We spent half of June and the first week of July exploring Vietnam and it was fantastic! It’s impossible to convey the beauty of this small, narrow country without experiencing it firsthand. At it’s narrowest point, it’s less than 32 miles wide and it has over 2000 miles of coastline. A large percentage of the country is characterized by Karst landscapes, a dramatic geological phenomenon where limestone from millennia of decayed sea life is shifted vertically by tectonic activity, creating jutting peaks with sheer cliffs like a deconstructed canyon.
After a day in Hanoi, we took a 2 night cruise through Ha Long Bay, which is a Karst landscape in the ocean. Our small wooden ship accommodated 18 guests, so it was not your typical cruise experience. Our captain took us on a less traveled route, so we rarely saw other ships. We spent 2.5 days floating peacefully through these giant rock islands, stopping to kayak around small fishing villages and explore caves. This was the relaxation segment of our trip. We had no idea how strenuous our adventures would be from there.
The next part of our travels took us Phang Nha, to explore the National Park. Note: It is not possible to do this without a guide. First and foremost, park access is restricted and government permission is absolutely required to trek in the jungles. But it’s also quite dangerous to go on your own. We booked a tour labeled “moderate” for strenuousness. We thought we were at “moderate” level fitness. We were mistaken. This 9.5km hike was brutal. It wasn’t just a hike; it was bouldering most of the time, walking through leek-infested rivers, swimming almost 2 miles through pitch-dark caves, and a lot of nearly vertical climbing. Oh, and tons of mosquitos. And it was about 100F with extremely high humidity.
It was hard to take photos while climbing through rock formations, but this sort of shows what the hiking terrain was like. It was only us two on the tour, along with a guide and someone to carry supplies. There was a cook who went ahead to make our lunch and a driver. So, it took 4 people to get us through this day, and we really both wondered if we were going to make it. We asked our guide: If this is “moderate”, what is “strenuous”? He said: The same, but for two days instead of one.
Note: These guides do this every day. They generally get 4 days off per month. And a good wage is approximately $15 USD per day. They do it with ease and good humor.
The following day, we were booked for another tour. This one involved 7km of kayaking through caves and about a 2-mile hike inside of the caves. We were looking forward to a nice, relaxing excursion after the difficult jungle hike. HA! The kayaking was fine: nice to have the upper body workout after an intense leg day. And Mike did the bulk of the rowing. But the above photo shows what the “hike” looked like. It was all bouldering with some aid climbing (using a rope to scale a steep ascent). I’m proud to say, however, that we were one of two “old” couples in the group of 12, and even with jelly legs from the previous day, we kept up.
We went on to visit Hue, Hoi An and Ninh Binh before returning to Hanoi, and it was all awe-inspiring. The above photos are just a few snapshots. We hiked around 40 floors-worth of uneven rock steps to reach the Hang Mua viewpoint and look out over the landscape and lotus fields of Ninh Binh. We visited the 17-story-tall Lady Buddha temple on Monkey Mountain. (They don’t call her Kuan Yin in Vietnam. She is “Lady Buddha” the female companion to the Buddha.) Vietnam is home to countless caves, including the largest caves in the world.
One of the impactful aspects of our trip was learning more about the war. We hiked past craters from bombs in the jungles, saw bullet holes in temples and small missiles in ancient ruins, and there were piles of items left behind by soldiers in the caves. The hike that we thought we might not survive was along trails used by soldiers wearing uniforms, helmets and carrying heavy supplies and weapons. The death and destruction we helped to impose on the Vietnamese people is still very evident, and yet we were greeted warmly and enthusiastically, and were often treated like celebrities. People were enamored by Mike’s beard and my blonde hair. Youth took selfies with us, children approached to practice English, people waved from passing vehicles.
I did not expect to find much mosaic in Vietnam. I hadn’t done my research. Right away, on the ride from the airport to Hanoi, we rode past miles of mosaic on a retaining wall along the freeway. When I checked google, I discovered that this is the longest mosaic wall in the world, featured in the Guinness Book of World Records. We came across the above mosaic on a Starbucks in Hanoi’s Old Quarter.
Near Hue, we visited the mausoleum of an emperor to find that the huge interior is entirely covered in picassiette-style mosaic. The above photo is just one room of many, all covered in china and bottles with incredible detail. Later this day, we came upon a palace in the Imperial City with the entire exterior covered in similar mosaic.
During my down time, I posted detail photos and videos of the mosaics I found on Patreon. You don’t have to join to view them; I set them to public. But it is free to join: patreon.com/jkmosaic
For more photos of the trip, follow my travel/personal instagram account: @folkartadventures
This was truly one of the most amazing travel experiences of my life. This synopsis doesn’t do it justice.
