..30.. halong bay

just got back from a great 3-day boat trip in halong bay, 4 hours outside of hanoi. halong bay is filled with karst formations, which are huge blocks of limestone worn away in unlikely shapes by water rushing by them. we sailed around the bay in this nice old wooden boat, looked at some caves inside the karst islands, went kayaking and swimming, had meals on and slept on the boat. next we went to cat ba island and national park, which is the only inhabited island in halong bay. here we did a strenuous hike to the top of a small mountain, followed by a leisurely walk (right on the side of a cliff!) to the beach.

..29.. hanoi

arrived in hanoi at 6am after a restless night of getting bitten on the bus. we're staying at a sketchy hotel in the Old Quarter, which is absolutely bursting with activity. the already-narrow streets are made into almost impassable mazes of parked motos, baskets of vegetables, & teaparty tables loaded with pig hooves or bright green jelly. the sun has come out, we've gotten our laos visas, and booked a trip to halong bay! we've also indulged ourselves in a bit of roller skating - we couldn't believe how terrible everyone was (including ourselves!) at rollerskating - even the employees were falling down constantly!

..28.. pagoda

i went to the pagoda in hue. mist and bonsai trees were everywhere, and the campus of the pagoda was vast, allowing for a pleasant galavant through the drizzle.





as the rain came down harder, i took shelter in a doorway to put my rainjacket on over my backpack. a monk emerged from the dark room inside the doorway, holding a small cup of tea, curious about the rustling outside his door. he smiled at me struggling to get into my sticky rainjacket and helped me arrange it. a small girl in a navy blud polka-dot poncho looked shyly at me from around a corner, disappeared, and appeared again. i walked to the far end of the campus and stood centered in front of an incense pot, and felt....centered. all around me was bright green muted by friendly mist, giving an air of secrecy to this place. i wondered whether the pagoda felt like this because of the fervency of the people who built it, or because i knew it to be a religious place & was prepared for inspiration, or simply because it was misty and beautiful. and i felt compelled to leave, my moto driver waiting at the bottom, but longed to stay - to stand in the rain and feel happy, inspired, comfortable, pure. perhaps the fact that i left allows this place to remain magical to me. or perhaps i should have stayed on indefinitely....

..27.. hue

a beautiful bus ride, misty mountains on the left, sea on the right, brought us from hoi an to hue today. it rained all day for the third day in a row - we're wet & cold! we went to a lively market, grazing our way through the breakfast hours. the rain let up enough for us to hit the market and the post office to send chris a postcard, and then to duck into a cafe before the next downpour - how wonderful that my only job right now is to plan the next adventure! it makes a rainy day so much more exciting to sit in a cafe, reading travel guides and dreaming up what to do tomorrow!