The Klongs of the Mekong – A trip around the backwaters of Can Tho, Vietnam

Just outside the town of Can Tho are the river canals where the Vietnamese go about their daily life. Many cottage industries can be found here and a trip by boat (or if in an energetic mood a bike ride) is a good way to experience the quiet Klongs which are just a stones throw away from the city. Thick vegetation, rickety bridges, children playing in the water and families washing their laundry were common sights along the way. We stopped off for lunch by the water’s edge before heading down the path for a walk along the dusty track circumnavigating animals and balancing on insubstantial branchs to cross intersecting subsidaries of the klongs.

We visited a paper rice cottage industry where health and safety officers would have a field day and a python breeding house that sold the babies for a substantial amount of money (I think they eat them).

But it was the tranquility of the river, the shaded hush away from the bustling city and its noisy bikes, the lush green plants and foilage, the gliding boats whos only sound was the dip of oars in the water as they crept up upon us and the wide welcoming smiles of the boat ladys as they overtook us that made this part of the trip memorable.