MONDAY, JANUARY 17, 2011 | 5THE GLOBAL EDITION OF THE NEW YORK TIMES. . . .

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Visit the Tides of Time Web site for videos,interviews and more information on World Heritagemarine sites: whc.unesco.org/tidesoftime/

T ourists come to Ha Long Bay to sailslowly past its strangely figuredislands and gaze in wonderment. For

here resides the largest single collection ofunique limestone formations called karsts.Some take the shapes of birds or animals,others resemble fish, yet others are morepeculiar, even surreal. Most are covered bythick jungle vegetation, and many are linkedwith local names or legends. More than1,500 of these rock pillars, jutting out of thestill sea with their odd silhouettes and nu-merous grottoes, are scattered across theGulf of Tonkin, 165 kilometers (103 miles)east of Hanoi in northeastern Vietnam.

The site, which covers 150,000 hectares(580 square miles) near the Chinese border,is known worldwide and was inscribed, orig-inally for its scenic values, on Unesco’sWorld Heritage List in 1994. When the gov-ernment of Vietnam presented a case for itsuniversal geological value, the World Herit-age Committee inscribed the site accordingto these criteria in 2000.

Its karst possesses a diversity of formsthat provide data for the study of how lime-stone develops. What particularly distin-guishes Ha Long Bay is how its jagged fea-tures reveal the sea’s invasive power tocarve and change. Though similar habitatsappear elsewhere, for example in Thailandor Malaysia, Ha Long Bay tells the story ofmarine effects on limestone karst better

than any other, an evolution that has takenthe tropical climate 20 million years toachieve.

Ha Long Bay is host to a diversity of eco-systems, including reefs, swamp forests,mangroves, freshwater lakes and sandbeaches. These are home to hundreds ofspecies of fish and mollusks. Antelope,monkeys and iguanas roam on some of theislands.

Though not inscribedas a mixed site, Ha LongBay, or the Bay of theDescending Dragon,also has cultural value.Its waters have been the backdrop of histor-ic naval battles with Chinese and Mongol in-vaders.

Evidence of human occupancy in theislands’ grottoes, or karst caves, confirmsthat people have used the area for 10,000years. Most of these caves have stalactitesand stalagmites. Many are easily access-ible; some can be reached only by rowboat.Others are big enough to hold hundreds ofonlookers.

Anybody who visits for the first time isstruck by its natural beauty, says KishoreRao, deputy director of Unesco’s World Her-itage Centre.

‘‘Especially when you view it in earlymorning, late in the evening with the settingsun, or shrouded in mist, it’s a magical

place,’’ he says. But what also is striking, headds, is how close it lies to the huge urbansprawl of Ha Long City. ‘‘The difference andthe contrast between the two are amazing.’’

Ha Long City is the entry point to Ha LongBay, and it has mushroomed into an urbanagglomeration that is creating a strain on HaLong Bay’s ecosystems.

The site has been heavily visited, notablysince the end of the Vi-etnam war, both bytourists and localsseeking a water-borneholiday. A popular daytrip from Hanoi, it has

become a must-see, and today millions visitannually.

Junk boats and cruise ships run regularlythrough the bay, offering overnight stays.Tourism facilities exist on some of the is-lands, and the caves are well presented forthe visitor.

Notes Rao: ‘‘Though bigger limestonegrottoes can be found in other World Herit-age sites, like Gunung Mulu National Park inMalaysia, these, which you can enter fromthe sea, are unique. The sheer numbers thatcome add a lot of pressure, and this re-quires proper management.’’

Karst formations are fragile, and theirunderground ecosystems are particularlyso. This makes controlling the area’s densehuman attendance a considerable

challenge. Unesco intervenes whenever itsenses management problems.

For example, when the local administra-tion authorized use of speedboats and jetskis, the World Heritage Centre recommen-ded they be banned, and they were. Whenconstruction projects were unveiled, Unesco’sWorld Heritage Committee, in a 2007 de-cision, requested formally that the authorities‘‘cancel plans to develop a tourism resort onLam Bo island and major infrastructure in theCua Van floating village.’’ Recalls Rao: ‘‘To thecredit of the Vietnamese government, theyabandoned those ideas, too.’’

It is World Heritage Committee policy topersist in monitoring all sites. This is why aWorld Heritage Committee follow-up decision,two years later, noted ‘‘the need to continueto protect Lam Bo from tourism development,and to ensure that revised plans for ecotour-ism are not implemented unless supportedby a thorough environmental assessment.’’

The 2009 document expressed ‘‘seriousconcern that the outstanding universalvalue of the property remains under pres-sure due to tourism, fishing and other activ-ities within its boundaries and from develop-ment projects in surrounding areas.’’Unesco asked the government to ensurethat ‘‘no development having impact on theoutstanding universal value of the propertytakes place.’’ What is more, the documentrequested that the Vietnamese governmentsubmit a ‘‘state of conservation’’ report onthe property by Feb. 1, 2011.

Becoming part of World Heritage entailsserious responsibilities for a host nation.Here, as at other sites, the World HeritageCommittee’s ongoing presence continues tomake a difference.

‘‘It is really a challenge to be able to ad-minister this site for future generations,’’says Rao. ‘‘But that’s what managing aWorld Heritage site is all about.’’ J.J.

The World Heritage Conventioncame about through the merging oftwo separate movements thatsought to preserve both cultural andnatural sites. Unesco launched acampaign to save Abu Simbel andPhilae, two cultural treasures ofancient Egypt, in 1959, after thedecision to build the Aswan dam,which would have submerged them.Fifty countries united to dismantleand move the temples, thenreassemble them on dry ground.With the world’s attention nowengaged, a 1965 conference inWashington, D.C. called for a ‘‘WorldHeritage Trust’’ to combineconservation of natural and culturalsites. The Convention Concerningthe Protection of World Cultural andNatural Heritage, its full title, wasadopted in November 1972. J.J.

