Mekong Delta to Can Tho

Tuesday, January 8th, 2013

Idiot traveler that I am, I thought when I booked online and saw higher prices per person for 2 people rather than 4 and 4 rather than 6 and so on, that it was just a volume discount. Although we were paying what seemed like a premium price (almost $1,000 for 5 days and 4 nights including all buses, boats, hotels, breakfasts (no dinners), Phu Quoc island upgraded resort and flight back to HCMC), we accepted it because it sounded great and really easy. We were expecting to be on a big bus and a big boat with 40 or 50 other tourists. However, the increased price for 2 was because it's a private tour. Our little tour guide lady showed up at our hotel at 8 am while our driver and 12 passenger van waited on the street. As we drove out of the city I asked if we were picking up anyone else. Hoa (pronounced Hwah), our guide, said, "Oh no, this is a private tour". We've never had such luxury when traveling.
We drove for an hour or so to My Tho on the Mekong River. The Mekong comes all the way from China and splits into nine major branches in the Delta, along with numerous smaller branches and canals. The Mekong Delta area is huge. Anyway, at My Tho we got on a motorboat and traveled out past a few islands to Unicorn Island. There we walked around a bit and then went for a stop for honey tea and treats. Then we walked some more through the gardens and over little bridges crossing the irrigation ditches.
Our next stop was for fruit at another little cafe. A band and about 5 different singers serenaded us with traditional music from the area. At the end they finished with "If You're Happy and You Know It" in English. Strange but very nice.
Then it was off to a coconut candy factory. In the picture there are ladies wrapping the finished candy behind us. They work an 8 hour day, 6 days a week for about $60 US per month. But it's a job locally rather than moving to HCMC.
Then we went for a ride in a smaller boat, like a big heavy canoe, paddled by 2 people, down a little canal and back to our motorboat. For a 20 minute trip, the paddlers get paid 15,000 dong total (about 75 cents). If they're lucky, they might get 2 trips a day in high season. Then they work on farms in the afternoon. They work at this because they have no land and nowhere else to go.
Our motorboat took us a little ways to an outdoor restaurant where there are little private cabanas set for each group of people. So we had one for just the 2 of us with our own waitress who wrapped the fish, rice noodles and herbs in rice paper for us. Then we had soup heated at the table into which we put some seafood rice.
All of these stops were included in the price of our tour. While we motored out to the island, our van driver just waited for us and kept our bags. While we were on the island, our motorboat driver just waited for us and then took us back.
We saw lots of boats and floating fish farms on the Mekong, plus a water buffalo cooling off in a ditch on the island.
We got back to shore about 1:30 and then drove along the highway past rice fields and so on for another 2 hours to get to Can Tho. It's a small city in the heart of the Mekong with a big branch of the river going by right across the street from our hotel. The only downside to driving through the Vietnam countryside is that there is litter everywhere. If there's a vacant lot, there's piles of garbage on it. And due to the exhaust fumes, a lot of the little shops along the highway look pretty grimy. At intervals, there are little food stands with a lot of hammocks strung under tarps so people traveling far can buy a snack and take a rest. There are also new modern rest stops for the tourists.
We walked around town a bit and bought a couple of T-shirts ($3.50 each - I think we paid too much) and some one-toed socks for Anita so she can protect her feet from mosquitoes and still wear flip-flops. We found a recommended restaurant that we'll go to tonight. Tomorrow we leave at 7 am to take a boat to the Cai Rang floating market before we travel to Rach Gia on the coast to catch our boat to Phu Quoc Island. We should be there by about 4 tomorrow afternoon.
Today has been lots of fun and new experiences. We also learned more about Vietnam from our guide. For instance, if you don't have a job here, there's no unemployment insurance or welfare. You're on your own. So much for communism.
Many homes have 3 generations of family living in them. That's why the smaller, more modest hotels often rent rooms by the hour to young couples looking for a bit of privacy.
There are almost 10 million people in HCMC and 5 million motorbikes. Cars are too expensive and so is gas. At 23,000 VND per litre that equals about $1.15 CDN, almost what we pay yet our wages are many times higher. So gas here is extremely expensive for the average person.
The government owns maybe half of the largest corporations (can anyone say PetroCanada) but there are more private companies all the time. There are hundreds of thousands of small independent businesses. Everyone here seems to be an entrepreneur, looking out for themselves and their families. It's the wild frontier.
Anyway, enough for now. Tomorrow will bring more adventures. Finally, as I write this Anita has noticed that there is a sign on the desk drawer in Vietnamese and English that says "Birth Controls Cabinet (prevent AIDS). There are condoms in the drawer. This hotel isn't used only for sleeping.