Exploring Vietnam

Sin Chao! We're back from Halong Bay! What an experience it has been so far. Our guide picked us up yesterday morning and we drove through the countryside for 3 hours and somewhere along the way I've discovered a new appreciation for the people of this country. Our poor tour guide got bombarded with a million questions from Noelle and I. Over 90 million people live here (less than 20% of the population live in the 2 biggest cities) and the vast majority do labor intensive jobs. They work in rice fields, tend to water buffalo, manage oyster and pearl farms, and cater to tourists. Very few people have an abundance of earthly possessions yet they're so very happy. So many striking differences between our two countries: they want no sun exposure while we bake ourselves until we're bronze. They hear the buzz of the first McDonald's coming soon while we cringe at the thought. They are resourceful and eat anything ( literally: dog, rat, snake blood) while we often are painfully picky and often choose the least nutritious items. I know, I know. I'm rambling. Anyways, we got to Halong Bay and boarded our ship and set off promptly at 12:30. Gorgeous. There is no other word for it. 250 limestone islands sit in jade green water with skies that stretch on for days. Legend has it that a dragon swung its tail about and created the deep bay between the islands. We went cave exploring, swam in the sea, and drank wine and giggled (anyone who knows the two of us will know we focused on the latter). Check it out:


Tonight we're headed out to explore Hanoi by foot then Rickshaw tour of the Pagodas and war prison tomorrow before our flight to Cambodia.
Best wishes to you all and congrats to Will & Kate on the birth of the new royal!
God is good,
ER