Created in 1931 for polo players,Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Reverso had aunique characteristic: its revolvingcase allowed sportsmen to flip thedial around, exposing the metalback. This protected the crystal fromshocks during matches.

The Reverso also brought anotherinnovation: this case backing couldbe engraved to the wearer’spersonal specifications.

The archives at the Swissmanufacture house hundreds ofReversos that have been hand-engraved to their owners’ desires.Throughout the years, Reversos havebeen hand-engraved with initials,family coats-of-arms or portraits inminiature.

Jaeger-LeCoultre’s virtuosocraftspersons engraved the familycrest on the Reverso belongingto King Edward VIII of England andset the itinerary of Amelia Earhart’sfirst flight from Mexico to New Yorkon hers.

This involves hundreds of hoursof exceptionally close work, but it isperformed routinely by the skilledartisans at Jaeger-LeCoultre.

The resulting personalrelationships with a unique timepiecehave made the Reverso an icon.

In 2011, for its 80th birthday, theSwiss manufacture will roll out newversions of the iconic timepiece, allof which update the originaltechnology and aesthetics whileremaining true to their roots.

For its new line, these masterjewelers, engravers and enamelers— all truly decorative artists — willoffer an even wider range ofpersonalization possibilities,guaranteeing that each Reversoremains an exclusive, one-of-a-kindtimepiece, writing the next chapterin its legend.

Experience the legend of theReverso in a virtual exhibition on theJaeger-LeCoultre Web site atwww.jaeger-lecoultre.com. J.J.

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New chapter begins for an iconic timepiece

H a Long Bay is one of those rareplaces where the name could notbe more apropos. ‘‘Descending

Dragon’’ is the English translation, a refer-ence to the serrated cliffs and ridges thatframe Vietnam’s most fabled coast. Itdoesn’t take much to imagine how the bayarea got that tag: the bizarre, deeply erodedtopography often resembles a giant dragoncavorting in the Gulf of Tonkin.

All told, the bay boasts more than 1,600limestone islands, islets and sea stacks,some of them barely big enough for a singleperson to stand on and others twice the sizeof Manhattan. Millions of years of wind andwave action have carved them into myriadshapes and sizes — both above and belowground.

About three hours by road from Hanoi

and one hour via hydrofoil from Hai Phong,the waterfront area of Bai Chay, part of HaLong City on the bay’s northern fringe, is thejumping-off point for most bay area adven-tures.

Bai Chay has numerous hotels and adock area from which the majority of HaLong Bay trips depart.

The high-rise Novotel, with its dreamy bayviews, is generally considered the town’sbest digs.

Nearly everyone who ventures to thearea gets out onto the water somehow,most of them on the ubiquitous junks thatfeature on nearly every Ha Long Bay post-card, but an ever-growing number onkayaks, too.

The Hanoi branch of Active Travel Asiaorganizes three- and four-day guided kayak

expeditions on Ha Long Bay, and a five-daytrip that combines kayaking with jungletrekking in Cat Ba National Park on the largeeponymous island on the bay’s southernside. Overnights and most meals are on-board a junk anchored somewhere inside ornear the World Heritage Site.

‘‘We are able to explore the open seaand many hidden lagoons and stalagmitecaves that are difficult to access by any oth-er means,’’ says Jenny Nguyen of ATA.‘‘Kayak experience would be appreciated.However, if you are a beginner, our guide cancustomize the route to meet your ability.’’

At the other end of the bay area, one canboard sumptuous junks, like the HalongViolet, for two- or three- day cruises. The ves-sel is outfitted in ‘‘Indochine’’ style, with re-production 1930s décor. Activities includekayaking, cave exploration, visiting secludedbeaches and onboard tai chi sessions.

Diving is also possible, but not yet welldeveloped compared to farther south inVietnam. Underwater visibility generallyruns up to seven to nine meters (23-30feet), and during the main scuba season(April-December), water temperatures av-erage 26 to 29 degrees Celsius (79-84Fahrenheit).

For those more terrestrially inclined,there is plenty to do on land: hiking, rockclimbing, wildlife watching and caving.

Hang Dau Go is the most famous cavern,an underground wonderland of copiousstalagmites, stalactites and other geologicaloddities. Hang Sung Sot, on another bay is-land, has an enormous — 30-meter-high —main chamber.

Cua Van is the largest of four floating vil-lages anchored around the bay. The 600 in-habitants make their living from fishing,aquaculture and showing visitors aroundtheir unusual maritime homes.

‘‘It’s possible to visit Ha Long Bay at anytime of year,’’ says Nguyen. ‘‘But the besttime is from October through April. Althoughduring the winter months, the weather canbe cool and overcast with low visibility. Dur-ing the summer months, temperatures riseand storms are more likely.’’

J.R.Y.

SPOTLIGHT | Ha Long Bay

So much fragile beauty, carved by the sea into limestone

EXPLORING | Getting into the water

Energetic or leisurely boating around the bay

History of World Heritage

Vigilance is requiredto preserve the beautyof Ha Long Bay’s karstsand the diversityof its ecosystems

Ecosystems include reefs,swamp forests, mangroves

and freshwater lakes

Junks navigate amongthe limestone formationsof Ha Long Bay, which is inscribedfor its scenic and geological valueon the World Heritage List.

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