Rice, Fruit, Whales - April 13

I have not finished this post because I have so much material and it takes forever to upload photos. I wanted to get something posted, so here it is. Keep checking back for the second half of this tour, and lots more photos.

We docked at Phu My, which is the port for Saigon, although it is some distance away. No matter. Saigon was not our destination today.

As our bus drove away from the port, we met our guide, Mr. Long, and our driver, Mr. Hoa, and assistant guide, Mr. Tai. Mr. Long spoke excellent English and had an extrovert's personality.

First stop: Phu'oc Le Temple in the town of Baria. The religion here is not an organized religion. Each town worships its own god. In addition, ancestor worship is important. Mr. Long showed us people could get their fortune told at the temple.

We attracted a few street vendors outside the temple. They arrived on motorbikes with piles of stuff to sell us: tote bags, kimonos, Ralph Lauren Polo shirt knockoffs, magnets, wallets, and other goodies.

The second stop was a local market, where we saw - and smelled - various fruits, vegetables, meats, and useful non-food items. Again, we attracted street vendors. It was like having a cloud of mosquitoes following you.

Rice paper

Our third stop was a "home visit." We visited a family home  located out of town, across from some rice paddies. The owner of the home was a wizened old lady, probably over 80. She lay in a hammock in one of the rooms of the house, dressed in pajamas, and shook hands with each of us as we walked by. The house was pretty minimal. A front room with the family altars and two beds, a family room with the hammock and a few chairs and a TV, a kitchen with a two-burner gas ring, and a fourth room full of junk. In the back was an area where rice wine was being distilled. We all got a taste. It was strong and rough. Right outside the back were the chickens and pigs. In front, not attached to the house, was a small new-looking structure that was probably a bathroom and/or shower. No A/C, not very clean, not very comfortable. And it was starting to get pretty hot.

Fourth up: a rice paper production business. I wouldn't call it a factory, or a shop, or a facility. It was more like an open shack with a few rooms on the side. A woman sat on the floor in the main area and made endless pieces of rice paper by hand, following a laborious process. The rice paper is used for spring rolls. After cooking up a paste of rice and water, she spread some batter on a flat cooking surface and it looked like she was making a crepe. Then she placed several cooked pieces on a spindle covered with a towel and placed it in a steam basket. After a while she took the pieces off the spindle and put them on a bamboo rack. Then they went out to the sidewalk to dry in the sun. No, it did not look very sanitary, but apparently these rice papers are sold to restaurants and individuals. The woman was 76 years old and she has been doing this all day long forever. She has a beautiful smile. I hope she gets paid a lot for letting tourists come and gawp at her. 

More vendors pestered us on the sidewalk at the rice paper stop. They had the same stuff as all the other vendors. In fact, they were the same vendors. They had been following our bus on their motorbikes. If you so much as looked at their wares from a distance for 1 second, they were on it and they would insistently attach themselves to you and show you everything they had and tell you why it was worth buying. None of it was worth buying, but I decided it would be a mitzvah to buy something, so I bought a tote bag.

Stop number 5 was a fruit orchard. Tables were set up in a small grove of trees and we had a chance to taste the local fruit: sweet watermelon, wonderful bananas, pineapple, exotic jackfruit, and refreshing coconut water. Then we walked through the "orchard" and Mr. Long showed us some interesting trees and plants.

Lunch: spring rolls - fried and fresh, pho, lemongrass, ginger, mint, cinnamon, chili, basil

 

Not finished yet!