Inspired Travels

Song Cuu Long, the local name for the Mekong Delta means “The River of Nine Dragons”. The Mekong Delta, spans 40,000 sq kilometres, supporting 21 million people along its tributaries before distributing to the sea. It meanders through 5 countries – China, Laos, Burma, Thailand, and finally Vietnam. The locals, they know where they are based on the colour of the water. For brown is the colour of Mekong, green water for Saigon, and black for another Vietnamese province.

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The Mekong Delta is by far the biggest river I have ever seen. It is simply massive. It is most likely is the biggest river in the world! At the start of the River near Cai Be, it stretches as far as the eye can see. I had to swivel my head around to see it from side to side.

The river is quite fertile, as Mekong people farm the land and water to make a living. Growing diverse crops from jackfruit, coconuts, mangoes, rambutans, longans and rice. There were so many longans growing along one part of the river, it was like being in an endless fruitshop and you could just each up and pick what you wanted. Crops float in the water effortlessly, stretching many metres onto the river.

The river is also home to many types of sea animals from fish, crabs, lobsters, shrimps, clams. Some locals have fish nets underneath their houses, which are brimming full of fish. Animals are also farmed on the land  as well.

Vietnam is the world’s 3rd largest exporter of rice, after India and Thailand. The total production of rice is 3.5 million tonnes. The Vietnamese also harvest the rice differently, collecting the broken rice. The rice is high in quality as it is grown at the last part of the Mekong Delta. Though if you do eat it, Vietnamese rice taste different – the rice isn’t sticky, but rather loose (i.e. broken rice!).

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Cai Be market, is a floating market where boats trade in fruit and vegetables. There are boats about 5 – 7 metres in length, made of wood, quite rudimentary vechicles. One wonders how they made it so far along the Mekong Delta using these crafts. About 30 – 40 boats were floating in Cai Be, selling goods from coconuts, pumpkin, sweet potato, and firefood.

A bamboo cane stands on the roof of each boat, with a piece of the vessel’s cargo spiked into it. It indicates what each boat is selling, much like a flag on a boat.

The minimum purchase is 10 kilos as this is the wholesale fruit and vegetable market. No tourist takes up the tour guide’s offer to buy fruit and vegetable, even a few pieces.

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Heading upstream, is the coconut village. A farm solely dedicated to growing, harvesting and making products from coconut. Everything from coconut milk, candy, bread, and even the shell is used. It was believed that coconut village’s early inhabitants thought that coconuts had fertility power and also had a religion based on coconuts.

We were shown how coconut candy was being produced. Then we were funnelled from store to store. It felt like the biggest sales pitch ever!

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The smaller rivers lead to farms with a diverse range of fruit. Most of the locals live on houseboats, so they can rise with the tide. These are like ramshackle joints, and you can see markings on the bank to witness how high the tide rises. There is no point building a house on the banks, as it can flood quite easily. Unless you have $100,000 USD to splash out.

The boats are so crucial to their way of life. Ask how many people are living in their families, and they will add an extra member for their boat.  As the Mekong people consider their boats as a member of their family.

In the 17th Century, the river was full of crocodiles. To ward them off, many of the boats have two eyes painted on the front. However in the 19th century, many of these creatures disappeared. Yet the boats retained the eyes. It was something passed down from generation to generation, this culture of painting eyes on the boat. Now, they serve a different purpose, to symbolically help the boat see. The locals also believe in the boat fairy, and they sacrifice foods (fruit or meat) to bring them luck.

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The Mekong Delta gives so much life and produce to Vietnam, and the rest of the world. One wonders two questions. Firstly, how much do these locals recieve for their produce. Looking at how poorly they live, one would assume very little. Secondly, what is being done to sustain the river to preserve it for future generations? A river so vital and important to the world, producing more rice than Korea and Japan combined.

When I look back on the trip, it truly was an amazing place.  Heading back into the city, the roads were flooded. Not from the Mekong Delta but from heavy torrential rains. The water crept up to the shop fronts and was up to halfway on the bike tires. Locals were struggling to drive through it on their motorbikes.

I’m out like the Mekong Delta,

Matt.