So this is our last day of this trip, Oct 1, 2011.
We spent the most part of the day taking the Mekong River Cruise.
The Mekong River again according to Wikipedia:
It is the world's 12th-longest river and the 7th-longest in Asia. Its estimated length is 4,350 km (2,703 mi), and it drains an area of 795,000 km2 (307,000 sq mi), discharging 475 km3 (114 cu mi) of water annually.
From the Tibetan Plateau this river runs through China's Yunnan province, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. In 1995, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam established the Mekong River Commission to assist in the management and coordinated use of the Mekong's resources. In 1996 China and Burma became "dialogue partners" of the MRC and the six countries now work together within a cooperative framework.
The extreme seasonal variations in flow and the presence of rapids and waterfalls in this river have made navigation difficult. The river is a major trading route linking China’s southwestern province of Yunnan to Laos, Burma and Thailand to the south, an important trade route between western China and Southeast Asia.
The color of the river is brown, very dark brown, almost like there is mud mixed with it.
The river cruise took us to a place where coconut candies and cobra medicines are made.
We had a typical Southeast Asian lunch. Because the place where we went to was just like any other place in the Philippine countryside this trip didn't give me much excitement. For the Westerners yes this amazed them because obviously this is very different from what they have.
We had some taste of tropical fruits with Vietnamese ladies serenading us with old Vietnamese songs.
We also took the rowing boat ride under the shadow of the water coconut palm trees, much like the old Vietnamese days.
We went back to our hostel around 4pm, packed our bags and went to a supermarket to buy some goodies for pasalubongs. The supermarket is always the cheapest place to buy food items for friends back home.
For our dinner, my friend and I tried their street food. I cannot remember the name of the food but it was tofu-like with spices and you have to mix some toyo to it. All I can say is it was different but I love it!
It's time for us to say goodbye to Saigon and auntie (Vy's mother) and Ms Vy, our hosts. I would recommend their hostel - Vy Kahn Guesthouse to friends looking for a cheap stay in Saigon. They are very accommodating (they allowed us to leave our luggages while we went to Cambodia and Bangkok), place is very clean, and you get really good value for money. We also loved Auntie's coffee! =))
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| boat ride in Mekong River |
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| Mekong River |
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| the countryside...feels like I am just at home |
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| tropical fruits in Vietnam, same as ours in the Philippines |
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| yummy street food |
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| cooking up our dinner |
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| our place in Saigon! |
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