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00:00On the Bay of Ha Long in Vietnam's north,
00:03the idea was to glide gracefully across the water.
00:10I suffered no injury, except perhaps to my dignity.
00:15But undeterred, I sailed out across the misty majesty of Ha Long Bay.
00:21Vietnam, of course it's a place of tea plantations, traffic, temples,
00:33but then it's something else entirely.
00:39Come with me on an unusual, unfiltered, unforgettable adventure.
00:51My mind's off on a whole bunch of other tangents.
00:54I'm thinking about a sandwich I had in 1982.
00:58As this nation commemorates 50 years since the end of the war.
01:01So it's safe, right?
01:03I'll explore this fertile land, ask the big questions.
01:06Am I in the right place?
01:08Embrace new experiences, even my own future.
01:12You're smart and tested.
01:15Is there any, you know, good news?
01:18Navigate tight spaces.
01:20I'm not entirely sure how I'm going to get out.
01:22Make some new friends.
01:24Separated at birth.
01:26This is a voyage of discovery, of strange encounters.
01:29This is your whole life in a plant.
01:31And kindred spirits.
01:33An enchanted stroll to one of the most fascinating places on earth.
01:38Welcome to Bill Bailey's Vietnam adventure.
01:41Har Long Bay.
01:42The breathtaking natural wonder of North Vietnam.
01:56This extraordinary archipelago of nearly 2,000 limestone casts spreads out over an area of 130 miles of ocean.
02:11And it is genuinely awe-inspiring and very beautiful.
02:26And it's also been the cradle of civilization in this part of Vietnam.
02:33There's archaeological evidence that points to fishing settlements that go back 18,000 years.
02:39And after that, it became a natural stronghold.
02:44A strategic naval base.
02:47A place to repel invaders.
02:49It's also a place of real Vietnamese identity.
02:54It's threaded through the cultural memory of Vietnam.
02:58It's in the poetry, the songs, even in the royal records of ancient dynasties.
03:04So when you sail through these islands, you're not just sailing through this beautiful, awe-inspiring landscape.
03:13You're sailing through a place of myths and legend.
03:16Any online search for Vietnam will throw up a picture of Har Long Bay.
03:25It's so popular, so known around the world, that I want to see if it lives up to all the hype.
03:31Millions of years in the making, this mystical aquatic enclave forms part of the coastline of northern Vietnam.
03:38And, as you've seen, I'm going to immerse myself in it.
03:42As I embark on an exploration of the emerald green waters around Har Long Bay,
03:49I've boarded a junk boat, with Happy as my guide.
03:53You grew up in Har Long?
03:54Yeah, I grew up in the Lanha Bay.
03:57Yeah?
03:58And before the tour guide, I was a fishing boy.
04:00Oh!
04:01Yeah!
04:02So you're really born and bred here, then?
04:04Mm-hmm.
04:05Well, good, I'm looking forward to it.
04:06Because I'm interested in all sorts of things.
04:08Birds, wildlife.
04:10Do we think we might see something like that?
04:12Yeah.
04:13On these islands?
04:14Or the sea hawk.
04:15Sea hawk?
04:16Yeah.
04:17The birds fly over there, looking for the fish under the water.
04:19We go with the sea hawk.
04:20Sea hawk, right.
04:21Yeah.
04:22But the fishermen, we don't know them.
04:24We don't like them.
04:25Sometimes they try to steal my feet.
04:27They steal your fish, right.
04:28Yeah.
04:30Birds of prey are not the only airborne creatures that tell the story of this region.
04:35So the legend of the creation of Ha Long Bay very much tied up with the dragon, which is
04:45a symbol of power and prosperity in Vietnam.
04:49A long time ago, when Vietnam was just a young country, it was in danger of naval invasion.
04:55So the Jade Emperor in the skies sent down a family of dragons to protect the country.
05:01And they descended from the heavens, casting out their jewels, their emeralds and pearls,
05:08creating this natural fortress to protect Vietnam.
05:12When it was done, the mother dragon was so enamored of the place, she decided to stay,
05:18giving it the name Ha Long, descending dragon.
05:21And actually, if you look at the landscape, it does kind of resemble a submerged dragon's back.
05:32Cruising these glassy waters can be extraordinarily peaceful.
05:36Other times though, not so much.
05:38Hello.
05:42I can have a word with the local council.
05:44I mean, that's just outrageous.
05:46It's just, there's no need for it.
