Our penultimate day in Vietnam was also one of the most memorable and definitely one of those experiences you don't forget in a hurry.
We left early in the morning to travel the 3.5 or so hours by private bus to Vinh Long to meet Nam our guide for the tour and join our riverboat for our tour on the Mekong. Arriving at our destination we encountered the first thunderstorm of the rainy season, and while the rain bounced off the pavements, we donned white, plastic ponchos and staggered out to board the boat via a precarious rain soaked gangplank trying not to fall in.
The rain was heavy but within about an hour it was over. We sailed up the Mekong stopping off at various villages and homestays along the way to learn about traditional ways of Vietnamese life. We stopped off at a rice merchants and found out how they polish the rice; at a coffin makers; a metal-workers and a traditional bamboo roof weaving place.
Lunch was a delicious home-cooked meal at a traditional homestay: noodle soup, baked elephant fish, spring rolls and for me and my veggie room-mate, tofu and mushroom stew, each course being served with hand carved vegetables in the shape of Vietnamese figures rowing or fishing. It was simple, elegant and delicious like so much Vietnamese food this trip. The homestay also backed onto a crocodile farm so we watched as young crocodiles were enticed with pieces of meat while other crocodiles basked in the sun.
After a brief hammock stop, we rejoined the boat and continued down the Mekong. Next stop was a plant nursery where we were given a tour of the plants and given samples of jackfruits, guava, pomelo, pineapple and plum apples washed down with jasmine tea.
Once tea had been drunk and fruit had been eaten we sailed down river to another homestay where we had a couple of snake encounters. One in the form of a python that we each took turns draping round our necks. He was pretty heavy and when it was my turn to hold him I had to get help from one of the guys as I thought I was going to drop him. He was smooth and incredibly strong but it was quite a pleasant experience. Python dispatched back in his cage, we were then taken into the living room of the homestay and told about traditional Vietnamese life, how families honour their deceased relatives by building shrines to them and learning about offerings that are made at a small altar you'll see in a lot of Vietnamese homes. We were also served shot glasses of what I thought was rice wine or whiskey. It turned out to be snake wine but I had already downed it by then!
Returning briefly to the boat, our next stop was to transfer into traditional sampan rowing boats and, donning the distinctive conical hat, we rowed to our final stop for the night, our homestay.
We were all sleeping in one dorm with simple wooden beds, sheets and mosquito nets. We had been warned that as we were in the country and in a more tropical climate than Saigon, mosquitos would be out in force. The energetic amongst the group went out on bikes, then it was back to showers, cold beers, hammocks and mozzie spray, and to look back over photos and reminisce about the incredible day we had just spent together.
Then there was the small matter of killing and eating a snake. WARNING: THE NEXT PARAGRAPH DETAILS THE SNAKE KILLING. Please don't read if you think it will upset you or if you're squeamish.
One of our group, Jamie, had asked whether it would be possible for him to kill a snake. A rainbow snake was duly caught, kept in a bucket then laid out on a stone slab. Effectively the process consisted of the snake's head being sliced off and its blood drained into a bowl. The decapitated head and body were still moving independently of each other at this stage. The body was placed in a bowl of boiling hot water and descaled while the blood was mixed with rice wine and drunk by whoever was brave enough to try it. I opted out. The descaled body was then laid out and sliced from end to end. The snake's heart was still beating at this stage. Jamie and our guide Nam removed the heart and Jamie then ate it. Apparently, it tasted like chicken liver. The snake was then cooked up and served after dinner in a broth with papaya. Those who tried it said it was very bony.
SAFE TO READ FROM HERE
Pre-dinner entertainment was in the form of some amateur local musicians who played traditional Vietnamese instruments for us, plus singing and story-telling from local performers. Invited to reciprocate with either a song or other entertainment, the guys in our group got up and performed a haka with our resident Kiwi, Jamie, leading proceedings. It was the perfect choice and the Vietnamese joined in with gusto!
Dinner was more of the same simple but delicious food we had become so accustomed to - soup, spring rolls, tofu or chicken dishes with rice - washed down with a bottle of Vietnamese white wine that was surprisingly tasty. Our night at the homestay coincided with two people's birthdays, Jamie and Catherine, so once dinner was over, the lights were dimmed and the birthday cake came out. Both were pleasantly surprised. There can't be any better way to spend your birthday than the day we had just had. I'm not sure how either of them will top it next year, if indeed they will.
The final entertainment of the evening was a pub quiz where three teams answered questions on the trip so far, the US, Australia and the UK. I'm pleased to say my team, Brits Abroad, were the winners. We even had our own little dance!
After a long, eventful but extremely memorable day we settled down under our mosquito nets and enjoyed our penultimate night in Vietnam. It had been an amazing day. We had seen and done so much and now we had only one more day left in Vietnam. It would involve museums, sightseeing and welcoming some new faces.