Can Tho - Saigon

Wednesday, March 4th

We met our guide in the foyer at 7:30am because we were going to visit the local floating (wholesale) market and apparently they only operate fro 5:00am to something like 10:00am. I didn't realise that "holidays" were such hard work.

The boat trip from the wharf near our hotel was about 30 minutes, and most of the trip had houses and business, or both, along side the river. Near the centre of Can Tho there were the occasional high-rise hotel, office block or apartment building.

We were told that the river bank building would eventually be replaced by a "dyke" (a wall, really), mainly to stop pollution, make it easier to maintain, and give the poor better housing conditions - I actually think this is true.

Most of the boats at the floating market are owned by farmers who specialise in one or two porducts. The usually come for a few days, or until all their produce is sold, and they often live on the boats.

On this occasion, both the boat driver and the guide wore their life jackets - I think it was company "policy" (don't want a tourist falling into the Mekong, for several reasons).

This couple were selling drinks and making tea and coffee for the vendors.

The boats were moored in the middle of the river, but there weren't as many as I expected.

Along the bank of the river, and we'd already seen this many times, were piles of acacia trunks. These are used in building - I thought for scaffolding, but we only saw them lining small canals as a kind of fence. The wood hardens when wet and has long lasting properties, so perhaps it's a bit like the foundations of Venice.

After we left the market, we went up a side canal to visit an orchard. This enterprising family had turned its land into a visitors centre, and instead of selling fruit in the markets, it charged tourists to walk around and learn about the local fruit types. You also got to sample the produce and have some tea.

They have all sorts of fruit growing, including a local (tropical) kind of apple:

Pineapple, of course:

Dragon fruit:

Jack fruit:

Papaya:

Coconut:

And mango:

OK, so you've all seen fruit before, but never so many varieties all producing at the same time. We're told that the locals have developed techniques to delay the ripening of some fruit so they are available year around.

The orchard also has ponds where the owners cultivate fish, and especially catfish, a local favourite. The water lilies are also spectacular.

Here's Lee (our guide) and Prue sampling the fruit, washed down with more tea.

Off the boat and into (yet) another market. Here's some catfish, and some live frogs which for some reason I felt sorry for.

And various kinds of squid and octopus, garnished with a few Dong (the local currency).

While inflation has made one Dong almost worthless (A$1 = 16,000D), the currency has the benefit of having no coins at all, the smallest note being 1,000D (A$0.05).

Before leaving Can Tho we visited the "oldest house" in town. Actually, I doubt it's the oldest, but it was built over 100 years ago by the wealthiest man in Can Tho at the time, and it is still one of the most ornate houses. It was also used in the French movie of the 1990's called Les Amantes.

On our way back to Saigon we crossed the Australia - Vietnam Friendship Bridge, built in 2000 with Australian aid money. The bridge crosses the first arm of the Mekong and replaces a ferry service that could take two hours. There'll be no more Friendship Bridges if Tony and Jule have their ways.

Almost home, but still time for a late lunch. This one was probably the best, and even Prue thought so!

There was another Elephant Ear fish, but this one was a little smaller than yesterday's! The waitress said I should take a picture, so I did - I couldn't tell her we had them every day...

Back in Saigon we returned to the hotel we'd been in earlier. Now that we're "regulars" we get an automatic upgrade when the standard rooms are full!

We went off in search of a G&T and found a bar underneath the restaurant we had chosen for dinner. Unfortunately, it seemed designed for "hip" young Vietnames, rather than "old" foreigners! There were cocktails on the menu, but no G&T's. After some discussion the barman said he could make some - one measure of tonic in a glass accompanied my one measure of gin in a separate glass! Whatever...we paid the overinflated, "happy hour" price and left.
 

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The "hip" decor of chairs with the names of "famous" people on the back should have been a giveaway - I hope Adolf Hitler ended up between Bill Clinton and Brad Pitt was by chance.