Bicycling & Boating in Tam Coc

 We left Sapa on November 12, on the noon train to Hanoi. We splurged a bit & booked a private compartment for just the two of us - came with included snacks, pillows & comfy quilts. It was an 8 hour daytime journey so lots to see out the big window & the “icing on the cake” was travelling thru Train Street in Hanoi & being watched instead of watching the train go by. 

Life along the train tracks

In Hanoi

Train Street

We spent 3 nights in Hanoi, back to our favorite beer spot, Zo 26, & just wandering around. 

These gas masks were on the back of our hotel room door!

Ladies always tidying up the flower beds

Some weird fruit, didn’t try it

Fancy water pipes, used with tobacco, very popular here

Crowds in beer street

The very best banana fritters ever made! 

We booked a VIP transport to get to Tam Coc which turned into 3 different vans, only one remotely special, but we arrived to the Tam Coc Serene Bungalow for a weeks stay. This area is known for it’s limestone karsts, boat trips thru limestone caves, rice paddies & ancient temples. We spent one day riding regular bicycles & then moved up to E-bikes (something we have never tried) - we are hooked & now want our own! There are several options for boat trips, unique in that they row with their feet - we did one trip thru water lilies (rice paddies in their season), thru 3 caves & amongst limestone peaks.  Very serene. 

Our bungalow

A bit too cool for the pool, but pretty

Our E-bike adventure

Countryside that we rode in

Goats on the loose

Graveyard

Bich Dong Pagoda, founded in 1428

Water lilies on the sides

Into a cave

A very busy place so may boats waiting

View from a riverside cafe

Foot rowers

We rode the E-bikes to the Thung Nham Bird Park where a boat ride took us up close to hundreds of nesting storks!

There’s a baby tucked in the nest there

A massive bamboo clump in the gardens

There are temples everywhere 

Came upon a herd of water buffalo & their keeper

We found a restaurant that became our favorite, called the Pig Family Cafe - an older lady always out front greeting everyone as they pass & hoping to entice them in. Draft beer for $0.37, good food & often good company.

Even had burgers & fries one day

We did lots of wandering the streets, watching women wash clothes by hand in the river, “interesting “ construction techniques (lots of new construction tucked in between existing buildings), kids fishing, boats going by.

Washing clothes 

Every day a large group of older ladies gather to exercise

Kids fishing

Not an unusual sight

Bamboo scaffolding, lots of manual labour 

Rice kernels drying on a small road, motorbikes still drive thru

Building a new boat right by the river

Baby seat for bikes or motorbikes 

We are leaving tonight on another train ride, this one from 10pm until noon the next day. We will share the compartment with 2 others but we did ensure that we get the bottom bunks! Off to DaNang to continue our journey. Still Living the Dream!