Mekong and floating market.
The alarm went off at 5 and we met our driver at 6:02am.
We then waited at the next hotel as the group from there took 20 minutes to drag their asses on board.
This same group seemed to require a coffee break and or a pee break every 20 minutes.
The trip to Cai Bei took just over 90 minutes and after driving through the largely none descript town for a short while we parked near the water.
A short walk took us to the dock where we boarded a tourist boat that seemed seaworthy enough to trust for an hour or two. Our “trip” to the floating market was a bit of a letdown as the floating market consisted of one boat selling a variety of fruits and drinks. Actually there were a couple of other boats but they seemed to be offering clothing and items that required the purchase of multiple units. Zing all honesty the guide from the previous day already warned us that the market varied in size depending on the time of day. He also stated that it seemed to be a slowly dying industry that probably would not be around in a year or two.
Our next stop was a place selling honey and snake wine. Nobody took the guide up on his offer of a sample nor did anyone want to hold the comb of several thousand bees that he was holding. We did, however enjoy the honey tea and snacks.
We then watched a group of workers doing confectionary preparation and making rice paper with which to wrap it. After buying some snacks for the road we re-entered the delta and ultimately stopped at a homestead for lunch. After making a few dishes, we left the staff to their own devices and they soon delivered a 6 course meal of the most delicious food since we arrived from Cambodia. Starting with rice rolls prepared in front of us we were impressed that the snakeheadfish staring back at us from the serving plate tasted much better than it looked.
After the meal we lazed around in hammocks and deck chairs waiting for our boat to return us to Cai Bei.
The wait turned out to be longer than I would have wanted, resulting in us being trapped in the heavy afternoon traffic teeming into the city.
Of course our tardy group from the morning required further pee breaks, resulting in a journey that took significantly longer than planned.
While we wanted to return to a distant seafood restaurant for dinner, laziness prevailed and we found ourselves a much closer spot, prices clearly inflated because of its proximity to the hotels. Even so we still managed to eat for under $10.
We then waited at the next hotel as the group from there took 20 minutes to drag their asses on board.
This same group seemed to require a coffee break and or a pee break every 20 minutes.
The trip to Cai Bei took just over 90 minutes and after driving through the largely none descript town for a short while we parked near the water.
A short walk took us to the dock where we boarded a tourist boat that seemed seaworthy enough to trust for an hour or two. Our “trip” to the floating market was a bit of a letdown as the floating market consisted of one boat selling a variety of fruits and drinks. Actually there were a couple of other boats but they seemed to be offering clothing and items that required the purchase of multiple units. Zing all honesty the guide from the previous day already warned us that the market varied in size depending on the time of day. He also stated that it seemed to be a slowly dying industry that probably would not be around in a year or two.
Our next stop was a place selling honey and snake wine. Nobody took the guide up on his offer of a sample nor did anyone want to hold the comb of several thousand bees that he was holding. We did, however enjoy the honey tea and snacks.
We then watched a group of workers doing confectionary preparation and making rice paper with which to wrap it. After buying some snacks for the road we re-entered the delta and ultimately stopped at a homestead for lunch. After making a few dishes, we left the staff to their own devices and they soon delivered a 6 course meal of the most delicious food since we arrived from Cambodia. Starting with rice rolls prepared in front of us we were impressed that the snakeheadfish staring back at us from the serving plate tasted much better than it looked.
The wait turned out to be longer than I would have wanted, resulting in us being trapped in the heavy afternoon traffic teeming into the city.
Of course our tardy group from the morning required further pee breaks, resulting in a journey that took significantly longer than planned.
While we wanted to return to a distant seafood restaurant for dinner, laziness prevailed and we found ourselves a much closer spot, prices clearly inflated because of its proximity to the hotels. Even so we still managed to eat for under $10.
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