More Adventures in Vietnam: Ninh Binh

Stage 2 of our adventure!

Following our overnight boat cruise, we boarded a bus that took us to Ninh Binh Province, a piece of countryside so beautiful that it's been called "Ha Long Bay on land." Feeling frugal, I'd opted for a mid-level ride instead of paying a few dollars more for the "limousine bus." I was rather regretting our decision until the bus arranged for drop-off right to our AirBnB instead of ditching us in the center of town.

Our Ninh Binh Greenland Homestay was fantastic--I would highly recommend it to anyone traveling in the area. Our host Long was helpful, our room was comfortable, and the views from our balcony were remarkable. There was a lovely pool and breakfast made to order every day. Free bike rentals were available, plus you could opt to dine with the other guests in the evening for a small extra charge. We felt so pampered!

Here we are sharing a meal with a fun couple from Australia. Many of the tourists we met were traveling for extensive periods of time, often for months on end.

While not busy, the surrounding neighborhood definitely catered to tourists with massage parlors on every corner. Fun as it looked, we never pampered ourselves. After all, I was a bit nervous about getting my hells heels rubbed.

Our view of the mountains in the morning.

Our homestay was just a short bike ride from Trang An, another UNESCO World Heritage Site. Knowing that the lines can get long, we arrived around 7:30 am and hopped aboard a boat rowed by the sweetest woman. After I spoke to her a tiny bit in Vietnamese, she assumed I could understand most everything. I certainly didn't, so the rest of the ride included some extensive games of charade.

While our boat guide didn't speak much English, she had mastered one phrase: head down! She used it often as we journeyed through the various different caves, including Dot Cave which spans more than a kilometer. Considering how often we needed to duck, I can only imagine what it must be like when the water level is higher.

There are actually three different rowboat tours you can take at Trang An. We opted for Route 3 since it included the longest cave, plus it rows past the set for King Kong: Skull Island. Still, it makes me excited to think that if I ever go back, we could opt for an entirely different experience.

Truthfully, no matter what route you pick, the journey will be stunning.

Photography at Ninh Binh was huge. Soooo many people (including our boatmates) were dressed to the nines so they could have their picture taken.

My Mom and I may not have been fancy, but we sure were happy!

Plus apparently it's not just romantic couples that give smooches.

With so many boats on the lake, it was incredible that when we went through the 1000m cave, it felt like we had the entire place to ourself. Our entry was timed such that we hardly saw another boat for the entire journey,

Amazing.

Toward the end of our tour it started to rain so we pulled out the umbrellas--such a picturesque ending. It's easy to understand why Ninh Binh is so popular with both locals and tourists alike.

Also, kudos to my Mom for hopping on a bike and cycling through traffic in the rain. That takes courage for anyone, but especially for a person who hasn't ridden a bike in quite a while. Her hair may be silver, but my Mom is an adventurer at heart!

On the way back, we encountered this woman riding her horse along the shore. The experience felt majestic. Back in the year 1000, Ninh Binh was the capitol of Viet Nam. Witnessing this ride, it felt like I was peering back through time at royalty. 

Later in the day I climbed 500 cragged stone steps to the top of Hang Mua Mountain and peered down at the terrian we rowed.

There is a lying stone dragon atop this panoramic overlook that is both awesome and ridiculously crowded.

Fortunately the crowds disperse if you work your way farther down the spine.

From the top, you could see that the wooden walkways below had been shaped like a lotus.

I even spied workers caring for the fields with their conical bamboo hats.

While we'd ordered a "Grab" to get to Hang Mua, my Mom and I decided to walk home instead. Imagine our surprise when a herd of water buffalo popped out of the alley right in front of us, completely blocking traffic for a time! Sometimes life is so unexpected that all you can do is laugh.

For dinner, we stopped at a cute little place called Riverside Restaurant Thien De where we enjoyed some delicious spring rolls and papaya salad. Plus a mango smoothie, of course.

While we would have loved to stay longer in Ninh Binh, we had flights booked for Cambodia and needed to get back to the airport in Hanoi. Our final adventure was figuring out how to wash laundry. Even the simplest tasks can take quite a bit of problem solving in an unfamiliar setting. The washers and dryers hadn't been connected in the first laundromat I found, so I had to bike for a while in the rain before I found a new place that  was open. Much to my surprise, this laundromat even accepted credit cards.  In general, credit cards are rarely used in Vietnam, so most of the time we exchanged US Dollars for Vietnamese Dong.

With clothes that were both clean and dry (the laundry on our balcony had gotten soaked overnight), we were ready for the next stage of our journey. After three shuttles and a plane flight, we showed our Cambodian visas and arrived at Siem Reap International airport. It was still another hour drive before we made it to our AirBnB in the yellow house, but certainly worth the effort. Can't wait to tell you all about Angkor!