Vietnam and Hanoi in the modern era

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 6:08 PM EST

It’s day two of our adventure as our ship comes into port in Cai Lan, located a few hours from Hanoi.

Since we didn’t have time to visit the famous North Vietnam city, it did give us an opportunity to take a ride in Haiphong Harbor on a Junk, slowly making our way along the magnificent UNESCO World Heritage site on a fog-enveloped bay. It lived up to its reputation.

There is a wonderful fable that the towering limestone rock formations were made with the crash landing of a dragon sent by the gods to protect the country. The unusual rocks were given names to add to their mystique. We entered through the “Gates of Paradise” and soon came upon hundreds of others.

It’s hard to imagine that this is part of Haiphong Harbor, which the U.S. bombed relentlessly to stop Soviet supplies from coming through the north. Today it has an almost mystical feeling, probably due to the low-hanging fog.

Several people on our cruise ship had taken a kayaking tour through the harbor and found its silence almost eerie. There were many houseboats adrift in the waters, which are home to many fishermen who have lived there for generations.

Although we were there just for the morning, when we came ashore there were masses of people boarding other Junks that were designed as hotels. The area offers water sports and diving opportunities and a thriving tourist industry has developed as well.

We returned to our ship for lunch and then took a shuttle bus to the local market. What fun. The tables, continuous booths with an overhang located near the harbor, were filled with similar merchandise but each vendor was friendly whether I bought from him or not. I did do my “Vicki Walk” a few times, leaving the stall because the price was not what I wanted to pay. Each vendor took it in good humor and I did buy some silk robes and pearls of all colors.

The adventure continues as we re-board our ship and continue our path south on the China Sea. Next stop, Da Nang.