We booked seats in a passanger van (commonly referred to as a "limousine"), which took us door-to-door from our hotel in the bustling Old Quarter to a quiet guest house in Tam Cốc village. The ride took about three hours, including a stop-over at a souvineer shop and restaurant.

Hoa Lư is home to many tourist villages surrounding the historic caves, temples, rivers and limestone mountains that Ninh Bình is famous for.

Our first stay in Hoa Lư was the delightful Tam Cốc village. From here, we were able to rent bicycles to tour the village, and visit several temples and tourist activities.

We then went to the nearby Hang Múa (Mua Caves), with the lying dragon steps up to the mountain peak.

We also toured the nearby Tràng An caves and temples, which were busier than Tam Cốc but still a great day out.

On the last day in Hoa Lư we went to Chùa Bái Đính (Bai Din Temple), which is a historic temple complex fully restored and extended with new temples, tourist facilities, and thousands of Buddhas.

Hoa Lư was beautiful, we wished we could have stayed longer, especially in Tam Cốc village. However it was time for the next step of our journey.

The next day was a travel day; taking a limousine back to Hà Nội and then a coach to Sa Pa.

The trip back to Hà Nội was straightforward, but we were really looking forward to the coach ride, we splashed out for the Sao Viet "VIP" Cabins, which were really nice.

After a full day in transit, we arrived at Sa Pa and checked in to our hotel for the night.

Settling in to Sa Pa, we visited the local restaurants and witnessed the night life.

After a full day of walking we arrived at Tình Hồng Homestay, where we had a cabin to ourselves.

That evening, we stayed with our guide's family, who fed us a delightful dinner and let us stay in their guest bed.

We walked until lunch time (just a short trip around the Tả Van mountains), returned to Mai's place, and then rode two-wheelers back into Sa Pa.