05:49This is more of a sedate paste.
05:51Look at this fellow here.
05:52That's how, that's how fast you should be going.
05:58Just gently pootling along, not sending a wash.
06:03I mean, there's erosion here enough as it is.
06:07Hello.
06:09There you go, you see, that's more like it.
06:12Captain Bailey, bossing about these hooligans on the high seas.
06:16Ah, you...
06:17For **** sake.
06:19Quite a tiny stool now, I'd throw it at them.
06:23Pull steam ahead.
06:26The old wooden junk boats in this bay are a living link to the past, with a long history of use for fishing and trading in Southeast Asia.
06:34But if you want to get right into the landscape, like I'm keen to do, this is your best bet.
06:40Well, I mean, you've seen my attempt earlier on, on the stand-up paddle board, so I'm proud to reveal I can do it, but I recommend a lower centre of gravity at this stage.
06:51This place is just stunningly impressive.
06:56Somewhere that I've wanted to see for years.
07:00And the photos that appear in brochures online, and of course, in a million Instagram fees, just don't do it justice.
07:12You can't really capture the scale of it in a photo.
07:16You have to see it for yourself.
07:18I mean, it's immense.
07:21These huge towers just rising out of an emerald sea.
07:26I mean, it's...
07:28It is like another world.
07:30And also, the forces at work that created this.
07:33It's just monumental.
07:35Rising up in the middle of nowhere are these castes, or limestone pillars.
07:41And if you're on a small vessel like this, you can come ashore.
07:44So you really get a sense of how these castes are formed when you get really up close to it.
07:54Something like between 400 and 250 million years ago, marine life settled to the bottom of the sea.
08:02Remains of shellfish, shells, the remains of dead marine life, and it would just settle to the bottom of the sea, accumulate over eons of time, eventually forming a solid slab of rock.
08:18Limestone.
08:19Limestone.
08:20And something like 100 million years ago, just a mere hop and a skip in geological terms.
08:25Huge powers were brought to bear.
08:29Tectonic uplift.
08:31And these slabs of rock were forced up.
08:35Sea level changed, and they created these towers or castes.
08:41You see them all over the world, limestone forests on land.
08:47You don't often see them in the sea.
08:49These are called drowned casts.
08:51And what makes Harlong Bay unique is the sheer scale of them.
08:56I mean, this is absolutely vast.
08:59And the limestone is gradually being dissolved.
09:03As you can see it, it's like a sort of, you know, like teeth that have been gradually decayed over time.
09:09And that will continue over the next, however, millions of years.
09:14And to see these forces at work, I want to visit one of the many caves in the area.
09:19I'm upgrading from the kneeling board to a little boat and a proper seat, with my guide Happy and a fine oarsman to power us along.
09:28Step by step.
09:30The key is to have a vessel that sits low enough so you can access the caves.
09:35All right, here we go.
09:36Here we go.
09:38That's not very.
09:39That's better.
09:41Oh, beautiful.
09:42Nice, yeah, beautiful.
09:44This is the way to travel.
09:46Yeah.
09:48So we go to one of the most beautiful caves in Vietnam.
09:51Right.
09:52Because the name is Bright Cave.
09:54We are headed to Bright Cave, also called Light and Dark Cave, and with extreme tidal changes every day, you need to have your wits about you.
10:02It's very dark inside and it's very dangerous with the tour.
10:05You know, the important thing when you come into the cave with the low tide, when the water going up and the current is very strong.
10:13When you're tired, you cannot go back and the water puts you more deep.
10:18You're stuck inside.
10:19You're stuck there, yeah.
10:20Yeah, maybe one half day when the water going down, you go outside, maybe forever.
10:25Wow.
10:27Well, I'm glad you're here then.
10:29Yeah, that's why it's really important for the tour.
10:32So when there's people going in there in kayaks, you have to tell them this can be quite treacherous.
10:37Yeah, yeah.
10:38Yeah.
10:40Light Cave is a classic frogmouth shaped cave, with its floor under water and ceiling above sea level.
10:50If you were in here and the tide went up, it would be, the roof would be very low, wouldn't it?
10:56Yeah, yeah.
10:57It would be difficult to negotiate your way up.
10:59And your head will hit the rock.
11:01Yeah.
11:02Because this, for example, this one.
11:04Oh.
11:05Yeah.
11:06When the water going up.
11:07That one goes under the water.
11:08You see that, yeah.
11:09If I'm tired, it will be submerged.
