Halong Bay, continued...

As we navigated through the islands of the mystical Halong Bay (there are over 2000 islands) we saw fishing boats of a variety of sizes. We saw single man row boats, multi man boats with a motor and larger outfits. I was mesmerized by beauty of the islands and boats.

At lunch I was taught by a wonderful woman from Singapore, how to crack open a crab which was cooked but still starring me in the face and enjoy its meat. If all the meals were going to be as delicious as lunch I knew I would be a happy woman. What I didn't realize then was that each meal I would eat for 3 days would be virtually the same...but you didn't hear me complain! I'm perfectly happy to eat shrimp, crab, fish and calamari over and over. The need for variety is over rated!

We stopped to explore a cave passing a funeral ceremony on our way in a floating fishing village. It was difficult to see the ceremony itself but we were able to hear the songs and speeches, although not able to understand Vietnamese hindered any understanding. We were told that after the cave tour we would return to the floating village.

Caves are such a beauty to me! To envision what it took for nature to carve out a cave and the thousands of years required to create a stalagmite and stalactite is incredible. The clear pools of water often hard to detect for their complete stillness and transparency are so beautiful to me. It's fun to use the imagination to identify various shapes and images formed in the rock. I've explored a good share of caves during my life and this one wasn't necessarily at the top of the beauty and magnificence scale but nonetheless, the small area of the 2 km area of the cave we were shown was nice.

I was excited to get back on the boat and be taken back to the nearby floating village where we kayaked through the small village and around some of the islands. I was kayaking with a woman from South Korea (she was in front and I was in back). During our time together I learned an important lesson in communication and shared vision. If we had different ideas of which direction we wanted to head and didn't tell the other we found ourselves working against each other and going nowhere. Anyway...this experience of kayaking through the fishing village and through the bay was definitely a highlight in my list of life experiences. The tiny, one room homes of the fishing village with hammocks hung on the porch, laundry hung outside, children playing in boats sparked a desire for an experience of living in a fishing village for a week...another experience for another time. As we kayaked through the tall islands it was easy to feel a sense of my individual insignificance and then remember that God created all this for our benefit, a thought that suddenly made me remember my tremendous importance in the eyes of a loving heavenly father.

All too soon it was time once again to board the Elizabeth Sails and move on our way through the bay. In late afternoon we anchored the boat and it was time to go swimming! I started by jumping off the 2nd story of the boat into the refreshing water. Then it was time to go up a level. Several of us "younger" folk climbed to the top deck of the boat and plunged down 3 stories and deep into the water below. The swim felt good and worked up an appetite for dinner...more delicious seafood! But before dinner was served we enjoyed a beautiful sunset. Sigh, another very magical moment.

After dinner I looked forward to returning to the top deck of the boat to enjoy the view of the heavens unpolluted by city lights. Since I couldn't figure out how to turn off the lights on the top deck the view of the stars, while still very beautiful, was not what I had hoped. I laid there watching for falling stars and enduring the pollution of the night silence by very mediocre karaoke coming from the next boat. Asians LOVE karaoke. I tried to put it out of my mind and focus on the beauty of the sky. I found myself singing one of my own favorite songs...Oh Lord, My God, when I in awesome wonder, consider all thy hands have made. I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder and then proclaim, My God, how great Thou art. I saw four falling stars that night and then retired to my quarters.