Lac Village and Ha Long Bay!!!

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We also hiked through the mountains to a rural village where my case study group talked to 3 different families to ask them about their experiences with birth for our semester long project. We had a translator and all the families were very kind and gracious to let us into their homes and interview them for an hour. The people we spoke to were incredibly open and gracious, which was a little surprising since we showed up without any kind of warning. I think the idea behind making us hike up the mountain for an exhausting hour and a half was to show how isolated the village used to be without roads. It was slightly humorous when we then took a ten minute golf cart ride back to our room, which showed that in fact, the town was currently very accessible (but it wasn’t always this way). The rural parts that we visited were made up of ethnic minorities, including the Hmong and Thai people. These populations are mainly made up of farmers and they lead lives that are quite drastically different than the homes and families that I have witnessed in Hanoi.

Not only were the views in the rural villages amazing, the air was so clean, the meals were fantastic, and most importantly: there was no traffic! This made readjusting to being back in Hanoi quite difficult. The village we were staying in was still quite touristy but it was surrounded by huge spans of rice paddies and other forms of agriculture.

After driving back from Lac Village, we only had one night with our homestay in Hanoi before taking another bus the next morning to take a cruise through Ha Long Bay. The bay was about 3 to 4 hours in the opposite direction and the drive wasn’t as scenic as the drive to Lac Village. There we boarded a boat that was similar to a smaller version of a cruise boat because it had bedrooms, a dining area and an upstairs lounge area. We were able to get a boat that accommodated 28 of us on this program and it was fun spending what felt more like ‘vacation’ time together.

Ha Long Bay was just as, if not more, impressive as I had expected, especially on the last day when the sun finally came out. We first took a smaller boat to a large and expansive cave and then we had about an hour to kayak. I had the chance to go through a rock tunnel that led into a cove type of area where I could see monkeys hanging off the trees. We were told that these monkeys carry rabies and even if you couldn’t see one of them directly, you could see where the trees moved because they were passing through. There were also several loud crows and combined with the foggy and dark environment, the whole place had a very mystical and surreal feel.

The water wasn’t as clear as I had expected but it still had a very beautiful blue hue. Unfortunately, the area has been incredibly affected by pollution from mass amounts of tourism. There was a lot of trash in the water and at no point did I ever look out onto the water and not see another boat filled with tourists. Ha Long bay was voted as one of the natural wonders of the world, so I hope that there is work being done to preserve it for future generations.

The next day we went to a pearl farm that completely changed my perception of pearls and how they are produced. I learned that most farms now follow a Japanese method of cultivating pearls where the oysters are manually fertilized and a small plastic bead is placed inside of them before they are shut and placed into the water for several years. The oyster then works to add layers to that small plastic bead, so at least based on how I understood it, few pearls are made of 100% pearl. It depends on the type and desired size of the pearl but they can take between 3 to 10 years to fully develop and be ready to be reopened.

We then went back to the boat where we were taught to make spring rolls (surprisingly a pretty simple process) and have lunch.

Then we got back to the dock and took a bus back to Hanoi! It was a little difficult to readjust to city life, specifically Hanoi city life. After a whole week of having clean air, no smog and little traffic, taking the bus on Monday morning was a little difficult.

In the rural stay and during Ha Long Bay, there were other tourists so I didn’t experience the same amount of open staring that happens here in Hanoi. I am the same height and have the same hair color as most Vietnamese, but when I travel back and forth to home, I am with my roommate who is blonde, blue-eyed and tall so we stick out more than I would on my own. I can’t say that I really missed the jerky bus rides.

On Tuesday, we had to be at class 30 minutes earlier than usual and it was amazing how much of a difference that had on the amount of traffic. There were so many motorbikes that many had driven up onto the sidewalks. I thought this was so strange the first time I witnessed it, but it seems to be the norm, especially during rush hour. At first, I was annoyed because I had to walk through the motorbikes and stand still with them during a red light or especially crowded area. Although it at first seemed so bothersome, I realized that it was kind of a fun game and because it seemed so bizarre to me, it was actually quite an entertaining experience.

Most of our assignments are due during the last 2 weeks of a country stay so I have been busy trying to keep up with those. Also, we leave for South Africa on Monday and I cannot believe how fast the time has gone. I feel like I have seen most of the things that I have wanted to see in Hanoi but am starting to get a little sad about leaving the city and my homestay family!

#Vietnam