Thursday we three got up and onto a boat at 5:30, lots of stilt houses and boats selling giant fruit. Our guide didn't speak much English but was cheerful enough. Ate lots of fresh fruit from the market, bought sweet coffee from a boat, our guide made us some insects and flowers out of leaves. Think plant origami. Grabbed lunch (and beer), stole some milkmelon from the restaurant garden and saw lots of other fruit growing - did everyone else realise pineapple grows straight up out of the ground?! Maybe I'm the last to know..
Got talking to another boat group by the market when one of the other boat ladies started hitting me! So here I am, floating along a river in rural Vietnam, being slapped by an old toothless lady boat driver, despite the language difficulties I decided to deal with this carefully and quietly. Not. I actually started shouting to her about our children and that a bad honeymoon night wasn't the end of our marriage. I don't know if she understood but next time she saw us she hit me again. I think that means she liked me :-P
Next stop was the rice paper factory where we found out how they make the round wraps. Lots of the kids only go to school in the morning still so they can help out their parents at their work. It was cool to see the rice paper drying out in the sun. Back onto the river and we made our way back into town. Grabbed a couple beers and then got a late bus back into Saigon and immediately went back for beer and DELICIOUS PUMPKIN JUNGLE CURRY! Wow, it was good. Sat in the warm evening drinking cold beer and fending off street venders - whatever they offered first they'd switch to something else if you refused. "You wan book?" Nope "Lady?" Nope "Marijuana?" Well.... The restaurants and bars in the backpack area had set up kids tables and chairs along a road, it was fun and super busy for a Thursday. Until the police showed up and everyone scrambled!
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