November 28-29, 2022. It was time to dive into local culture. I had been mostly relaxing since finishing my tour in Nepal. Eating, hanging out at the beach and getting massages make for a wonderful vacation, but now I felt the urge to learn more about the region. Cue Intrepid Mekong Delta Homestay tour.

I know, how many Intrepid tours can a person do? Intrepid offers many very interesting tours in Vietnam, but the dates did not line up for me. I decided to go completely solo but spend two days on their homestay tour. Like many tourist sites, the Mekong Delta has been partially commercialized. Some tours just take you to shops and encourage you to buy. I wanted to experience what it was like to actually live in this enormous delta, and I trusted Intrepid to guide me. They exceeded my expectations by a long shot.

The tour started in Ho Chi Minh City. Intrepid combined both a day trip and homestay tour into one van to reduce the environmental impact. There was only one other person on my tour. He was a study abroad student from Australia. Surprisingly, we got along wonderfully and had in depth conversations throughout the trip. Thank you Rupert for being friendly!

The first part of the tour involved visiting a few of the islands. We sampled fresh fruit from family-run orchards and honey tea from a honey and flower farm. Next was a coconut candy factory where I indulged in a coconut ice cream to help cool off. The coconut candy factory was the only place we ran into a tour group. There were over 20 people all rushing to buy as many souvenirs as possible. So glad I got to see more than just that!

Lunch followed and was the first of many feasts. We had local fish, rice paper rolls, delicious papaya and mango salads, soups, rice dishes, grilled meats and so much more. Too much food but everything was delicious and locally grown.

The homestay was hosted by a married couple. Mai, the host mother, didn’t speak English, yet was still so welcoming. She cooked and showed us which foods came from her garden. Her husband worked during the day. When he returned from work we chatted about everything from life on the delta to covid to Chinese investment to environmental concerns to the World Cup. Vietnam is the final country before the Mekong River empties into the ocean. It places the people who live in the Mekong Delta at the mercy of those upstream. Other countries upstream have dams. Flooding is common especially when the other countries release more water without notice. Pollution also is a problem. We saw lots of trash floating down river. There are many factories that pollute directly into the water. The host father complained about the Chinese coconut factory directly across from his house..and how it releases untreated food waste products into the river, reducing water quality.

They had two rooms set up for us. It was comfortable with a mosquito net and fan. The delta was horribly humid and hot so the fan was a life saver. We went to bed early and woke around 5am to the roosters crowing, birds chirping, and motorboats on the river.

After a breakfast feast, we set out to explore the surrounding area by bike. Paths weave through farms and waterways. Tons of little bridges connect the delta. Depending on the tide, there are streams or ditches. Motorbikes, bicycles, and pedestrians shared the paths. At one point, I must have swerved quickly to avoid a motorbike, causing me to crash into the bushes, and barely managed to grab a tree limb to avoid falling into the muddy waters.

Our destination was the morning market to see how local people buy and sell goods. Some markets have been sanitized for tourists but this one was as authentic as they come.

Fruits, vegetables, meat, seafood, clothes, cookware and much more. Some animals were still alive. I felt too queasy to linger and take pictures of the butchers. Imagine strong grandmas wielding hatchets chopping through bone and meat with smiles on their faces. A few poor ducks sat in the dirt mostly plucked, wrapped in twine yet still alive. There were buckets full of live fish. Once you picked which ones you wanted, the seller would pick up the live fish and gut it-while it was still flopping about! Everything was obviously fresh and I enjoyed all the food in the Mekong Delta. However, seeing both the meat and fish made me consider going vegetarian again.

On the way back to the homestay we stopped at a sugarcane stand to try sugarcane juice mixed with kumquat, a local specialty. Delicious and refreshing.

We also visited with an elderly man who discussed the economic struggles related to the pandemic. His family also runs a homestay but tourism hasn’t recovered yet and they just occasionally receive guests. His brother had lived and worked in the US for 30 years so the family was mostly living off his social security benefits. $1000/month goes a lot farther in Vietnam than it would it the US.

Before we knew it, the experience was over and it was time to return to Ho Chi Minh City. I felt like I had truly experienced the Mekong Delta. I would have liked to learned more about what life was like for people living in the Delta during the war. The issue still felt sensitive and the guide and people we met just talked about the “devastation” and “horrors” that occurred in the region, which is telling in its own way.

This tour was absolutely worth the cost, and I’m so glad I left the luxury of the city. Thank you to all the kind locals who shared your lifestyle with me!