Ben Tre

I had a fantastic weekend. VK and Mr.America, the 2 Americans here, had guests over from Montréal who had contacted them through CouchSurfing. Mr.Quick-Dry and Miss M are travelling here for 2 months and are electrical engineers from Concordia university. My fellow Canadian and I liked them immediately and they invited us to join them on a boat trip up the Mekong River! Of course we said yes (Mr. America and VK declined because this weekend they were coordinating getting clothes for the 40 kids at the orphanage).



So that is how I spent my Saturday, on a cargo boat which does the Tra Vinh- Ben Tre trip every two days. Miss M was able to negotiate a very reasonable price and we were able to enjoy a fantastic view of coconut trees and people busy at their work for the 7-hour trip. Even hiding below decks, away from the scorching sun, we all got a little sunburnt and managed to attract the usual curious stares.



Ben Tre is (or at least seems) bigger and more prosperous than Tra Vinh and it has a gorgeous waterfront/port – it has a feel of a summer retreat for rich people from Saigon (which is only about 60 km away I think). We checked into a hotel (again letting Miss M do the negotiations), met a funny and rather eccentric old guy from Spain and explored the city`s sights and smells for the rest of the day. Those included: great vegetarian food, a lake right in the middle of town, and lots of shopping at the night market.



Getting back to Tra Vinh was a breeze - we decided to splurge and hired two xe oms (motorbike taxis) to take us back home. And a very good decision that was as A) we avoided a cramped and long bus ride home and B) got to enjoy the country scenery, rice paddies, etc. Sometimes, it really pays to splurge!