Mekong Delta
Trip Start
Nov 09, 2010
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80
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Trip End
Dec 12, 2011
Mekong Delta, Vietnam
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
The start of the trip from Ho Chi Minh City set off along the Saigon River which is full of wooden & corrugated houses built on stilts over the river. The river was full of rubbish which appeared to come from the area where the stilt houses were and reeds were floating everywhere. There were many barges full of sand which looked like they were about to sink as they were so full and sat so low in the water. We saw many locals in wooden boats full of pineapples, coconuts and bananas going to market. The river, as we have found everywhere we've been, seems to be teaming with life.
It took about 3 hours by boat to reach the Mekong Delta and we were surprised at just how wide it is in parts. We stopped off at several different islands to visit various local factories including a coconut candy making factory where we got to sample the toffee, a bee keeping farm, a rice mill and a rice noodle making factory.
We had lunch on one of the islands where they had free bikes you could use to ride around the local villages. We jumped at the chance and set off. The scenery was beautiful with small canals, palm trees and local village life. Everyone was so friendly shouting hello and waving to us along the way.
That evening we drove to Can Tho which is a small town in the Mekong Delta where we stayed for the night. There was a local market and street food stalls laid out along the riverside, but not a lot else. In the morning we caught another small boat to the Floating Market, which was great to see. All the locals head to the same spot in the river every day to sell their goods and the best time to go is first thing in the morning. There are all shapes and sizes of wooden boats selling different things, from fruit and veg to woven baskets and anchors. The boats each have a pole sticking up from the front of their boats from which they hang a sample of whatever they are selling (i.e. a pineapple, potato, coconut, melon etc.). Some locals trade goods instead of paying. Small boats kept coming up to us trying to sell fruit and drinks. It’s a fantastic place to just sit and watch life.
On the bus from the Mekong Delta back to Ho Chi Minh City we travelled through all the rice fields which the Mekong Delta is famous for. It was bizarre to see large stone tombs dotted about the fields which the farmers plant their crops around.
Comments
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