Hello to the Real Vietnam

Floating markets. Coconut candy and rice paper making. Tropical fruits. Boat rides. It’s another advertisement in a Pham Ngu Lao travel agency for a day trip to the Mekong Delta!
Women make coconut candy in Ben Tre Province
What we see in HCMC is the modernization of Vietnam. The frozen yogurt craze threatens to add a new coffee-shop socialization atmosphere. Decked out dance clubs attract the hip and beautiful. Luxury housing options are rising into the sky on a daily basis.
In the Mekong Delta, modernization has managed to be kept at bay in the name of a traditional Vietnamese lifestyle. I imagine that this is partly so for the sake of the tourism industry. Nevertheless, tourists receive an authentic look into the life of Vietnam as they pass through and experience the livelihood of the people. Vietnam may not have many museums that house world-renowned art collections, but it does offer a mirror into another lifestyle that allows you to reevaluate how your own life is conducted. That is not included in the twelve dollar tour ticket!
Your full day is not spent relaxing on the beach, taking in the sweetness of a dragon fruit and sipping a margarita. Most of it is spent either on a bus or a boat.
The bus ride goes by pretty quickly, especially with an i-Pod to distract you from the bus moving up and down, throwing you a couple of inches off your seat and making you wish you had access to a seatbelt. The boat ride is a nice break from the motorbikes and taxis that you get in the main city, but I would caution against leaning too far over the railing. Chances are you might catch a fine mist of brown water that is propelled from your boat or a nearby boat.
By midday, most of the floating market has dissipated but there are still a few lingering boats on the water, hoping to make a sale. There is no separation from home and work life, as evidenced by the clothes hung out to dry on the side of the boat and the women and children napping on the deck. If you want to see the floating markets at their peak, an overnight trip is mandatory in the Mekong.
It is hard to leave the Mekong without buying something edible along the way, especially when the Vietnamese woman gives you a small sampling of warm coconut candy or rice wafer that has just come off the grill. It’s like if you walked through the Hershey Chocolate factory and didn’t buy anything. It’s nearly impossible when the product is being made right in front of you.
The Mekong Delta demonstrates the Vietnamese culture in line with an untainted vision that an outsider might have of the country. The region is Vietnam at its best – the images that you might see in a movie, postcard, or picture book. The Mekong Delta will happily fulfill the task of providing a true sense of the physical landscape and lifestyle of Vietnam apart from the Westernization of its main cities.