Mekong Delta and the Floating Markets

At 4 o'clock in the morning, the alarm clock rang to be ready on time for Minh, our guide for the tour to the Floating Markets.

The eyes were small, but the anticipation was even greater.

Off we went with Minh to the harbor in a small wooden canoe just for us.

The tour started at sunrise and after about 40 minutes we reached the first Floating Market 'Cai Rang'. It's indescribable what we were able to see there. A bustle of small wooden canoes, boats, and loud Vietnamese people exchanging and trading. Most of the traders on the Floating Markets live on their boats, and while most were already trading, others were still brushing their teeth or taking a nap in the hammock. Each of the boats had a pole where the goods they offered were tied. Otherwise, it would take forever to find them. Minh got us soup and baguette for breakfast and we made ourselves comfortable in the canoe to have breakfast in the middle of all the hustle and bustle.

We continued to the second market, which was another half an hour away. There was a lot to see along the way, and the nature and way of life of the people impressed us. Women washing clothes in the river, parents taking their children to school by canoe, houses on stilts, and many other great and impressive things. Minh told us that most of the children of the traders on the Floating Markets cannot go to school because no one has time to take them there and the children have to help with the work.

The second market is called 'Phong Dien' and was a bit smaller and more manageable. Here we treated ourselves to pineapples and melons that we could later enjoy on the boat. We can say that we have never tasted them so good!

After leaving the second market behind, we went into smaller and smaller river branches and occasionally had to stop to remove plastic waste from the engine. Unfortunately, it is a big problem here that garbage is simply disposed of in the river!

Our next stop was a Fruit Garden. It was great to see how pineapples, star fruits, oranges, durians, and more just grow there. For example, I didn't know how small pineapple trees are.

On our way through the river, the cute old lady at the helm of our canoe continued to hand us handmade palm leaf artworks. It's amazing what she created in such a short time and so casually. But see for yourself.

Lastly, we went to a rice noodle factory. We were fascinated by how cleverly and simply each part of the rice plant is reused!

We are enchanted by the Mekong Delta and all the wonderful impressions and will never forget this amazing experience.