11:12The light cave opens up to a tranquil lagoon, where you can hear a pin drop.
11:19Is that quiet?
11:20It's quiet.
11:21You can only hear the sound of the boat singing.
11:24Yeah.
11:27Just birdsong.
11:28So peaceful, except for the sound of...
11:30A British bloke trying to make contact with the local wildlife.
11:53To give my sea legs a breather,
11:55I'm taking off for a day trip to the secluded Viet Hai village on Cat Bar Island,
12:00hidden deep in the national park.
12:02It's very peaceful here.
12:04You know, the...
12:05Obviously, the...
12:06The way that the formations are forms this sort of natural harbour.
12:12So, you get these anchorages in some of the in...
12:16The sort of the inlets, which are extremely calm.
12:18It's just like a mirror here today.
12:22But yeah, I mean, there's...
12:23These islands, they vary hugely in size.
12:26Some from, you know, just a single tower,
12:30to this particular island, Viet Hai,
12:33which is actually much bigger and can sustain a village.
12:39And a road, brilliantly.
12:40So...
12:42It's good to be on dry land for a bit.
12:44Accessible only by boat,
12:45this remote village is tucked away from the main attraction of Harlong Bay.
12:50And en route, something has caught my eye.
12:52It's what I love about the tropics,
12:57is that even the common butterflies are extraordinarily beautiful.
13:02You know, this one's just a common swallowtail,
13:06but it's got these gossamer wings
13:09and beautiful markings on the lower wings
13:13and these sort of teardrop-like swallowtails.
13:16And this bright red abdomen as well.
13:18And it's just a riot of colour.
13:22And these are everywhere.
13:23They've been following me the whole way.
13:29Joining me is another human resident of the island
13:32who's going to show me around the village.
13:34Hello.
13:35Hello, hi, Bill.
13:36Hey.
13:37How are you?
13:38How are you doing?
13:39Yeah.
13:40All right, just part in.
13:41Goodbye.
13:42Hey, I'm Bill.
13:43What's your name?
13:44My name is Tang.
13:45Tang?
13:46Good to meet you.
13:47Tang has seen a lot of change in Viet Hai over the years.
13:50How long has there been a village here?
13:53Uh...
13:54Like, really long time ago,
13:56but start from, like, 100 years ago.
13:59The story goes that Tang's ancestors were fishermen
14:02who encountered a big storm,
14:04so they took refuge and settled on Cat Bar Island.
14:08The Vietnam War interrupted things,
14:10but they've retained the traditional way of life ever since.
14:13Here.
14:14Oh, look, there we go.
14:16The village has adopted a tourist attraction,
14:18which at the very least keeps the fish entertained.
14:22We're about to experience a fish massage,
14:24which involves reacquainting myself
14:26with what has become an old friend in Vietnam.
14:30Oh, look, a tiny stool.
14:32My favourite.
14:35If I'm doing this, so is my guide, Tang.
14:38The tiny, nibbling therapists await,
14:40ready to exfoliate my feet in a mildly alarming manner.
14:45And they're extra famished.
14:47We don't give them too much food.
14:49Right.
14:50So they're hungry.
14:51So then when the foot goes in, they're straight over.
14:54Yeah.
14:55Oh, I see.
14:57They're hungry.
14:59Tang leaves the way.
15:00He's keeping me company in this tickle torture.
15:04Oh, yeah.
15:05Right, I'm going in.
15:07One, two, three.
15:08Full foot immersion.
15:09Gah!
15:10Ticking!
15:11Woo-hoo!
15:12Yee-haw!
15:13Gah!
15:14It's why I said, like, they cannot keep, like, for the long times.
15:21Oh.
15:22No.
15:23They're so hungry.
15:24Oh!
15:25Oh!
15:26Oh!
15:27Gah!
15:29There's someone that can, like, swimming in here.
15:32Really?
15:33Yeah.
15:34What, they've got their whole body in?
15:35Oh.
15:36It's all done.
15:37I don't know.
15:38I don't know about that.
15:39Ten seconds is about enough.
15:40That's all I can stand.
15:41Well, fill your boots, lads.
15:44Oh!
15:47It tickles.
15:48It tickles!
15:49While the practice of having fish nibble away at your dead skin isn't a cultural tradition,
15:53the doctor fish, or garrarufa fish, are supposed to make you feel refreshed and rejuvenated.
16:00We will eat them later.
