Cruising along the tourist trail

When you're traveling for a year it's easy to get fixated on staying off the tourist trail. This is partly from a desire for "authentic" experiences, but there's also some ego involved; a need to prove to yourself that you're a traveler, not a tourist. Sometimes, though, the tourist trail exists for a very good reason. We experienced this on some of the Great Walks in New Zealand, while on the Great Barrier Reef, at Angkor Wat, and most recently Halong Bay. All of these places are spectacles well worth a visit despite the crowds, and so you go, knowing full well that yes, it will be busy, less-than-authentic, and probably overpriced. But awesome at the same time.

Halong Bay was formed by the uplift of the sea floor, which subsequently eroded to form thousands of dramatic limestone sea mounts rising vertically from the water. It's a stunning sight, but increasingly marred by the over 500 licensed cruise boats. Unfortunately, those boats, along with the locals living on the bay, are polluting the water with sewage and trash. There are safety rules, and aesthetic rules (all boats must be painted white), but there's not much in the way of environmental regulation. Hopefully, the tourism industry will realize that it's the natural beauty people come to see, and that they need to protect this special place.

We took a one-night trip to Halong Bay about a week ago, and it was full of kitschy tourism. Cave hike with colored lights? Check. Morning Tai Chi? Check. But it was also a very peaceful, beautiful experience and one we're not likely to forget. Here's the photo gallery: https://plus.google.com/photos/103829313469224560701/albums/6046222136765281329