Restless in Hanoi, we debated where we should head next. When planning our trip, we had decided that we would skip Ha Long Bay. Magnificent as it may be, the cruises are expensive, their quality is hit or miss, and our idea of hell is being trapped on a small boat with strangers and overly enthusiastic tour guides. However, the Australian we met the night before raved about it and convinced us to at least consider our options. We shopped around at a few of the tour operators in Old  ...