Up and out early for our breakfast cruise on the (lucky) Lady Hau [depicted above] boat, with other hotel residents, to the start of the Cai Rang Floating Market.
Then switched to our own boat where we meet Hiu and Hoa (Captain Birdseye). Captain Birdseye is a very good sailor when there are no other vessels around.
Unfortunately, the floating market has rather a lot of vessels, so we end up in tangled in someone’s anchor and Captain Birdseye goes under about three times failing to release us. He ended up cutting us loose, going under a fourth time and then sailing round finding a replacement anchor for the aggrieved boat.
Eventually we move on to Binh Minh village specialising in dried tofu…
…where we walked around – this village is only aspiring to be cultural and only a minority of households have achieved culture. We met some children and gave some pens. We also picked up Dhi Bay – (Mrs No 7) who prepares a lunch on board– Very tasty – pork stuffed courgette flower, spring rolls, chicken and some river prawns.
We then stop at Phước Hậu – a cultural village thank goodness [don’t ask how the dictate app imagined that village’s name is spelt], where Daisy cycled with Hiu and I walked with Binh. Very pleasant.
We saw people growing mint and families playing cards – everyone was very friendly.
Comedy moment as Captain Birdseye crosses to the wrong side of the canal as Binh and I cross to meet him but eventually we pick up Daisy and Hiu and go on to Ut Trinh.
Short stop at touristic nursery opposite (too long for Ged) and on to home stay, greeted by a rather sad/sickly looking Mrs Ba.
Soon we meet Rowan and Cindy from Belgium and Manuel the German from Tokyo. Also Parisian Globetrotters Eloise (eight) and her parents.
Cooking class, dinner with our own freebie Park Hyatt wine and chat about the world afterwards.