Top 7 Things to Undertake in Mekong Delta Vietnam

Top 7 Things to Undertake in Mekong Delta Vietnam

Mekong Delta, a comma-shaped flatland with a maze of rivers, floating markets, swamps, villages, and Khmer pagodas is an area in southern Vietnam where the Mekong River empties into the sea through a network of tributaries. Mekong Delta produces 70% of Vietnam’s fruits and 60% of the country’s rice. Life floats on the waters, and you will notice the famous floating markets where the locals go to sell their farm products and other day-day provisions.

The first impressions to notice once you set foot in Mekong Delta

Expect to see farmers in conical huts tending to their rice paddies, children riding on buffalo backs or cycling to school, the Khmer monks walking peacefully through the pagodas and it is also business as usual at the floating markets. You will also see incense sticks drying along the roadside and see the local’s rowing boats on the rivers.

Where to go and what to do in Mekong Delta

Mekong Delta is vast with lots of tourist attractions like the fruit orchards, National Parks, floating markets, the coconut candy factory, and the pagodas. You cannot explore Mekong Delta in a day, and you will need to stay a little bit longer to get most, if not enough of your tour. Here are the must-visit places along with the activities you can do.

1. The Cai Rang Floating Market

Located in the Cai Rang River, a few kilometers from Cai Tho, this floating market that has existed for over 100 years is a must-see destination. The market is where the locals go to sell dried fish, fish sauce, coconut candy, a wide variety of fresh fruits, and other daily provisions. You will get amazed by how the traders effortlessly throw items from one boat to the other. You should get to the market by 7 am and watch the real trading begin. If you want to buy anything, you will notice that each boat has a pole outside displaying what they sell. Rent a pineapple boat as they usually have a rooftop where you can climb to the top to take a shot of the entire market.

What to do: Interact with the locals and ask questions regarding the market and the community as a whole. Eat your meals at a floating restaurant; the meals are very cheap and delicious.

2. Vinh Trang Pagoda

Vinh Trang Chau is the most famous Buddhist temple near My Tho in Mekong Delta. The temple got built in 1849, in European-Asian style, which brings out its striking beauty, creating a serene and a culturally immersed environment. It looks like a palace and gets surrounded by flowers and fruit orchards. It has four departments which include the front, back, worship, and the central departments. You will also notice the graves of the ancient monks scattered all over, carefully decorated with flagstones.

What to see at the holy temple

Before you go inside, ensure you are dressed respectively, (wear clothes that cover your knees and ensure your shoulders aren’t exposed), then take off your shoes and hat. You will see;

• Buddha statues such as the big-bellied laughing Buddha, a reclining Buddha, and a considerable standing Amitabha.
• The ornate gate, and
• The dragon’s tongue runs down the wooden pillars.

Go around 10:00 am when the monks are chanting the morning prayers before they proceed to eat, (their meals are mostly vegetarian) and donate some funds for the less fortunate kids looked after by the monks.

3. Go bird watching in Tram Chim National park

Located in Dong Thap Province, Tram Chim is home to hundreds of rare species of birds, hundreds of vertebrates, different species of fish, and various plants. The park has a captivating landscape with tall grass, flat, and waterlogged land. If you love bird watching go early in the morning or late in the evening when the birds are active and in March or April when all the birds are around.

4. Ride on a sampan

See the beauty of Mekong Delta small waterways, at your own pace in a local sampan. The boats allow you to access the areas which tourist boats can’t access due to shallow waters. You will see fruit orchards, traditional tile factories, various farms, the Cao Dist temples, and the famous floating boats selling farm produce.

5. Visit a village

To the locals, their day-day activities are reasonable, and they get amused seeing that their way of life excites the visitors. You will notice kids following you around, and most of the adults always get busy working on their rice paddies. The locals live a simple life and interacting with them will help you learn more about their lifestyle, and this will make you appreciate what you have and your entire life back home.

6. Discover Mekong Delta’s delicacies and try what you can

Producing 70% of Vietnam’s fruits, Mekong Delta is the best place to taste different types of nuts. You will eat fruits such as jackfruit, rambutan, durian, mangosteen, plums, coconuts, bananas, mangoes, etc. If you visit the local orchards, you will have the fruits straight from the trees.

Mekong’s cuisine is unique and incorporates the region’s fundamental qualities which include; deliciousness, good for health, and appealing to the senses. Food gets prepared using fresh ingredients, thanks to the fertile land, and expect to eat extreme spicy dishes. Meals vary according to provinces, and each region has its unique delicacies which you will get to enjoy.

When in An Giang, try the delicious Palmyra sweet soup, made from the Palmyra tree fruit and coconut milk. Ben Tre Province ‘the land of green coconut trees’ gets famous for its coconut candy which gets made from glutinous rice, sugar, and coconut water.

Due to the amazingly available crabs in Ca Mau province, you will get to enjoy grilled chopped crabs mixed with rice flour, minced meat, fried garlic and other seasonings which give this dish an irresistible flavor.

Pia cake, with a crust made from wheat and tapioca flour, and it gets filled with pork fat, mung bean paste, sticky rice, and salted duck egg is a delicacy in Soc Trang Province. Other meals you should try in Mekong Delta include;

• The elephant ear fish (it is a fish which looks like the elephant ears) which gets crispy fried and best enjoyed when rolled in pickles and vegetables in rice paper, then dipped in fish sauce, lemongrass, and chili.
• Roasted rice field mouse. Rats which terrorize the rice fields get chased by the farmers, and when caught, a tasty meal gets made by cooking them in rice straws. The rats eat rice and drink fresh water. Therefore, it gets believed that they are meatier, tastier, and healthy compared to other types of rats.
• Gray-eel Catfish which can get cooked in many ways including; grilling in banana sepal, making sour soup, and fish sauce stew.

7. Swim in the swamps

Mekong Delta has swampy areas and swimming in the wetlands is more fun than doing it in a regular pool. Let a local guide show you how to do it.

Mekong Delta has so much fun activities to engage in, yummy dishes to try, and lots of sights to see, you only need to take your time and explore this fantastic destination without rush. When visiting Vietnam, don’t forget to include a Mekong Delta visit in your itinerary and you will have a trip to remember.