16:03They taste a bit of feet, though, that's the other thing.
16:05Mm-hmm.
16:06It's like being attacked by a gang of aquatic dentists.
16:09Oddly therapeutic.
16:10Count us down from ten.
16:11Ten.
16:12Nine.
16:13Eight.
16:14Seven.
16:15Three.
16:16Two.
16:17One.
16:18Two, one.
16:19Three, two, one.
16:20Go.
16:21Oh.
16:22Oh.
16:23Oh, I'm not sure about that.
16:25But, I mean, my feet do feel a lot cleaner, I've got to say.
16:28Mm-hmm.
16:29So, I suppose there is some benefit.
16:30Three, two.
16:31After getting close and personal with these tiny nibblers, I felt it was only fair that
16:40I meet their larger cousins, who sustain more than a few softest tourists.
16:46My guide, Happy, is taking me to a floating fishing village out on Ha Long Bay.
16:53I'm Bill.
16:54Ah.
16:55Good to meet you.
16:56Yeah.
16:57Good to meet you.
16:58And have a little look around.
16:59Villagers like Mr. Tum mainly earn their living by fishing.
17:03It's a tough life.
17:04The stories of typhoons and a life lived entirely at the mercy of the elements.
17:10The first, the fishermen, they kept the fish on the sea and lived on the ocean.
17:16But when the ocean is very dangerous, when the storm and typhoon.
17:18Right.
17:19They come here, you see, around is a mountain.
17:22It's a cover for them.
17:23Right.
17:24And they live here with a family.
17:26So, they actually live out here?
17:28Yeah.
17:29On the platform?
17:30Yeah.
17:31So, do they have electricity that comes here?
17:34In the path, they use electric by the battery.
17:38But after the storm, the edge drop is broken.
17:41Now they use the solar panel.
17:43Proof that even here, the modern world is catching up with this ancient tradition.
17:50We have the house over there, the bedroom, everything.
17:56The house over there, the feet.
17:58The children, they live here.
17:59And they go to school by taxi boat.
18:01They go to school.
18:02Yeah.
18:03Yeah, look like this.
18:04A school by taxi boat?
18:05Taxi boat, like this.
18:06This one, the maximum 10 people.
18:08Right.
18:09The children go to school every day.
18:10And the school's on the, in the island.
18:12Yeah, yeah.
18:13No school here.
18:14Yeah.
18:15The morning, the taxi boat take the children from here to the pier.
18:18And then from the pier, go to school by taxi motorbike.
18:21My, my boat and bike.
18:23Right, motorbike, yeah.
18:24Taxi boat and then taxi motorbike.
18:25That is a, that is a fun way.
18:27Yeah.
18:28Fun.
18:29For being a kid, that's fun.
18:30Getting on a boat and a motorbike every morning.
18:33Mr. Tam has lived a long life on the floating village.
18:36What age is he going to retire, do you think?
18:38How many years ago?
18:39How many years ago?
18:40How many years ago?
18:41How many years ago?
18:42How many years ago?
18:43He went to retire at 60, 60 years old.
18:4760, that's it?
18:48Yeah.
18:49But now he's 63.
18:50Yeah.
18:51He, he working until he, until he feel tired.
18:55Yeah.
18:56Yeah.
18:57I know.
18:58Good health.
18:59That's it.
19:00You look, you're strong.
19:01Yeah.
19:02Yeah.
19:03He told me he retired when, when he tired.
19:05Yeah.
19:06But he knows Sean, now he's sure he can working for more money.
19:08Yeah.
19:09Look at his face.
19:10Wow.
19:11It looks all right.
19:12No need to retire yet.
19:13Yeah.
19:14Yeah.
19:15He's strong, young customer here.
19:16Oh yeah.
19:17He's fine.
19:18No hair though.
19:19No, same.
19:20A little similar, yeah.
19:22Same with me, that's the problem.
19:23Yeah, same.
19:27All right.
19:28Okay.
19:29See you later.
19:31In a classic scene from history.
19:33Goodbye.
19:34Two old geezers set off in a fishing boat.
19:37See you in a few days.
19:38With hopes of a great catch and tales of those that got away.
19:42It's a very homemade boat.
19:44It's very lovely.
19:46And I have ultimate faith in this at the top.
19:49I'm off to, I'm not sure where, to see net fishing up close.
19:54So, all we've got is, we've got a little net.
19:57We're going to try and see if we can try our luck in the waters of Harlong Bay.
