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The Group Travel Leader Small Market Meetings Going on Faith

Mekong Majesty

A Mountain Hideaway

The following day, we took a sampan into Chau Doc, a fishing village filled with new-age fish farms, a modern approach to earning a living in Vietnam. We boarded a large floating home, one of many, where the family raises fish beneath the floor.

“There are thousands of fish farms on this part of the Mekong,” said Nam. “These families are doing very well compared to traditional fishermen. They have permits from the government and raise fish for exporting. When you see Basa fish in the USA, that’s from Vietnam.”

We entered a long canal for the Sam Mountain area at the Cambodian border and veered left, where the land opened up to reveal vistas we hadn’t encountered before. Rice farms stretched far into the distance.

This solitary mountain seems out of place on the Mekong delta. Undoubtedly, that’s how it became home to more than 300 temples, pagodas and shrines over the centuries.

“This town is 10 hours by bus, including two ferries, from Saigon,” said Nam. “Most of these farmers have never been to Ho Chi Minh City.”

We entered its open-air temple and approached the altar. Several roasted pigs graced the altar, their snouts facing the Buddha. Mounds of flowers, gifts of fruit and many cash offerings crowded the altar. The faithful gathered silently to pray, many holding incense sticks to their foreheads.

We heard a lot of discussion about whether Buddhism is a religion or a philosophy. Vietnam and Cambodia are both heavily Buddhist. For a novice, it can also be confusing about which temples are Buddhist and which are Hindu.

Afterward, we glided back up the canal past countless homes on stilts, their walls and roofs made primarily of sheet metal, and hundreds of small boats, their engines, which Kim likened to weed-eaters, churning the water behind them.

Royal Cambodia

We toured Phnom Penh by cyclo, a one-person carriage powered by a bicycle. My driver wanted to discuss our presidential primaries. We headed off to the Royal Palace, home to the king of Cambodia. We toured its Silver Pagoda and Throne Hall, and the Moonlight Building where the king greets the public.

“The king of the power and money in Cambodia is actually the prime minister,” said our new guide for Cambodia, Chantha. After leaving the temple there, he said, “The primary teaching of the Buddha is that you get what you give. You reap what you sow.”

We had a free afternoon and evening in Phnom Penh and hired a tuk-tuk driver, Meng, to spend the day with us. A tuk tuk is a four-passenger carriage pulled by a motorcycle.

We asked Meng to take us for a couple of hours for an overview of the city. He pointed out numerous sites along the way, like Independence Monument, a gift from France erected in 1958. We told him we wanted to see spots along the river where you could have a beer or people watch and see the vast development taking place across the river.

He asked us if we wanted to do some shopping. He took us to Lucky Heritage, a store with well-made silver products, jewelry and small gifts. We bought bracelets, necklaces, silver objects and an elephant-headed Hindu god named Ganesh. We liked his purpose: “Seeking new opportunities and avoiding obstacles.”

We headed to the French Correspondents Club, a landmark watering hole for journalists during the war. We climbed the stairs to the third floor and had a couple of Tiger beers overlooking the busy street and river. It was late afternoon, the best time of day on the Mekong; the sun was retreating, and a breeze had begun to stir.

We had dinner at Malis, a restaurant Ha recommended, and had superb meals including river lobster; curried beef; and fish amok, a curried fish served in banana leaves.

After dinner, Meng took us on a tuk-tuk ride through the streets of Phnom Penh that was pure chaos. We drove past all the hot spots in a torrent of tuk tuks, cars, motorbikes and taxis. We could barely hear each other above the mayhem. Then we made a late-night foray to the night market to buy elephant pants before walking back to the ship.