Near the River's End

Catholic church at Vinh Long

The Mekong River is one of the great rivers of the world, travelling through no less than six countries as it makes its way from Tibet and Yunnan in China, past Myanmar, then through Laos' ancient capital Luang Prabang.  The Mekong forms the border between Laos and Thailand and then passes into Cambodia before ending up in Vietnam.  In Laos, I stood on the river bank in Vientiane and looked into Thailand on the other side, and watched the river flow by the golden temples in Luang Prabang.  In Cambodia, I took a boat trip on the Tonle Sap, the lake swollen with the water from the Mekong in full flow.  And here in Vietnam, we visited the little town of Vinh Long in the middle of the Mekong Delta.

The Mekong delta is best done as an overnight trip (at least) from Ho Chi Minh City, rather than the day trip which we took (lazy to pack up lah).  The intent of the trip was to provide a sense of life on the river, but sadly late morning is not the best time to see the floating market of Cai Be.  And whilst I don't mind seeing how local snacks are made (food is always of interest), I have learnt through experience that no one really eats "local" snacks - my office colleagues' favourite is the the mini-Kit Kats, Twix and Aeros which I brought back from the UK one year.  We did however have a perfectly pleasant lunch followed by a short trip being rowed up the river.

Our tour group was all-Asian this time round.  A family group from Malaysia (two sisters, one son, one friend), ourselves and one gentleman from Pakistan (in HCMC on business, taking a day off before his trip back) made up our group.  Needless to say, we got on very well, in particular with one of the ladies from Malaysia with whom we chatted about shopping opportunities in HCMC, compared notes on our hotels etc etc. 

Boats at the market.  

We left the hotel early in the morning and finally arrived in the Mekong delta where we got on the boat which was to take us on our river journey.  The floating market was deserted, except for the "market boats" themselves.  We learnt that this was a wholesale market - the boats came from other branches of the river, bringing their different crops - potatoes, vegetables, fruit, etc - with them.  So the boats will stay there for a while, until their produce is all sold.  The buyers come to the boats to pick up what they want.  To make it easier to see what each boat sells, a sample of the goods is tied to the top of a tall pole on each boat.  So for a boat selling, say, pineapples, a pineapple will be tied to the pole.  Sometimes it is the boat which is for sale, in which case I think it is an oar which is tied to the pole.  In the mornings, when the buyers come by in their own little boats, it must indeed be a bustling, exciting place.

Elephant ear fish

After visiting a few small shops and seeing how some local snacks are made, we chugged across the river and made our way through a maze of islands and rivulets to our lunch venue. Now, one of the specialities of the Mekong delta is the Elephant ear fish, which is deep fried, then eaten tucked into a rice paper roll.  It so happened at one of the little tourist shop stops, there was a tank with a few of these fish inside, where I took the photo you see on your left. You'll be glad to know that (i) the fish I eventually ate was not this fish; it was in a totally different place on the river - at an eco-hostel restaurant some distance away and (ii) it was indeed a rather nice river fish - nicely fried, light and delicate flesh.

After lunch, we were supposed to go to an "ancient house" and hear some traditional music. However, due to time constraint (at least that's the reason given), the guides said that we would do a river boat ride instead, through the narrow channels created at this part of the river.  Actually, I believe that the tide was low and the larger boat we were on needed to be lightened in order for us to get through that portion of the river.  But the trip was enjoyable, and enabled us to have a better glimpse of the activities going on beside and along the river.    Boys continue to swim in the river, boats (containing tourists), manouvre up and down the narrow waterways, people continue to grow their crops and fish and live on the islands.  The old life, and the new, meld together in this warm, watery world.

For more photos of the delta, click here.

The Mighty Mekong

Almost twilight
Originally uploaded by Taking5

The Mekong river is the lifeblood of Laos. It flows from one end of the country to the other, connecting villages, towns and communities. It separates Laos from Thailand - in Vientiane, you stand on one bank of the river and look at Thailand on the other side. In Luang Prabang, the Mekong and the Nam Khan form three of the four city boundaries, forming a natural defensive barrier around the city. The view of the sun setting on the Mekong river is also one of the most beautiful and peaceful ways to end the day (as the photo above demonstrates).

Our first sight of the Mekong river was in complete darkness, as we went there the first evening we were in Vientiane and my friend brought us to see the river and the lights of Thailand on the other bank. There was reclamation work being done on the river bank, so we trudged through the soil to stand on top of the bank.  The row of shops and restaurants which must once have enjoyed great river views was now further back. The next day, we drove down to a house on the Mekong river - the house itself was nice but the road getting there was a small dirt track between the beautifully kept homes. But in Vientiane, a house on the Mekong is still very much a prized possession, something for only the wealthy few.

When we went to Luang Prabang, the Mekong was indeed all around. We had lunch, dinner beside it in the many restaurants on the bank (and made the acquaintance of a dear little cat, which was most interested in the fried fish we had for lunch). The best guesthouses also make much of their river view. But one day we decided to cross the Mekong, to visit the small little villages on the other side. This was indeed quite a world away from the touristy streets of Luang Prabang.

We hired a boatman to ferry us across the river, and walked around the villages there. The villages were small, but very clean and neat (the Lao are a tidy people). Dogs roam the streets, and occasionally skirmishes would break out but otherwise, they seemed to get along together. Chickens also pecked around the area , searching for food. Obviously, it was also a school holiday, as could be seen by all the children playing under the shade of the trees.

We walked up a hill to visit the wat right on top - Wat Chom Phet.  It was bare and poorly maintained, with the painted facade badly faded and decorations missing except for the altar with the Buddha on top. A group of children were playing outside - but with a little bribe from one of my companions, they were induced to go sweep the wat, provide a mat and some flowers so that my friend could pray there for a while. The view of Luang Prabang, however, was amazing - the sight of the Phou Si, and the golden spire of the That Chomsi on the other side of the river.

We walked further on, to reach a larger temple complex - with a much better kept temple, Wat Long Khun. There was a far greater sense of a living community here - the monks quarters, other outhouses and buildings surrounded the temple, saffron coloured robes were hung out to dry in one corner, rice was drying also on large flat baskets set out in the sunshine beside the temple. The children however were still following us and brought some flowers for us to offer at the altar.

Wat Long Khun is supposed to be a "counterpart" to Wat Xieng Thong, across the river in Luang Prabang, and one of the most beautiful temple complexes in the country. We had earlier visited Wat Xieng Thong and indeed, it completely outshines the humbler tempple in this little community. I thought however, that this smaller temple had a quiet beauty and serenity all its own compared to the grander buildings across the river.  It was quiet and peaceful - we were the only people here, aside from the children and the one person minding the complex and collecting admission fees (yes they had it even here!).  So it was a real contrast to the better known, grander temple just across the river.

We visited a third wat on this side of the river but there was no one in sight - obviously they were praying or eating. We walked back to the village and hailed the boatman to ferry us back. It was an insight into a different world, different lives.

As always, more photos on my Flickr page.