Instead of taking a typical Halong Bay cruise from Hanoi in Vietnam, we decided to head to Cat Ba Island. Geographically, Cat Ba Island is the largest island in Halong Bay, and from here you can take cruises to the more remote parts of Halong Bay and also to the equally beautiful, but far less [...]
The capital city of Vietnam, Hanoi is everything that symbolises a busy Asian city. Wandering through the Old Quarter of the city is an assault on the senses; with busy little streets full of motorbikes, tiny hole in the wall restaurants and food stalls, all surrounded by old crumbling colonial buildings. This is where we [...]
Cat Ba Island is geographically the largest island in Halong Bay,Vietnam, and it was here that we chose to base ourselves to explore this beautiful area. Most of Cat Ba Island is protected as Cat Ba National Park, and it is home to the world's rarest primate - the Golden Headed Langur (or Cat Ba [...]
Hoa Lo Prison was built by the French in 1866 right in the middle of Hanoi, Vietnam, to hold Vietnamese political prisoners, and was also later used by the North Vietnamese to hold American POW's during the Vietnam War. Only a small part of the prison now remains, and it stands as an interesting museum [...]
Stepping out of our hotel, we turn left and walk along the rough pavement next to the street. Motorbikes zoom by as we pass by a lady frying up spring rolls in her little makeshift kitchen on the sidewalk. Random shops and eateries line the street and I glance inside a little hole in the [...]
While on Cat Ba Island in Vietnam, we took a boat tour to explore Halong Bay and the far less crowded Han La Bay. From the dock on Cat Ba Island, we were almost immediately travelling through the beautiful limestone karst islands of Han La Bay, where there is a large floating fishing village. Make-shift [...]
The Old Quarter of Hanoi, Vietnam is a hive of activity at any time of the day, but I find that it particularly comes alive at night. As I wandered down Hang Buom to go to the night market, I came across these ladies selling balloons on the street. I think it made for an [...]
I've been in Vietnam for a week now and am really liking the country so far. I took this photo in Hanoi when exploring the Dong Xuan Night Market in the Old Quarter. The night market runs along the street from the Dong Xuan Market all of the way to the busy roundabout at Hoan [...]
2012 has really flown by, and as the end of the year approaches, the time has now come to focus on 2013. Next year is looking like it is going to be a huge travel year for me, and I have several plans in the works. I will talk more about my overall plans for [...]
