It is hard to believe that a week from today we will all be back home.
This trip is flying by. Today we wrapped up our last day of free
travel, which started just over a week ago. Planning an entire week’s
worth of activities, transportation and accomodation for nine people
(while remaining within a budget) turned out to be a lot more
challenging than the group had anticipated. However, despite our
initial struggles we did manage to string together a successful
itinerary!
One highlight included a day long tour of the Mekong River. It was
lovely to be out on the open water, riding a traditional river boat
and viewing Vietnam from such a different vantage point. The Mekong
River was so massive! It was much bigger than we had anticipated. It
was interesting to see how the river is such a source of livlihood for
many Vietnamese in the region. It is a mode of transport, a source of
food and home to a number of floating houseboats. For lunch we stopped
on an isolated island and rented bikes. We rode around the island,
purchasing delicious fresh fruit from a local women for an afternoon
snack.
Another day we decided to explore Ho Chi Minh city in more depth. The
group split up; some people went to the zoo and others went to the
Fine Arts Museum. We also visited the local market and tried some
traditional Vietnamese coffee. The secret ingredient in this fine
drink? Coffee beans taken from weasal poop. It sounds somewhat
repulsive but was surprisingly delicious.
We decided to spend the last few days of free travel on Phu Quoc, the
same island we planned to head to later in the scheduled itinerary for
Scuba diving. None of us regret coming here early! The beach is
absolutely beautiful, with soft white sand and extremely clear water.
It has been wonderful to have relaxation time. Lots of frisbee,
reading and beach walks (and the occasional sunburn..)
Love,
Katie