relaxing on the long-tail boat |
people working, but no machines |
We leave Saigon for Can Tho, with some stops along the way. Driving alone takes about three hours, even though the two cities are only about 100 miles apart. It's fun to see the countryside. Many rice fields border the road. I see people working, but rarely do I see machines helping to harvest.
graves in the rice fields |
Autumn, our guide, also shares with us that people are buried in the rice paddys. You can tell how well off the family is by how nice the graves are. If you have a roof over the tomb, it shows that you're wealthy.
comfy cafe |
Along the way we also see lots of cafes with no chairs - just hammocks! So you lie back and rest in your hammock, and you have a little table beside you for your glass, etc. I didn't see this at all in Saigon.
There should be warning signs posted here. |
Then there are the electrical wires. I can't believe there aren't more fires here. Even inside the buildings they are tangled up like this.
At the rest stop we have a few minutes to stretch our legs. Tourists (including Steve), have fun crossing the traditional "monkey" footbridge. They can still be found, in use, in Vietnam.
Look - no hands! Okay, he's not ready for that yet. |
There's also a pretty orchid display. I love how they have all the pots hanging.
I wonder if I can do this on our balcony? |
floating market |
Is that a snout resting on the surface of the water? |
Our guide, Autumn, protected from the sun. |
She is rowing us against the current of the canal. She's very strong! |
Hat selfie! |
We lose the breeze from the motorized boat, so I'm glad they give me the traditional hat to wear. Steve has fun with bunny ears again. We don't see any scary animals, but lots of fruit trees - loganberry, jackfruit, papaya, breadfruit, lemon and coconut.
We arrive at An Binh Island and Steve immediately wants to jump into cooking. I think he's inspired by our food tour and feels like he's an expert at preparing Vietnamese meals now. He's a little disappointed to discover it's only a demonstration, not a participation activity. She's making rice paper. I'm reminded of crepes. Yum, crepes....maybe for lunch! Why does being on the water always make you hungry? Back to the rice papers - these are used as wrappers for the fresh spring rolls.
spreading the batter |
Out to dry...I wonder how they keep the flies away?? |
Steve does get to engage in the next activity! Autumn shows us the snake wine, and offers to let us try some. This rates up there with the chicken embryo to me, so I skip it. Steve decides to taste it. He says it is not good. I knew I made the right choice. What a waste of alcohol.
Your choice of snake wine flavors. |
Bottoms up! He's not looking too enthusiatic. |
Just the thought of snake wine (and Steve's face when he drank it) has deadened my appetite a bit, but it's lunch time and we stop at a cute restaurant on the island. They make up for some of the unappetizing sights earlier (more snakes are involved) with lots of cute "people" at our meal.
Extra guests at lunch! |
I love the scarf around the neck - if you look back at my picture you see our helmsman is wearing one! |
Steve's ready for a post-lunch nap!
Those cafes have the right idea... |
applying the pattern |
We visit the local market on the way back to the car. There are lots of animals for sale that we don't normally eat in the US - frogs, snakes and turtles. Thank goodness she didn't show us any dogs.
Snake for dinner? No thank you. I've had enough of snakes today. |
Nice view! The sunset is pretty, too. |
Fire! Fire! I love flaming desserts. |
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