Halong, Sapa, Hoi an, and a nap.

Over our spring break my mom and Aunt Linda joined us for a quick run around of Vietnam.  Handspan tours took care of Halong bay and Sapa, Janet organized all of it including a trip to Hoi An.  Everything went smoothly.

They came straight from the airport to school and jumped right into teaching art and singing with the kids.  We took the three hour bus to Halong Bay the next morning and everything was much more organized than our previous bus to Hai Phung to go out to Cat Ba island (same basic trip we took a few months prior).

We started with a 2 day cruise in Halong Bay. The boat was lovely, food was really good.

 

Seen enough pictures of rocks shooting out of the water?  Of course not.

Some early morning tai-chi on the deck led by one of the chefs.  The boat had about 10 rooms, very nice ones.   Food was fantastic and we met a few of the 15 or so other people on the boat.

 We kayaked around, did some swimming while the crew watched for jelly fish.   We saw quite a few while kayaking and had to avoid a few while swimming.

 This guy is taking out the ovaries in oysters and replacing them with a small bead to farm pearls.

We took the bus back to Hanoi, grabbed dinner then jumped on the train to Sapa.
Somehow I don't have pictures to post of the train.  It was an overnight sleeper with four beds per cabin.  A mix of noisy and rattly and over all not to bad.

We got to Sapa, took a bus up to the hotel and were hiking an hour later.  I had imagined a lot more of a jungle trek, but it was mostly on dirty paths, through a few rice patties and over a creek or two.  A bit of uphill and downhill and totally worth it!

 Some of the local ladies joined us and chatted with us along the way, giving a bit of help when it was needed and we bought a few nice things from them before they walked back to their villages.

Linda showed all the kids the pictures she took of them and it was obvious that they were familiar with digital cameras (no not the infant, but the youngsters in the pictures below).

 

 

Our guide, Tuan, showed us rice at the various stages of growth.

We got to see the mishmash of Disney inspired art that decorated the school.

Yes, I do love the panoramic effect on Google photos.

Indigo leaves, when you mash them up you get....indigo colored juice that you can use as dye.

We took the train back to Hanoi then flew down to Hoi An.  Janet managed to pack 3 weeks of trips into 2.

Hoi An

My mother in a cooking class is good to see, maybe the microwave will see less use in her home.

 

The food was delicious, we went to the local markets, which was interesting as we were with other tourists, but it was the same type of market that we shop at in Hanoi so I got to watch the other people react to the stalls.  We took a boat trip down the river and to the cooking school.  Our teacher was a perfect balance of a sassy grandma, great cook and she was quick to snap you with chopsticks while laughing.  Lots fun and the food was great.

This was our last trip in Vietnam.  Stay tuned for our new adventures in Lahore, Pakistan starting in August.