cannon fort During the Vietnam war, Cat Ba island was used as a defensive fortification by the North and tucked into the hills and small mountains were a few old military sights that provide spectacular views of the island and coastline. We rented a small motorbike for the day and …
the road to somewhere Cat Ba translated to English means sandy woman. Legend has it that 3 women were killed during the Tran Dynasty, and their bodies floated to this island, landing on three different spots. Local fisherman found the bodies of the women, thus how the island got …
countryside culture Our next encounter in Vietnam was the historic site of Hoa Lu, the ancient royal capital, and the nearby Tam Coc known for its unique rock formations, which Vietnamese fondly call “Ha Long Bay on Land.” We were picked up from our hotel via bus, picking up …
streets of Hanoi Our first taste of Vietnam streets last night was quite fun. It can somewhat be compared to India in that it’s sensory overload. The streets aren’t made for walking, but that’s just what we did (sing that to the Nancy Sinatra tune). We got up close and …
Another fun travel day ensued as we headed out to our 6th country on the ‘round the world’ circuit – Vietnam. We ran into a bit of an issue at the check-in counter of the Singapore airport due to a slight oversight and likely hunger (the morning started out rough …
Nature Singapore Attempt #1. Today we decided to see the nature side of the city, but our first attempt at our made-up “Nature Singapore Tour” went a bit awry. First on the list was the Botanical Gardens, a UNESCO heritage sight. We took the metro (metro plug: Singapore’s is also …
