Cruising the Mekong: Part III, On the Cambodian Border

Kia Ora!

Weaving for the Tourists

Unlike the Cu Lao Gieng Island village we visited earlier, the people of this Cham community capitalize on the tourists that stop here. Obviously they are on the schedule for more tour boats than just Gecko Eyes III. Of course I did a little bargaining and ended up with more items than I anticipated. That is how the game is played. Vendors are quite happy to have their photos taken. That, too, is part of the deal.

Younger Citizens

The 4,000 residents of this village are Malay speakers, descendants of a migration from the west many centuries ago. The Khmer Rouge crossed the border to murder and terrorize these people. After defeating the Americans, the Viet Nam military chased the marauders back across the border to protect these legitimate citizens of their country. 

Cham Village

This is a Muslim village as noted by the dress of the citizens. Perhaps a purpose of Viet Nam tourism is to expose us to the diversity of cultures that make up Viet Nam.

Mosque Interior

Stilt House

Structures are on stilts to accommodate the flooding of the Mekong. More malaria?

Exiting and returning to our floating home was sometimes a bit tricky. The crew was very cognizant of our safety, holding a tree limb as a banister for our balance.

Cheers,

Kiwi Traveler

Cruising the Mekong: Part II We Eat Well in Our Floating Home

Kia Ora!* See note below

Gecko Eyes III

We had every comfort one could want aboard the Gecko Eyes III floating home. Our en suite (means private bathroom) accommodation looked out on river scenes, but we didn't spend much time there.

The main room was small but glass in all directions so even with wet weather we missed none of the river scene.

Main room set for a meal, of course

Chairs on the small front deck were comfortable and sheltered even in

Note side ropes to keep KC on board

light rain.


Not much time was spent lounging on top deck because we were so busy lounging elsewhere, touring ashore, and it rained.

Anh and KC relax on top deck

Great presentations!

Meals were highlights each day as Chef Trong made a special effort to

Spring rolls and vegetable rose

please. Before we boarded, Anh got a call asking the kind of food we wanted. Our reply: Vietnamese, but not spicy (to accommodate KC's intolerant stomach.) Indeed, at times they seemed more Cantonese than Vietnamese, but were uniformly delicious. When I was invited into the kitchen to work with Chef Trong, with no hesitation, I said Yes!

Chef Trong

Chef Trong demonstrated his skill in carving vegetables into flowers. (When I tried this at home, the result was disappointing.) My job was to bread chicken fingers for the entree (first course). Then I learned the

Cooking lesson

secret of deep frying so the finished product is dry and not greasy. Want to know what it is? Ask Chef Trong who had all the right equipment.

"My" chicken fingers, note garnish

Now consider, Chef Trong has had 2 years culinary school in Saigon and is a mere 20 years old! His skills should take him beyond cooking for two people on Gecko Eyes III.





Cheers, Kiwi Traveler

*Note: Why are these posts about Viet Nam if this blog is about living in New Zealand? Viet Nam is a common holiday destination for Kiwis, and we are following their lead in making this our holiday also.