………was a movie we frequently watched with Kathleen and Andrea when they were little, and today Jim and I found the secrets of Ninh Binh!  We started the day deciding that for now we needed a break from the buses and came to Ninh Binh yesterday mainly because we couldn’t enjoy Halong Bay and knew from the guide that in NB you could pick up a train going south.  We had a pretty neat hotel that was a two minute walk from the train station so off we went to find out that there was an overnight sleeper train to Hue which took about twelve hours.  Given that our bus experiences had not been too positive we thought “why not?” The highlight of NB(population around 130,000) and area is Tam Coc which was a ten minute drive away and The Lonely Planet describes it as “Halong Bay on  the rice paddies for its huge rock formations jutting out of vibrant green rice paddies………Tam Coc gives Halong Bay a run for its money”.   There are caves that you can take a rowboat through with a guide and it lasts for about two hours.  Marilyn decided to opt out of this and instead decided to walk around the town and see what else it had to offer and hopefully find a neat little place for supper.

We were off in different directions and Jim and I were so pleasantly surprised at what we found.  We were in a row boat with a young girl paddling it with her feet and her mother sitting beside me and we were going through the rice paddies and on either side of us were these limestone cliffs that came rightup out of the water.  I had a “same, same but different” moment recalling Milford Sound in New Zealand many years ago.   Although it was overcast it was  truly beautiful(as it had been in Milford) and on the way down very peaceful as there weren’t as many boats out as there were on the return trip.  We went through three caves (727m, 60m and 45m) and all were very stunning.  On our return we were shocked to see how many more boats were in the water and we thought to ourselves “did we ever luck out”!   The water was now full with people from tour buses that had come  in from Hanoi for a day tour and there were lineups everywhere.

North Vietnam has been an interesting experience and we all agreed that it is not a place we have felt welcomed.  Many of the people were downright rude to us and we’re not sure if that was  because of the color of our skin and our North American accent, and of course their experiences from days gone by.  We certainly have tried to be very aware of their history and their struggles but it does get a little strained after a while.  There’s a constant push on tourists to “eat here, buy this, give me money to learn English” and although I do not want to generalize it was much too frequent.  Anyway, I will not go on and on but there certainly will be time for reflection after this trip is over.

Marilyn did not find any highlights in the city, or a nice place to eat, but she did find three Irish guys to have a chat with about how they spent their St. Paddy’s day in Vietnman…….and they didn’t find any green beer either.  This did remind us, however, that Marilyn, Jim and I have spent three out of four of the last St. Paddy’s  days together………in Colca Canyon, Peru….and then Durango, Colorado….and now Vietnam.    Where to next year, I wonder?

Anyway, right now we’re getting ready to take the sleeper train from Ninh Binh to Hue…….and it’s about a twelve hour train trip overnight.   No doubt, it will be another new event in this trip because once again, with the language barrier, we are not 100% certain what we signed up for………but time will tell.

Just a quick note to add that when we checked into our last hotel the guy at the front desk had pretty good English and when he saw my passport he said “Madonna, your  Asia tour….thank you for coming”  and just smiled.    I thought to myself the “other Madonna” is doing this trip very differently but I think I have an idea of what it must be like to be chased by the papparazzi because some days that’s what it feels like as you are being chased down the street.

Anyway, just getting ready to take that train after another very interesting  day in north Vietnam.  So far it has been an amazing journey and there are still many highlights ahead.

Just want you to know Michael that the iPad has come in very handy on the trip and we are so glad we brought  it along.  Also thanks for the helpful hints so many of you have sent ……we’ve been reading all your blog responses and enjoying them.   Hope you have a Happy Monday and that the St. Paddy’s day celebrations don’t slow you down too much….at least those of you who have to work on Monday.     Good night ………… as we’re headed to Hue in central/South Vietnam where the weather  forecast is 30 degrees and sunny…….. Good by rain!