Bats, Birds & Goats

Today another short bike ride, this time to the Mua Cave https://www.ninhbinh-tour.com/post/mua-cave-steps … although there is a cave, the main attraction is the 486 step climb to the dragon at the top. But first breakfast … river-side chairs and a big bowl of muesli and yoghurt, topped with a mound of juicy mango. Two girls at the next table had Canadian flags on their bags, so we chatted and compared travels. They’d already spent a month in Vietnam and planned another month in Thailand.

Maneuvering around the congestion of buses, visitors, bikes and hustlers, we found a secure place to store our bikes and headed for the cave. Quite tiny and unassuming … there’s a rock inside that, according to legend, resembles a dragon … but it’s the challenge of those steps that most come for. With the heat and humidity, we were soon soaked and grateful for the frequent water and rest stops. Incredible views from the top … looking down on the winding river where yesterday we’d been paddling. Along the way we’d noticed several goats resting or browsing. At one point in our descent, sitting in a minute patch of shade, a goat who’d just had her photo taken with Glen ambled over to me … seemingly for a head scratch and a pat. Suddenly, everything changed as she spied the bag containing our water bottles. Presuming something tasty must be hidden inside, she butted Glen and chased after him. Comedic it might have been … but not on steep, slippery steps with no easy avenue for escape. Dropping the bag seemed the only option … we managed to retrieve one bottle and a pair of sunglasses before she whisked the bag away. Everyone around made a hasty escape. Back at the base we were surprised and touched when a young couple handed over our missing water bottle which they’d managed to retrieve from the attack goat!

Cycling back, a sign caught our eye … Blacksmith. On display outside a range of beautifully crafted knives and cleavers. We stopped to look and were invited inside for a look. The forge wasn’t going but they were sharpening some of the knives. My Great Grandfather was a blacksmith.

Thoroughly hot and tired, a tall glass of passionfruit juice at a shady restaurant while watching traditional fish boats drift down the river, casting their nets, and banging on the sides to divert the fish into the nets. Cold duck for dinner tasted wonderful.

Last day in Vietnam … and it’s going to be the hottest. The Home Stay owner is lovely … and she tries very hard … but being relatively new to the business, there’s a certain awkwardness in customer service. Like the prolonged, anxious hoverings to make sure the room was OK … or that you were actually going to eat the breakfast rolls that she had just smothered in hot sauce and handed to you … quite literally. Those sorts of things. This morning though, we strolled down to the river and had wonderful omelets and hot coffee (at the ‘duck’ restaurant) before our ride out to the Thung Nham Bird Reserve. https://hanoiexploretravel.com/things-to-do-ninh-binh/thung-nham-bird-park

Already flagging from the heat, it was quite delightful to board a small rowing boat and be rowed (by feet!) through a deliciously cool cave. Much longer than any we’d encountered before … and no artificial light except for our head lamps. Winding through caverns and crevices, huge outcrops glinting with quartz crystals … and there, black and fluttering … colonies of bats. Mostly a small variety, but a few larger ones too. Excellent!

Another cave … this time a walk through … and just as cool. Too bad there weren’t more – it was reading 34C and with the humidity feeling like 40! The gardens were beautiful, but didn’t provide much shade, so we took the trail to the bird reserve. Across bamboo bridges, beside rocky cliffs, through a veritable jungle to a lookout with views right across the river and valley. Here were hundreds of snow white egrets decorating the trees like handkerchiefs. But there were also much bigger storks in nests … their black and white plumage, long necks and legs noticeable when they flew. https://daytripvietnam.com/guide/thung-nham-bird-park/

A quick stop at a Temple built right into the mountainside, followed by a cool refreshing coconut with straw … then it was time for the bus back to Hanoi. This had been arranged by our Home Stay owner … and she assured us this was the best driver. We waited and waited at the drop off point. Finally a limo bus turned up – we had the last two seats located right at the back. Comfortable – yes … only one problem – there was no seatbelt for the middle seat … it was a strap with nothing to click into place. By the time I realized the problem, the driver had taken off at speed and we were on the highway. I improvised by wrapping it through a loop a few times and hung on like grim death … you needed to as this had to be the WORST driver ever encountered. Weaving back and forth, cutting off every driver and missing them by centimeters, and even appeared to nod off a couple of times. This drive usually takes around 2 hours … he did it in one and a half! And there were school kids on board. Talk about a white knuckle experience.

Back in Hanoi we retrieved our suitcases and La’s son Quan showed us his favourite dumpling restaurant … they do all day Dim Sum. Tiny, it was a tight squeeze for us two, our luggage and backpacks … but nobody seemed to mind. Odd that the tea we asked for was iced not hot. Never mind, it’s been a hot, muggy day.

Short night tonight … our flight leaves at 7:30 tomorrow.