On the 8th of July, we got off an overnight train from Hanoi to Dong Hoi at 7:30 and were picked up by a man from Phong Nha Farmstay, where we would be staying. We got to the farmstay after a 40 minute drive and had welcome drinks and breakfast, and then they showed us our room.
The second day of our stay at the farmstay we did a tour of the Phong Nha National Park. We had to be ready to go by 8am for the full day. Once everyone had arrived we had a guide talk to us about Vietnam history and our tour. We then piled into a van and started driving.
Our first stop was the 8 ladies cave and a temple for the cave. The reason this cave is special is because it was used as a hiding place from bombs in the Vietnam war. So 8 people were hiding in the cave when a bomb dropped outside the cave blocking the entrance completely. They died 8 days later of starvation. I found this very shocking and sad for those 8 people and their families.
Th next stop was Paradise Cave, which is a 31km dry cave. We didn’t walk the whole way but the bit we did walk was very cool, with weird shaped stalagmites and stalactites.
The next stop was by far the best. The Dark Cave. When we got there we had lunch and then went to get ready for the adventure. The start of the adventure was getting to the Dark Cave. This involved a 400m zip-line, the longest in Asia, and swimming into the mouth of the cave. We then walked a few hundred metres in the cave to a mud pool which we would swim in. This was an amazing and weird experience and I doubt I will ever have the chance to do it again.
We walked back out of the cave and got into kayaks and paddled across the river. Once on the other side, we got to do zip-lining into the river, riding bikes on the water, and swimming. The Dark Cave was the highlight of the day by far.
We drove back to the farmstay and by now we were pretty tired so when we got back we just relaxed and ate tea with a Swedish family and a Finnish couple.
Thanks for keeping us up-to-date with what you have been doing. It sounds like you are having an amazing time and experiencing lots of new things and you are only half way through your holiday! Yes, I think the Dark Cave sounded pretty awesome too, especially being able to ride the bikes on water – not sure about the zip-lining though!
Sounds like you’re having some amazing experiences – not just seeing things but doing plenty too! How’s the food been? My mouth’s salivating at the thought of all those wonderful flavours – fresh tropical fruit and scrumptious meals. Are you enjoying the unusual coloured cakes?
It’s been freezing here…good time to be away!