Our trip into the Mekong Delta wasn’t exactly what we believed we had signed up for. Instead of a relaxing boat trip along the river we took a crowded tourist bus to My Tho. Most of the others also felt they had been deceived. It is a case of the various travel agencies promising what the clients wanted then giving them what was available.
One reason we avoid group tours is the other people in the group. Except for the four French who everyone voted off the island, it was a pretty good group. Michael and Paula from Amsterdam and Bill and Sherri from Alberta are really nice. The other reason we don’t like tours is the tourist trap side destinations that fill in the day. Even though we learned how to make coconut candy, rice paper, rice noodles, popped rice and nearly everything else rice related it isn’t something we would have chosen to do.
Life along the Mekong River, its tributaries and countless canals is bustling. Fishing is a huge activity with all manner of nets and traps being used. Houses, businesses and shanties line the river bank. Boats of every size carry goods and people to and fro. Large boats in the floating markets sell wholesale of fruits and veggies to smaller boats to deliver to local markets.
Twenty-one million people live in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam’s rice basket. Can Tho, where we spent Wednesday night, is the country’s fourth largest town but after Saigon it seemed quiet and serene. It took us about 40 minutes by boat to reach the Cai Rang floating market, Vietnam’s largest, where we spent most of the morning gawking and photographing.
After lunch back in Can Tho the group split up. Michael and Paula headed off to Phu Quoc Island for some R&R while the rest of us took yet another marathon bus trip. We arrived in Chau Doc after dark and haven’t had a chance to look around. We are staying aboard Delta’s Floating Hotel while Bill, Sherry and most of the others are in town at a real hotel. Our place is peaceful with a nice breeze and the sounds of the river.