20:04Mr. Tom is expertly navigating the boat with one oar and at the same time laying out a net.
20:12Obviously this is something that he's been doing since he was a little kid.
20:19So the net is out, set as a little float over there, a little weighted float on one end of the net.
20:27No fish today, but plenty of stories from Mr. Tom.
20:34He noticed a strange.
20:36The race during the day.
20:37Then we hit the lake.
20:38Then we start
20:42the event last night I am S6.
20:44Then we start
20:45early, back.
20:47Then we go look him,
20:49we have theİndrying family to go to the priorit Сейчас.
20:53Learning about life in a floating village isn't always about the catch.
20:56Especially when you don't catch anything.
20:59In this case, not even a story about the one that got away.
21:01one that got away i take full responsibility for the failed mission now there's nothing biting
21:14we are abandoning ship never mind
21:18despite no fish mr tom has invited me to his house to cook up something
21:22he's prepared earlier you want it all chopped oh quite fine like that okay
21:28an upgrade of sorts from fish to fresh mussels on the menu two ball blokes on a floating platform
21:35two baldies hey what do you want to do with these yeah oh you want to i'll do that you do the clan
21:45i'll do this what was that cooking show two fat ladies two ball blokes try to find cures for baldness
21:54through cooking there you go there's that's a cooking show for you whatever you cook whatever
21:58you chop up has to go on your head as well so what's going on here salt we've got salt in here
22:04we've got some chopped onion a bit of chili
22:10a bit of garlic
22:13oh that looks good this doesn't get much fresher
22:18they look great smell really good yes can you tell him that we should start a cooking show two
22:30bold men on a boat yes
22:36plating up on the water's edge this is the moment we've been waiting for
22:40we have something here this one for the party more fun
22:51all right okay now wait wait wait i know how to do this yeah
22:54more
23:08that's right
23:09hey this is so good yeah delicious i mean no you have one you have one come on come on eat eat eat
23:17eat this one every day oh right oh okay in that case i want i'm not going to say no
23:26this is delicious i want to tell them this um what what a real treat this is this is amazing
23:32you know to have food like this prepared by mr tamiya fisherman in this place what a
23:40what a treat it's amazing yeah thank you very much for me
23:47these were in the sea not long ago this is about as fresh as you can get
23:51they were there and then yeah really fresh delicious
23:57and to know more about our recipes go to our website two bald men on a boat.com
24:02you know look you with him look like brother oh there we go look you see second act you see
24:14separated at birth
24:27oh this is the life
24:32oh
24:35as i navigate my way around this place of otherworldly beauty
24:40there's a myriad of different islands to explore nearly 2000 in fact in this gigantic archipelago
24:51i found a ride on cat bar island to take me from the town into the national park
24:56to head inside a subterranean world
24:58the towering limestone casts of harlong bay are iconic dramatic features but what's equally impressive
25:09is what you can't see inside these islands are huge cave systems some as cavernous as cathedrals
25:17some yet to be discovered as a welcome reprieve from the heat of the humidity i'm venturing inside
25:26the cool darkness of trung trang cave the largest in vietnam and the third largest limestone cave system
25:34in the world there's these stalagmites
25:38uh incredibly dramatic features the vaulted beauty of these rock formations throws up all manner of
25:45weird and wonderful shapes that feeds the imagination this one here looks like a vulture
25:53punched on top of a tree stump
25:56that's what i'm seeing that's a bulldog with a trifle in its mouth
26:01i had quite a lot of cheese last night
26:06maybe it's the altitude i guess slightly trippy this is absolutely amazing incredible incredible sort of
26:13features that have been carved out by this chemical weathering you know the rain
26:20contains a little bit of carbon dioxide so it sort of it dissolves over many many thousands of years
26:27it dissolves the limestone creates all these features these crevices cracks and eventually
26:34huge cave systems like this this vast cavern also provided a vital function during the american war
26:43it was a command post and hospital providing shelter from u.s bombardment
26:51it's like crawling through a giant brain made up of billions of cells
26:59oh that's quite look at that
27:01the shadow puppetry
27:18maybe it's my neanderthal dna but i could live in a place like this i could amuse myself for hours
27:23i mean that looks like a church organ
27:28ah look at that
27:32i mean they look like petrified bats
27:34i mean something just moved up there
27:38i saw something flicker
27:41most probably a little bat
27:42i've got to say these
27:43i've got to say these stalactites
27:47these almost look like installations they're man-made
27:51in fact actually these remind me a little bit of the designs of hr geiger
27:57for the original alien films i wonder if he ever got inspiration for these from things like this
