The "bus station"We got stuffed into some van with produce and raw chicken and whizzed off to Vinh Long, a little town about an hour away from Saigon. There, we were dropped off at the tour company. A little man who spoke really good English took us around the markets, and then we went onto our private boat to see some of the industries that have prevailed in the Mekong Delta for centuries.
Making rice paper - we had no idea how many kinds of
rice paper there were - chewy, soft, crunchy, crispy, the list goes on!
Rice Puffs - pour sand into a big wok, add rice, pop,
then press into a mold with honey/syrup, cut into squares.
Lychee seller
I don't think those cows are just for company...
Floating Market - every morning, dozens of boats come out
to sell their goods. They raise a "flag" (an actual fruit tied to a
pole on the boat) to indicate what they're selling.
Making rice paper - we had no idea how many kinds ofrice paper there were - chewy, soft, crunchy, crispy, the list goes on!
Rice Puffs - pour sand into a big wok, add rice, pop,then press into a mold with honey/syrup, cut into squares.
Lychee seller
I don't think those cows are just for company...
Floating Market - every morning, dozens of boats come outto sell their goods. They raise a "flag" (an actual fruit tied to a
pole on the boat) to indicate what they're selling.
Our guide took us on a bike ride through a village, where we got to try out a monkey bridge, meet some local villagers, ride a traditional gondola-type boat while wearing traditional Vietnamese hats. It was fun for us, but more importantly, the old women who were pointing and laughing at us looked like they were having a blast!
Monkey Bridge - these thin branch bridges are
still used by many people to get to their homes as there are
no roads or bridges to get across the little canals and
branch-offs of the Mekong Delta.
They made us wear these hats for our boat ride!
One little old lady pointing and laughing (mostly at Kris)!
and then we ended up at our homestay - the home of an ex-Vietcong. Our humble abodes was a little bamboo hut with mosquito nets and a wall that fell down, but the shared bathrooms were amazingly clean! We helped the family cook our evening meal, which consisted of rice paper rolls, fish, stir fry, soup, and rice. It was so good that I had to take pictures of everything. We spent the evening using our Lonely Planet Vietnamese to converse with the owner. Mostly we just laughed at how little we understood of each other! In the morning, we awoke to another amazing meal, with an egg blanket (sort of like a thin omelet), mini bananas, and our favourite, Vietnamese coffee.
The ex-Vietcong owner & Kris
The kitchen at our homestay
The evening meal was amazing - this fish rocked!
Rice paper roll - lettuce, fish, fish sauce and some herbs
all rolled up in this soft shell!
Morning coffee slowly dripping into my
coffee cup
Monkey Bridge - these thin branch bridges arestill used by many people to get to their homes as there are
no roads or bridges to get across the little canals and
branch-offs of the Mekong Delta.
They made us wear these hats for our boat ride!
One little old lady pointing and laughing (mostly at Kris)!and then we ended up at our homestay - the home of an ex-Vietcong. Our humble abodes was a little bamboo hut with mosquito nets and a wall that fell down, but the shared bathrooms were amazingly clean! We helped the family cook our evening meal, which consisted of rice paper rolls, fish, stir fry, soup, and rice. It was so good that I had to take pictures of everything. We spent the evening using our Lonely Planet Vietnamese to converse with the owner. Mostly we just laughed at how little we understood of each other! In the morning, we awoke to another amazing meal, with an egg blanket (sort of like a thin omelet), mini bananas, and our favourite, Vietnamese coffee.
The ex-Vietcong owner & Kris
The kitchen at our homestay
The evening meal was amazing - this fish rocked!
Rice paper roll - lettuce, fish, fish sauce and some herbsall rolled up in this soft shell!
Morning coffee slowly dripping into mycoffee cup
The last part of our trip involved a visit to a fruit orchard, where Kris discovered his new favourite - the jackfruit! We were then dropped off in another little village, where two random guys on motorbikes whisked us off to a gas station. Two guys then pulled out plastic chairs for us where we enjoyed the aromas of the gas tanks. We thought we'd never make it back to Saigon when around the bend comes a van that said that we were to go with them. The trust you have to have when traveling!
A giant jackfruit
Jackfruit pieces
Waiting trustingly at the gas station
A giant jackfruit
Jackfruit pieces
Waiting trustingly at the gas stationThese last few photos are just ones that we liked. Enjoy!
A high school girl in her uniform.
A high school girl in her uniform.
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