Cruising down the Mekong Delta

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The Mekong Delta is the largest river in Southeast Asia and an adventure down this is something you must do when you visit Ho Chi Minh City. It’s a massive brown river with a dense green jungle that sits along side it. For this trip down the Mekong on Wednesday 10 November, we booked a private tour so it could just be the tour guide, Paul and I. This way we could ask as many questions as we wanted to and stay as long as we wanted at certain sights. Our tour guide was named, Long, and he was quite lovely. We were picked up from our amazing hotel, the Grand Saigon, and drove two hours south to a place called, My Tho – the gateway to the Mekong Delta.

Our day of exploring the Upper River of the Mekong was amazing. We had our own private boat and it was so peaceful as we cruised along and watched the daily lifestyle of the locals. Our first stop along the way was a visit to Phoenix Island. Here we visited a local home factory that produces coconut candies. Long was very informative and he showed us the making of these candies and we got to taste them. At this island, Paul also got to try Snake Wine for the first time. I was slightly jealous as I wanted to try some, but was told I was not allowed as I was a woman.

From Phoenix Island we rode a horse-drawn carriage along the country side road and stopped at another local home factory that produces honey. Here is where we had the opportunity to hold a python snake and I was not about to miss out. Scared as anything, the python sensed this and increasingly tightened around my neck. That was enough for me to give the snake back to its owner. After this it was time to taste some yummy honey tea with lime.

The next stage of our adventure was travelling down the Mekong in a sampan rowing boat (small wooden canoe). This was one of my favourite parts. Absolutely stunning and peaceful. Lunch was our next stop on Dragen Island. We had the most yummiest lunch of Elephant Fish (which came out whole), spring rolls, soup, fried rice, noodles and vegetables. It was set in a beautiful location of trees and on the side of the Mekong. Spectacular! 😊

Dessert of fresh tropical fruit and Jasmine tea was served on our next island stop of Unicorn Island. Here we sat and relaxed and listened to the locals perform a traditional folk song performance of Southern music.

After a full day of exploring and a nap in the car on the way back to Ho Chi Minh City, we were ready for our last big night here. We started the evening with two-for-one Pina Coladas at our Hotel Bar, before heading to a restaurant Long had recommended us. It was called Quan An Ngon. It was a yummy Vietnamese style restaurant that was very popular. We were seated in the best seats in the place – which looked like King & Queen seats as they were seated on the stage that over looked their huge water feature. As we drank more delicious cocktails and ate Vietnamese food and coconut ice-cream, we became more relaxed and immersed into the culture. After dinner it was on for a bit of bar hopping. Some of the bars included an Australian style bar called ‘Blue Gecko’ and ending up in a popular nightclub called Apocalyse Now.

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Comments

[Genevieve]

A great read!
Hey sweetpea, this is a *great* read - really felt like I was right there with you! I think you are definitely the person to go to for travel tips and advice :) xx

[Spicey Pricey]

Thanks :) Anytime you need any, I'm definately here. I love travelling!

[KAREN PRICE]

AMAZING !
All your photo's are amazing. Your photo's tell a story. Alicia you tell a fantastic story with your writing .