28:03it seems the petrified bats have come alive is this a dream
28:13i need a closer look and like the intrepid traveler i am i have come prepared for anything
28:23coffee sweets mint
28:25coffee clothes two hats
28:33okay
28:37these are griffin's leaf-nosed bats and they're found only in vietnam
28:42and only at two places one of which is here on cat bar island obviously it's during the day so
28:47they're all kind of just snoozing
28:49but i can just i can make out their features quite well see their little ears and they're just
28:58sort of a little bit of movement they found a great spot here
29:06islands are these little laboratories of evolution where creatures can evolve
29:13free from predators free from competition
29:15so each one of these casts individually can sustain a multitude of species
29:32just scratching the surface of the extensive cave system here gives you a glimpse into the
29:37geological wonder of the region but if for some reason the majesty of the natural world is not your
29:43thing fear not but there's much to enjoy in the culinary delights of harlong city
29:57an englishman in harlong city i'm an englishman in harlong city
30:04oh you probably can't move walk out in the middle of this you get mullered what
30:14i'm feeling confident to make a crossing i've come a long way from ho chi minh city where crossing
30:20the road was a daunting prospect i've certainly noticed that uh they're quite assertive here in the
30:25north there's no quarter given
30:27yes you have to be bold when crossing the road here it's no point being english and polite no after
30:35you no no after you no please you go hey you have to just go for it
30:43so i could twirl it note that nobody stops here for pedestrians on crossings
30:48this is clearly the way across the road here you've got to have a an angle an extra hustle feel like a
30:58matador going out in the full ring nailed it in the last city of my tour of vietnam i feel the closest
31:06yet to becoming a local but i do feel that i've earned the right to do something quite normal and that
31:13is nip to the post office and pick up a package back in ho chi minh city i mailed one of my drawings
31:21to myself of one of my first impressions of vietnam and now i'm here to pick it up to see if those first
31:28impressions are still as strong well let's made it here my drawing of a lotus and uh i was trying to
31:41draw something that seemed to encapsulate my impressions of vietnam and as if to reinforce
31:50that point right here under the sign that says vietnam post look at that what is there
31:59lotus so i might be on to something the little lotus first appealed to me back in the early stages
32:08of my journey it was in the center of a roundabout in ho chi minh city and it was a huge fountain in the
32:17shape of a lotus and i just like the shape of it it was just sort of aesthetically very pleasing oh come
32:24in so the lotus flower continues its life here in halong not reborn as such but repurposed you know that
32:33lotus often grows out of mud so it sort of represents that from hardship to prosperity which is very
32:40much the story of modern vietnam in a short period of time so i might just finish this off actually i'd
32:47started the sketch in one part of vietnam and i'm going to finish it off here and fast forward to the
32:53final creation a little drawing that may make it into a new book sometime soon
33:06from artistic expression to the far more pressing matter of lunch there's a scent of sausage in the air
33:13and i'm on a mission to find it what are they i need to know i need to find out i just buy one and to
33:20find out i got a thousand dong is that for one is that right i don't even know what it is but i'm i'm game
33:35good
33:38some kind of delicious thing i'm guessing it's some sort of fried rice flour arrangement but it's very good
33:46but two thousand dom i mean you can't go wrong can you
33:54delicious but i still have no idea what it was either way it was an appetizer and i'm craving the
34:01main course well that actually wasn't what i'm looking for uh i'm looking for something a little bit
34:08more substantial which is a local treat a squid sausage and uh i believe one can be procured in
34:16this locale let's have a look hello hello you have squid squid sausage i think i think i'm in the right
34:26place this is an interesting combination of translation and getting the right money
34:36an opportunity to prove to you that despite appearances i'm actually a bit of a tech wizard
34:42i've got this app on the phone which if you hold your camera over the
34:47menu or any language it will read it and translate it onto the screen so it is very simple okay that's
34:56got squid sticky rice it says sticky rice special sticky rice oh hang on meat succulents i'm not sure
35:07the translation app is quite accurate because one of these dishes it says is a tongue tunnel i didn't
35:15even know tongues had a tunnel another one is stomach stew with pepper well i've had tripe before now so
35:22that's no stretch stomach stew tongue tunnel oh grilled squid this might be it here we go
35:33go panko zooksig mong kong oh yes well clearly you do this looks absolutely fantastic
