©
Shutterstock
Vietnam Travel Guide
©
Shutterstock
Passing by Vinh Long on your trip to Vietnam, the inhabitants will invite you to come and live their daily life on An Binh, a small island of the Mekong opposite.
When coming to the Mekong Delta during your trip to Vietnam, set aside a few days to come to Vinh Long. To be honest, it's not the most beautiful, nor the most attractive, nor the most interesting city in this part of the country. The stop is unavoidable because you cross the Mekong in order to get to the small island of An Binh.
There you will be put up by a family with whom you will share daily life. Walk along the quayside of Vinh Long, you won't have to wait long before someone offers to put you up on the island opposite. If you get the chance, don't take your time in accepting the invitation. Discuss a price and the length of stay with your host and then you can go with them. After 10 short minutes of crossing, you can finally set foot on An Binh. The fun can begin.
The balance of the frail dugout canoe that will take you to your host's house will seem very fragile. It's rocky. Then you are already deep into Vietnam. You will be welcomed into a lovely family and you will be more relaxed than you could have hoped for.
To fill your time, you can explore the island by bike. The paths are so narrow that you'll have to pull into the side when you come across a motorbike. The scenery is magnificent and the inhabitants are very friendly and smiling. The children like posing for photos and they will ask if you would like to play with them. What a welcome. Everyone is so lovely.
For dinner you will eat like kings. An incredible feast. It's all as delicious as it is copious. It begins with spring rolls. You will make them up yourselves, filling the the rice pastry with mint, salad, cucumber, rice pasta and morsels of the enormous fish caught in the Mekong placed on a wooden display. There will also be plenty of tasty spring rolls, cucumber soup with beef. It's not over yet. Now you have a large plate of rice with Peking chicken. It's important to save a bit of room for dessert, which is pineapple. That's sufficient.
After, you slowly drag yourself into a hammock, hoping it won't break under your weight. Only the self-serve tea will help you digest.
