Phong Nha

We took a train to Phong Nha, which is a rural area with mountains and tons of rice fields and people walking their water buffalo, as well as a cave area. We got off the train at the wrong stop; the speaker announced that we were at Dong Ha, and we thought that was our stop. But no, actually we were going to Dong Hoi, which is a couple hours away. We waited awhile and got another train  to Phong Nha in Dong Hoi. While we were waiting, Noah and I were playing chess. We brought a set that he had made last summer in his laser printing class. A boy approached us and asked if he could play. He was 10 and spoke very good English. Noah and he played, and the boy won very quickly. He said he liked chess and it was his “specialty.” We talked a little more and he took a bunch of selfies with us. 

Phong Nha was a guest house/hotel surrounded by rice fields. They had a giant chess set where the pieces were almost as tall as Aviva. We played a few games with that. We went on several scooter rides to see nearby things and I totally loved sitting on the back of the scooter. (I tried driving one but did NOT feel comfortable enough to have a kid with me. Or even have me with me.) Josh drove one with a kid or two, and I rode behind a hired driver. We went to a few caves and it was so interesting to see the countryside. We saw rubber trees and learned how to tap them. We went on a crazy swing over a cliff, wearing a harness. We threw ducks at a duck farm. Paradise Cave had a long walk along a jungle-ish path with interesting plants, and then we walked up the mountain to the entrance of the cave. We walked down some stairs into this enormous cave that went on and on.

 Train station; Aviva's super-strong and super-helpful

 Weird candy we tried on the train

 Vietnamese hats + us at duck farm

 

 

 This was a latex farm where they tap latex and showed us how

 Noah flying on swing over cliff (with a harness)

 Aviva approaching first cave

 

 Exiting cave

Dark cave was our next expedition which was totally different. To get there, you need to either kayak or take a zipline. The kids weren’t big enough to zipline, so we took two kayaks. Then a guide led us in. We were wearing helmets with headlamps on them, and we totally needed the light - the passageway was so narrow and we had hands on both walls around us. We were barefoot, and it was muddy, this smooth, silky mud. We walked 10 minutes or something and came to a muddy pool which they call a mud bath. We got in and Noah totally submerged and loved it. The rest of us thought it was okay and interesting. Then we climbed/mud-walked out and kayaked back. Then Noah was allowed to use the zipline for some reason, so he did that and dropped into the water below. Many times. Then we got on our motorbikes and drove the half hour back to the hotel. 

There were green hills and little mountains all around us, and rivers and rice fields and houses and people walking their water buffalo. When Aviva was on the bike with me, we kept deciding which side had a better view - the right side or the left. Sometimes it was hard to say, because it was just overall beautiful. 

The next day we went to the Phong Nha botanic garden, which had bamboo bridges and tons of si trees and banyans and waterfalls and also some peacocks and porcupines, which were caged and I don’t think they were native. We walked to a little waterfall area that had a pool at the bottom and we were told earlier we could swim in it. So I did. Aviva came in a little bit also. Then we hiked more to a bigger waterfall, and there was a hanging rope to hold on to as a railing for a lot of the hike. We weren’t sure if we were going the right direction, and we’re climbing over roots and using the ropes. But it was indeed the right direction, because we finally saw a waterfall. And at the waterfall itself, there was a path and a rope so we could cross to the top of the waterfall. Maybe 50 or 6- feet high and slippery sort of but there were mostly good footholds and places to step. Totally beautiful. My camera lost this day’s pictures, unfortunately, but I’ll see what’s on Josh’s camera. Then we took scooters back to the hotel, about a half hour’s ride. Which was beautiful and I loved.