Halong Bay and Ko Samui

This is Halong Bay, my final stop in Vietnam. . . . I wasn't originally planning on coming here, but I kept hearing from other travelers that it was not to be missed. All in all, it was pretty awesome. Halong Bay covers over a thousand square miles and consists of thousands of limestone islands that rise out of the water. I spent my first night on a ship in the bay and my second on Cat Ba island, one of the only inhabitable islands in the bay. It was cloudy most of the time I was here although the sun did come out for a few hours each afternoon. The morning of the third day I was awakened at 4:00 AM and informed that a Typhoon was on its way and the Vietnamese Army wanted everyone off the island. Not as exciting as it sounds. . . . all we saw was some rain and wind. I was going home that day anyway so I really didn't mind. About an hour later we were informed that the typhoon changed its mind.

This is Hospital Cave. . . . safe from American bombs, the cave was used as a hospital during the war. . . . It was pretty big:

View from Hospital Cave:

View from the deck of our ship:

Cat Ba island, the biggest island in the Bay. . . . this is Cat Ba National Park. . . . spent the morning hiking up one of its many mountains for some good views:

This is Monkey, our guide:

Monkey Island. . . . spent the night here. . . . a very small island. fifteen minutes from end to end. You can climb a hill and see the entire island from the top.

This is Ko Samui, Thailand. . . . my last stop before Bangkok and plane back to the states. . . . Ko Samui was perfect. . . . developed, but not overdone. I actually counted three Starbucks here along with a few other chains. . . . inevitable I suppose. At first I was considering seeking out the true dessert island experience, but I decided against it at the last minute. . . . I've grown tired of eating stir fried rice and noodles for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I spent three nights here, before heading back to Bangkok where I am now. Only a few hours to go!
This was where I stayed for only 6 dollars a night. . . . loved it:

On the second day I took a nice long hike up a mountain in search opf a waterfall that you could the osupposedly dive off of and swim in. I got very lost, never did find it. I found a waterfall, butne I was looking for. The hike was great. . . . the island really is beautiful, even in its developed state. . . . the views were awesome.














So thats it. . . . . time to go home!