A Honeymoon in Asia

Hong Kong, Sanjan, Vietnam and Singapore

What place could you ask for your honeymoon than a cruise around Vietnam, and Sanjan an Island in China. Not only the luxury of being pampered on the cruise ship but the chance to get a taste of parts of Asia. I say a taste because cruising only gives you the chance to spend limited time in the country. Most times that sample of selected parts of a country are enough to wet your appetite and then into the bucket list goes a country to re-visit.

We flew into Hong Kong where we would have tonight’s in a hotel prior to boarding our ship, The Ovation of the Seas, one of the Royal Caribbean fleet.

We were taken to our hotel on Kowloon Island, now time to enjoy a little of Hong Kong. First things first though we needed food. After walking through numerous streets we chose a restaurant, all looked nice but oh dear we didn’t speak their language and yes correct, they didn’t speak ours. After much of sign language, smiles and almost charades we gave in and allowed the smiley waiter to choose for us. The food was tasty even though we had no idea what we were eating. The hustle and bustle of the streets and island was inviting so we set off to explore. Certainly an evening to remember.

The next morning we set off to make the most of our full day in Hong Kong. The weather wasn’t too kind but the Big Red Bus and bright yellow free waterproof poncho did the trick, glamorous not but it did keep out the rain. We jumped on and off the bus to see more of the sites, including temples, fair grounds, and the Chinese Junk boats known as Aqua Luna. The next trip was up to Victoria heights on the cable car. Excited to reach the top we were very disappointed, the clouds were so low there was no view to see. Most amusing, especially as a professional photographer, were the photographers touting for business had put a backdrop up of what the view should be to take portraits …………….. initiative or what. That evening we took the opportunity to have dinner on the then, famous Jumbo Floating Restaurant. Yet another iconic tourist favourite is no longer, thank goodness we had the chance to experience this famous restaurant.

The next stop of our tour was Sanyan a small Island off China.  The weather was a little kinder and we had the opportunity to just walk around and take in the sites. The skies became quite dramatic as the sun started to set; this didn’t appear to interfere with the boat family having their gathering, maybe their evening meal.   The local people were chatty and smiling as they went about their business, what a charming island.

On to Vietnam a country I was excited to taste and certainly wasn’t disappointed.  Saigon was just as expected, fast and furious.  Extreme sport of the day was trying to cross the road and land the opposite side in one piece.  Dan Hang was a beautiful coastal town plenty to see and enjoy.  Eating local food in the markets and trying the wares of the street vendors all added to the experience.

The final destination was Singapore, a true contrast to the previous destinations and certainly one of my top 15 destinations to visit. The amazing floral exhibitions were a delight to see, the experience of the capsule similar to London Eye gave me the opportunity to capture some interesting images through the rain. To top it all any girls dream shopping malls with designer shops everywhere!