While on our cruise we received a text from Black Tomato’s ground operations manager that our guide Sonny’s grandfather had died and he would be taking two days off. They did supply a substitute guide who met us at the arrivals terminal with our driver Mr. Tuan. We then started a 3.5 hour drive to Ninh Binh which is renowned for its stunning karst landscapes, earning it the nickname ‘Halong Bay on land.’
There are flags everywhere as Viet Nam is celebrating it 50th anniversary of reunification on April 30 which is tomorrow.We were supposed to do a sunset boat ride at Van Long Nature Reserve but our substitute guide brought us here at 3:30pm instead. This is the largest wetland reserve in the northern delta known for its biodiversity.
A video of our boat ride with views of the limestone karsts.Asian Open bill stork. You can see the open bill in this picture.The reason for the sunset ride was given as the most active time for birds returning to their roosts. Sandy was quite upset that we missed that.We saw this church from a distance.You can see the limestone everywhere.
Video of gliding through another cave which terrifies Sandy due to the possibility of bats.
A nice video of the stork taking off.And suddenly the church was much closer. This is the Phat Diem Cathedral.We finally arrived at our hotel for two nights, the Tam Coq Gardens, at 5:30pm. That is our substitute tour guide.This is a garden hotel with villas. We have been spoiled and were not impressed, no pictures.The following day we are off at 9am to Hoa Lu for more touring of caves, temples and a big garden. During the years 968-1009 Hoa Lu was the capital of Vietnam. The name translates to” Flourishing Capital”.We are standing in front of the gate of Bich Dong Pagoda. Bich Dong (meaning “Pearl Grotto”) is part of a three-tiered pagoda complex that dates back to the 15th century.This beautiful temple with its classic Vietnamese architecture—curved tiled roof, bright orange columns, and serene setting nestled at the foot of the limestone cliffs—is part of the lower tier of Bich Dong Pagoda.The heart of Bich Dong Pagoda is its inner sanctum. The ornate altar is a vivid representation of Vietnamese Buddhist devotion.These are dramatic limestone mountains called karsts.These stairs take you up to a cave. Sandy declined the cave but Jim walked up.Cave interior, no bats seen.Jim was rewarded for his stair climbing by beautiful views of the lush valley below.Hoang Long (golden dragon) river.Thung Nham is the largest natural bird garden in North Vietnam.We took a long walk around the man- made Am Tien lake.Lovely tree lanterns are lit at night creating a magical sight.Pretty hand painted conical hats.Amazing topiaries.Pretty bridgesIncredible wild flowers.This little boy engaged Jim in conversation to practice his English. We were quite impressed at how well spoken he was. His father is in the background doing a video of the encounter and we regret not doing the same. Passers-by were also stopping to listen as they talked for about five minutes.This section is called the flower parade and the blooms were spectacular.Our guide among the sunflowers.Our guide suggested we take a boat ride but we declined as our air conditioned room was beckoning us back and we have been on too many small boats recently. Many colorful lanterns hung from the tree branches.After our long morning tours we were brought to this local restaurant for lunch. Jim tried the recommended local specialty of wild goat.
We ate on the patio and enjoyed the monsoon rainfall which fortunately stopped before we finished our breakfast. check out the video here.
Our Hanoi guide, Sonny, was supposed to meet us for todays drive to Mai Chao but we had texted him and told him that we wanted the next two days off from cultural experiences and we wanted him to spend more time with his family. We missed being blessed by a Thai ethnic shaman, tea(which Sandy really dislikes), another temple, personal local village experience and a BBQ picnic in the rice paddies. Sonny really appreciated the extra time off and thanked us profusely.
Ninh Binh.
Absolutely spectacular! That might be worth the price of the admission.
…….if it weren’t so hot.
Still can’t imagine fighting a war there.
Bill
[…] rest before returning to Hanoi for our last three days. As stated at the end of our last blog on Ninh Binh we gave our guide Sonny another two days off to spend with his family after the recent death of his […]
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