Xin chao from Vietnam

Xin Chao (sounds like “sin chow”) or “Hello” from Vietnam. Vietnam is a fascinating country with a long history. For about 1000 years it was controlled by the Chinese, then 100 years by the French and then about 10 years of the American War (as it is called in Vietnam). It is finally governing itself. More than half the population was born after the American War.  

We have been to Vietnam a couple of times.  This time we decided to take a boat from Cambodia down the Mekong River to the Mekong Delta where there are many cities and villages.  The Mekong is the 12th longest river in the world and borders many countries. The Mekong Delta is called a “biological treasure trove” because over 10,000 new species have been recently discovered in the unexplored areas of the Delta. Where the Mekong River flows into the delta area the river divides into many branches – some are large rivers others very small

streams.  Along the river there are many rice fields and fishing villages. Many people live in houses on stilts because during the rainy season the Mekong River floods and during the hot, dry season it allows air to circulate under the house helping to keep it cool. We visited one small village where some people were playing marbles, a girl was weaving, a lady was selling soup, and others had small shops selling a variety of things.  We bought some delicious snacks from two girls. We visited a fish farm and a huge fresh food market where they sold fruits, vegetables, fish, meat and many other things. 

We decided to visit someplace different on this trip so we took a five-hour car ride east of Ho Chi Minh City (also known as Saigon). Mui Ne is a beach destination on the South China Sea most famous with travelers who like to kite surf.  Kite surfing is an exciting sport

where people get up on a board like a surf board and are attached to a huge kite that zips them across the water. The waves and winds were strong so it is mainly for experts. It is very exciting but we only watched!  Less exciting but just as wonderful was watching the sun come up over the South China Sea.  It was especially interesting because the fishermen in

Mui Ne have unique boats.  They are round and reminded us of the nursery rhyme “Rub-a-dub-ub Three Men in a Tub” but most of the boats called coracle had one or two men in it.  Originally they were made

out of woven reeds but now they are fiberglass. Each morning hundreds of them would row out to check the nets for fish and then sell them it in the market.  We went to one fish market and they even had a small crocodile for sale.  We have eaten crocodile. Have you?  It doesn’t have must taste but it was good.

One day we took a tour to see a reclining Buddha 160-feet long and 36-feet high. A tram took us to a cable car that went through the forest to near the statue but there were still many steps to climb in order to see the statue. We also stopped at a dragon fruit farm.  Dragon fruit is good: red on the outside and white with tiny black seeds on the inside. 

Most countries have their own kind of money.  In Vietnam their money is called VND (New Vietnamese Dong). One US dollar is about the same as 0.000046 VND. If the T-shirt you want to buy in Vietnam is 300,000 VND how much would that be in US dollars? 

Xin chao from Vietnam

Xin chao! That is how we say "Hi" in Vietnam. It sounds like "sin chow."
Vietnam is a fascinating country. It suffered from war for hundreds of years including the war with the United States. Now the country is at peace and a wonderful place to visit. The largest city in the south is called Ho Chi Minh City. It used to be called Saigon but when peace came they renamed the city after the first president of the country, Ho Chi Minh. At the War Remnants Museum we saw photographs that made us very sad but we liked all the pictures made by students celebrating peace. There was a whole room of peace pictures plus a peace statue.

Walking back to our hotel we saw students getting out of school. Their parents pick them up on a motorbike. A new rule required them to wear a helmet. Also people often wear a facemask if they have a cold or are riding a motorbike. They don’t like to breathe the fumes.

We love Vietnamese food so we took a cooking lesson. Our guide, Ms. Phan showed us fruits and vegetables that they have in Vietnam. Some we had never seen before. She explained that most kitchens have a special place for the Three Kitchen Gods. These gods see everything that takes place and once a year report to the Jade Emperor in Heaven. On that day the Kitchen Gods are offered the best food and are presented with gifts. We made a whole meal and liked everything but especially the Sweet Green Bean Soup with Seaweed. It is a dessert and delicious. It can be served hot or poured over crushed ice. Sometimes looks and names can be deceiving.

We visited the city of Dalat which is different than most of Vietnam’s cities. It is located at 5000 feet so it is not hot and humid like most of the cities in the southern part of the country. The higher the elevation the cooler the weather. Another interesting fact is that it was never bombed during the war. There are many interesting things to see and do in Dalat. We took a long cable car ride to a mountaintop where there is a Buddhist monastery where people enjoy dressing up like royalty of years ago. The cable car went high over the forest that looked like the evergreen forests in America. Another fun experience was getting down to see the beautiful waterfalls. We sat is something like a sled attached to rails that curved first one way then the other making for a roller coaster-like ride to the bottom. It was exciting. Luckily we could use the brakes so we didn’t scare ourselves by going to fast. The waterfalls are beautiful so it was easy to understand why a local legend says it is where the fairies from heaven came to bath. Going back up on the coaster wasn’t as exciting but it was sure better than the 15-minute climb up the steps.

Our favorite building is called The Crazy House. It looks like Dr. Seuss created it. There are unexpected twists and turns. One part looks like giant tree roots have grown over it. The creator included a huge giraffe in one area and spider in another. It is a fun place to visit and it is not finished. We would like to return to see what else the architect creates.
The world is so interesting. Don’t you think so?