Ha Long Bay

We left for Ha Long Bay at 8am on Sunday morning and after a long drive arrived at the bay around 12 and by 1pm were on the boat in the middle of the Ha Long Bay. The view from the deck of the boat was breathtaking and we lay on the sun loungers relaxing till we got to the spot we would dock for the first night. We had some lunch, the music started and the beers flowed as we were sailing. That afternoon we had the amazing experience of jumping about 8m off the boat into the sea. It was incredibly scary standing at the top, looking down and thinking about jumping into the unknown, but once you got over the fright and just did it, it was absolutely worth it. Colin and I decided to jump together, so I counted to 3 and jumped, but Colin only jumped a few seconds after me. That's right, I was the braver one... Colin couldn't bear to not do something I've done, that's the only reason he jumped too. It was fantastic and then we enjoyed a little swim before jumping again. I thought the second time would be easier, but actually standing on the boat and looking down brings the nerves back again. I would have liked to spend more time here, it was the highlight of the 3 days for me.
Our afternoon activity was kayaking to a small island for a walk up a little mountain and then to a cave. When getting out of the kayak, Colin tried to be helpful by pulling the kayak onto the sand so that I wouldn't get wet when climbing out, but I stood up just as he did this and went flying into the water. Everyone in our group found this amusing, me not so much, but as it was his birthday I couldn't get too upset.
When we got back to the boat we freshened up before dinner and drinks on the deck. Some people played drinking games downstairs, but a few of us stayed on the deck and enjoyed being outside in this beautiful place.

It was an early start the next morning to get to a deserted island where we would spend the day and night. After an early lunch on the island we were free to spend the day as we liked. The ocean was calling our names, so we swam most of the day and played some volleyball on the beach. For dinner we had a BBQ followed by drinks again. That night we slept under a thatched roof open shelter with the sound of the waves rocking us to sleep.

In the morning it was back on the boat for lunch and then the journey back to Ha Noi. The scenery was amazing as you can see from the photos below and a visit here is something we'd definitely recommend. We'd both love to come back some day!