Thursday, February 14, 2013

Where the Dragon Ascends Into the Sea


Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam

Today I had the amazing opportunity to visit Ha Long Bay in north Viet Nam. They are proud to boast that it is one of the natural wonders of the world. And what a wonder it is.

I first saw a picture of Ha Long Bay in the visitor’s center at Bryce Canyon National Park. There was a display of other places in the world where these crazy rock formations called hoodoos (the ones that Bryce Canyon is famous for) also exist. There was a picture of Ha Long Bay, shrouded in mist and mystery. As soon as I saw it was in Viet Nam, I knew I had to go there.

Ha Long Bay is an area with over 3,000 rocky islands that are only accessible via boat. The indigenous people here live in house boat-type structures, fishing and living off the land. The legend of how Ha Long Bay was created is that the mythical dragon who lived in the bay, slashed his tail about, carving out the islands, while the rest of the area filled with water to create the bay. In Vietnamese, Ha Long translates to “where the dragon ascends into the sea.”

We hopped on a junk boat (their words not mine), and headed into the fog. Slowly the islands began to come into view. It was like nothing I’d ever seen, some mythical land akin to Narnia or that place in the Avatar movie. It was breathtaking. We spent the next several hours navigating our way through the waterways, taking more pictures than I can count. It was easily one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been and a place I won’t soon forget. 

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