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Eric and I sat in backpackers hostel drinking the best Vietnamese coffee we’ve found in our little village outside Ninh binh. 

The last three days have been epic. They’ve also been a whirlwind of activity. After lounging at the resort (sort of… as much as our family can “lounge” scooters anyone?) for two days we went on our only planned tour of the trip with Asia Outdoors (awesome company).
We started with a trek through the jungle with a guide whose family had lived on the land for the last few generations and who had fled to the forest/jungle during the war.

The trek was not for the faint of heart. There was no trail and it was straight up and straight down over viciously sharp limestone rocks and through enormous bamboo forests.

There were also ants that would send us to the hospital if they peed in our eyes (ha!)

We received some vigorous massages when we returned at a random hotel we found. Every joint was cracked at least five times. Phew.

We slept on the top of a boat that night and met Winnie an awesome Asia Outdoors guide from Cat Ba Island.

In the morning they took us (via boat) to a small beach surrounded by cliffs we were going to climb.

It was my first time climbing outdoors and I loved it. I’m hooked. I hear there is a great climbing community in the city of Chiang Mai 🙂

After we climbed all over the cliffs we grabbed lunch on the boat and headed out for some Stand up Paddleboarding around the bay. ( no photos currently but soon!) It was incredible and very mystical.

We were then transported (via boat and tuk-tuk) to an eco lodge deep in the national park where we slept in bungalows at the edge of a time town.

 

A rooster woke us up at 5am.

Then it was Christmas Day and kayaking was in order.

 

The holiday lunch was great as well. We drank rice wine and light beers while singing cheers in every language spoken at the long table filled with other travelers. So fun.

 

 

I made it through a 2 hour bus ride from my college, a 7.5 hour delay at the airport, 6 hours on a plane, 1.5 hours in a taxi home, another taxi ride to the airport 4 hours later, an 11 hour flight to Tokyo, 1 hour layover and the best sushi ever, a 6 hour flight from Tokyo to Ho Chi Minh, a taxi from the airport, a taxi the next morning to the airport, a 2 hour flight to Hai Phong, a taxi ride, a ferry ride, an open-air tuk-tuk ride to be sitting on the beach of Cat Ba Island, Vietnam.

DAMN. Worth it.