TRAVELMAN in VIETNAM: A Ridiculously Scenic Boat Ride Through the Caves in Trang An (part 3/3)

I have too many photos from this trip! I loved it so much!

A group of Vietnamese coming out of a cave that we’re about to go into...

I take all of my photos with my iPad. My cheap Samsung takes horrible photos. I’ll be in Bangkok for two days in early December. I’m debating whether I should buy a good camera while I’m there. I need a camera with a real zoom lens and an F-stop so I can take decent photos at night.

So many cave photos did not work out, as well as photos I’ve tried taking at night in other countries. On the other hand, I’m not so keen on carrying the fragile and expensive weight of a camera in my bag. Also considering buying a good waterproof Samsung Phone with the best camera option available. That way I can use it as my primary phone for the next couple years (any suggestions?)

Above and below are pics of pots in the cave. Again, sorry about the bad pics. Hundreds of pots were lined up in rows at the end of this cave. It’s some kind of shrine, or maybe just a Self Storage Rental Unit. Maybe the caves are rented out to hoarders and there’s just a bunch of old TV Guides and electrical cords to old laptops in the pots...

Another temple- Check out the cave in the rock about fifty feet above it. The temple stops doubled as a snack and souvenir stop. You could buy soda, water, beer, coffee, ice-cream, chips, well you get the idea. I bought an ice-cream bar which was refreshing but tasted strange. The ice-cream lacked any creaminess.

Getting in and out of the boat was a bit precarious for us landlubber tourists. Like an ass, I stepped directly on the flag at the front of the boat and broke the stick to which it was attached. The boat driver’s mouth went agape. Other boat ladies waiting for their tourist to return giggled at my faux pas. Our driver smiled and laughed as well after recovering from the initial shock induced by the clumsy American. I was able to salvage the not completely snapped flagstick and put it back in place.

I hope it wasn’t a family heirloom passed down from her mother and grandmother who were also boat rower ladies. We joked that the driver would get revenge by “accidentally” steering my head into a rock as she maneuvered us through the next cave.

They had a three piece band at this temple. I don’t know what to call the electrified, hollowed out log instrument the guy on the right is playing. It had one string and he would pull the metal stick it’s attached to on one side like a whammy bar on a guitar...

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Another temple. There were three of them. I have yet to be wowed by a temple in S.E. Asia, but the location of these sure gave them a boost on the Travelman Cool-o-meter.

Toward the end of the ride Gob and Neriah and I were talking about what I can do in Cambodia as well as the Ninh Binh area. They mentioned that Tam Coc was fun to visit and it’s where they rode their bikes from that morning. They invited me along to ride back into town with them. David opted to go back to the hostel.

They’d also heard that we were supposed to tip our boat woman. The boat women were not allowed to ask for a tip at this location. In Tam Coc, they do solicit tips at the end of the ride, to the point of harassment. That’s one of the other reasons not to take that tour.

We agreed that ten thousand a piece was fair. I didn’t have correct change and no one else had the right change so I ended up putting in twenty, but after all, I did step on the woman’s flag. So she got 50,000 from us.

Here’s a giant Preying Mantis that jumped on David’s foot. You can see the edge of his sandal on the left of the pic for perspective. It was probably about 10-11 cm long...

It was a great morning that turned into a great afternoon bike ride. If you haven’t checked out parts 1 and 2 of the trip, do yourself a favor and click onto my blog so you can find them.

Until next time.

And to my family and friends, HAPPY THANKSGIVING! I love all of you very much!

I’ve lost a couple members of my extended family in the past couple weeks and I wish their friends and all extensions of my family well and the comfort of God’s grace in this time of great loss and transition. It gives you pause to reflect on the value of love generated and shared amongst family and friends.

!steemitworldmap 20.2540 lat 105.9206 long Boat Ride Through the Trang An Caves (part 3/3), Vietnam, d3scr