Day 68 day 2 on treasure junk, bai tu bay

Fri 10 march
The alarm went off at 6.25 so we could attend tai chi at 6:30. We had already been woken by the ships engines somewhere around 6am and we just switched the alarm off and went back to sleep. Our breakfast was scheduled for 7:30, it was served on deck as the day was beautiful and only the 6 of us who were doing the 2 night stay were there. Everyone else on the one night trip were boarding the tender to go to see the floating fishing village.

Other boats were moored nearby, there are only a few places boats are allowed to drop anchor in Bai tu bay

After breakfast we packed a day bag and then we transferred to the support boat for the day. As we left the tender arrived back so the Treasure Junk could sail back to the mainland with the other 8 passengers and pick up new ones. We would rejoin it later in the afternoon.
To get to the support boat we went through the crew quarters at the back of the boat. These were definitely a lower standard than we were in! The heat coming up from the engine room was immense.
The support boat had a figurehead of a dragon, downstairs was a dining room and bar, two cabins with ensuite and a separate toilet. Up stairs was a large sun deck with 4 loungers and plenty of chairs and tables.

relaxing on deck

Edwina, Simon, Ben, Maggie, Jono and I settled up in the sun and chatted as the support boat made it's way deeper into Bai Tu bay. The crew offered us drinks but we were all fine. It was really relaxing and good to get to know everyone a bit better as we watched the karsts and the sea hawks circling overhead. We saw occasional small fishing boats and had to stop at a floating police station where the crew handed over details about everyone onboard. We weren't  needed for this. They had all the paperwork sorted out.

fishing boats were out working

Floating police station

Another 30 minutes or so further sailing on we came to a floating fishing village where the kayaks were stored.

 We had a great kayak trip with Đuy ( pronounced zwee). As we are pretty confident  sea kayakers we poked our heads in caves and explored the karst coastline.

Maggie and Ben

Simon and Edwina were looking very synchronised kayaking today.  We watched a fishing boat haul in its nets but they didn't  seem to have caught much if anything.
We stopped at a beach where another group had also stopped. The bottled water we had been given to bring was very welcome. There was dead coral and shells strewn everywhere, we had a swim and relaxed on the sand before paddling back to our boat by the floating farm.

Lunch was served in the dining area and the food just kept coming. There was so much of it and it was all delicious. We were able for the first time to sit around a table as a group and talk which was really good.

This is a salad, it had coconut and lime juice on it. We were shown the veg it came from, it looked a bit like a turnip. It was crisp, cool and delicious

Then came beef strips for the meat eaters and potato things for me. Then prawns appeared

Next came a chicken dish and a squid one for me

Then fish in a sauce

And rice and a veg dish

Finally pineapple, orange and dragon fruit

After lunch we went to visit a cave high up in one of the Karsts. Đuy told us about the massive cave that had been discovered  in central Vietnam recently, the worlds largest and how only a few people were being allowed to visit it due to the delicate flora and fauna discovered there.

A few steps ( 70) to climb

Entrance to the cave

View from top before entering cave

View from cave exit

Admiring the view

Cave exit

The support boat then took us slowly through the karsts again to where Treasure Junk was waiting. Đuy had warned us that they had picked up 22 new people so the boat was full. 6 of those were doing the 2 night trip like we had done and the rest were on the one night trip so would be with us the next day.

this man was rowing with his feet while using his hands to fish

As we arrived they were getting ready to set out on their kayaking trip. We could have gone too but we were kayaked out and opted to use the sunbeds to criticise their techniques ( quietly to ourselves) as they set out and then to read and relax while the sun sank lower.

The cooking demonstration was held on deck and it was a fresh spring roll. Jono made two and said they were great, but I was still too full from lunch.

Dinner was a buffet rather than individual courses served to our tables, since there were so many of us. It also meant we had the chance to sit as a group and Edwina, Simon, Jono and I carried on our discussions.

After dinner, squid fishing was again on offer as was a different programme on the tv and happy hour with 2 for 1 drinks between 9 and 10. However we were all pretty tired and knowing we had to be up for Tai chi at 6:30 the next day we opted for bed.