bit harder, I could become a doctor if I wanted. I replied that I very much didn't, so he suggested that I set up a nurses office in my home instead. Much rather make cakes...

I'm sure this place is stunning when the sun shines ... shame we didn't come here in a couple on months' time. On account of the weather, we are bypassing Cat Ba island (my original choice of Birhday destination) and heading further south. So, we are off on that beloved sleeper train to Hue, which looks like a very exciting place...and maybe a little warmer?