During my trip to Vietnam I left Ninh Binh on a bike to spend a wonderful day discovering Hoa Lu and its surroundings.
The magnificent scenery is unbelievable. The rice paddies go on as far as the eye can see. Rocky outcrops and sugar loaf formations add some height to the expanses. I wandered down a little road for miles without seeing a single person. A goatherd showed me the way. I saw lots of different things during the day. There were peasants gutting a cow hung up by its hooves. It was disgusting. In a little lake, there was a woman fishing with a net who had caught a little snake. A little further on two men were using electricity to fish. They used a pole attached to a battery to send a charge into the water. This knocked out the fish and disoriented them so the men only had to collect them. In the middle of a rice paddy there was a child riding a buffalo. It was a great day.
It was a shame that I had to go back when the evening came. I loved Hoa Lu - it's true that Ha Long bay is not just about the water.