35:57one of the great delights of vietnam is the street food now this is a local speciality this is squid
36:10sausage and why wouldn't you make a sausage out of squid i mean you can make the sausage out of anything
36:17it squid is a is a big favorite in vietnam in fact people come to harlong haifong cap vial and just for
36:29the squid i do feel these are not technically sausages they are shaped more like squid cakes but
36:34they're so good i'm not quite great delicious so fresh straight out the sea
36:47in the harlong bay region water is a common theme and it's the essential element in one of the area's
36:55most eccentric and unique art forms i'm off to the theater
37:04this is tsao tuk water puppet theater where local stories are brought to vivid life on a semi-submerged stage
37:13i've never seen anything like this before this is extraordinary backstage my guide kim explains
37:22how physically demanding the work is for the puppeteers like true on who stand in a pool of water
37:28to maneuver the handmade wooden puppets from behind a screen so as you can see this is a water buffalo
37:34yeah and a farmer yeah and they're going out to the farm together this figure is made of some made
37:43of foam and some of fig wood right so it's light and can float on it can float i see yeah yeah you see
37:52the board under here yeah this part will be underwater so you won't see it when you're out there
37:59there oh there yeah that's how they move that's great
38:17it's fantastic i feel very at home here backstage in a theater this is my natural habitat
38:25see right now i'm getting excited for the show and that's what i get there you see everyone's just
38:31getting just getting worked up the people are coming in the auditorium's filling up with a sense of
38:37anticipation for the crowd welcome to my world and it's showtime
38:43the legend of harlong bay the descending dragon begins farmers and villagers face northern invaders
38:57and call the dragon mother to fight them off to keep the peace it's a celebration of patriotism
39:03resilience and the belief in divine intervention during the 12th century lee dynasty water puppetry went
39:10from the peasant folk art to a prestigious show for royalty
39:19the puppeteers breathe life into the whole thing they're working with inanimate objects
39:23but they really come alive
39:36it looks chaotic out front but out back even more so i've been invited backstage to see the puppeteers in
39:44action i mean it's so ingenious and it's unique the puppeteers are up to their
39:56wastes in water with waders on gloves operating the puppets from backstage
40:04which are then being seen in front of these screens but it's amazingly lifelike the movements
40:15they know how to make it look very real yeah yeah they really keep bringing them to life you know
40:22these because they're wooden puppets so they haven't got much expression but that that
40:29is it all of that comes from the movement yeah look at the little ducklings they're they're about to come
40:39out too oh yeah the little ducks
40:44so sweet what an absolutely brilliant show i love the music and it's heartwarming to see an old
40:50tradition that nearly died out now thriving and fitting that it's an artistic reflection
40:57of the semi-submerged nature of this stunning corner of vietnam
41:05time for a final paddle
41:14well i'm coming to the end of my time here in halong bay and i have to say this place is just
41:22otherworldly i've seen photographs of it pictures online about a million instagram photos but not one
41:33does it justice it's only when you get up close to it you can really appreciate it
41:40and it's one of those places in the world that genuinely makes you just gape in wonderment
41:46and laugh in disbelief that such a place even exists there's a line in the famous novel by graham
41:56green set in vietnam a quiet american and it says i can't say what made me fall in love with vietnam
42:03everything is so intense the color the taste and i have to say that i agree that chimes very much with my experience
42:15the mosaic of colors in the market the deep green of the rice terrace the gold and reds of the pagodas
42:28and the taste oh my word i mean the food is just astonishing every meal
42:35has zing and snap it's like a firework of flavors bursting on your tongue and i have had some extraordinary
42:45experiences here there's no doubt um a lot of firsts actually foraging for herbs in the forest
42:55taking a herbal bath in a barrel i took a bath in a barrel i mean that's a first
43:00jamming with vietnamese folk rock bands luteists uh ancient bamboo pipers
43:12every one of those experiences i will remember i think forever but there's one thing i disagree
43:18with graham green on and that is that i can say what made me fall in love with vietnam it's very simple
43:28it's the people cheers people who have shown me nothing but kindness and hospitality and an
43:35extraordinarily warm welcome they've invited me into their homes i've cooked with them had a laugh with
43:45them and the greatest compliment i think i can give to the vietnamese people is this
43:51this throughout my entire time here dave made me feel at home
44:21make me feel at home
44:38so
44:40so
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