Garden State

Vietnam’s southwestern region is famous for its network of waterways and luxuriant orchards and today tourists travel here from all across the country.
The cultivation of the fertile lands of Southwestern Vietnam are not the result of Mother Nature. The people toiled over the creation of these lands. Historians trace the story back to Nguyen Hoang, the first Nguyen lord, who ruled Southern Vietnam from a series of cities: Ai Tu (1558-1570), Tra Bat (1570-1600), and Dinh Cat (modern-day Hue) (1600-1613).
During a power struggle in the mid-16th century he was forced to flee. He apparently sought advice from a doctoral candidate Nguyen Binh Khiem (1491-1585) on where to run. Khiem only said: “Hoanh Son nhat dai, van dai dung than”, literally meaning, “With a piece of Hoanh Son mountain, a man can settle down for his entire life.”
These words would prove to be prophetic. In 1558 the 34-year old Nguyen Hoang relocated to Thuan Hoa, which covered Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue and northern Quang Nam province. This region was then known as “the dirty and devilish land”. Trinh Kiem actually hoped to stop Nguyen Hoang from opposing his bid for power. But from then on, Hoang began to build his own realm in the south. He refused to recognise the Le Dynasty and declared himself “Good Prince” (Huu Vuong).
Over time Vietnam slowly expanded into parts of present day southern Vietnam. It was Nguyen Hoang’s relocation that resulted in a more concerted southward exodus of Vietnamese settlers, especially by those who could not abide by the rule of the Le Kings and Trinh Lords.
This migrating population began cultivating paddy rice, planting fruit gardens and establishing a trading culture on the rivers and manmade canals in the south. In the Mekong Delta the rivers and canals are still the veins of everyday life. Floating boat-homes line the river markets. Buffaloes still swim and wallow in the canals and herds of ducks and storks still feed on the river banks.
The immense orchards are also still flourishing throughout the year. You can find rambutan, longan, oranges, mangosteen, star apples, mangos and tamarinds and a whole lot more.
Unique cultural traits
Tours down the region’s waterways and orchards are captivating for foreign tourists and even for Vietnamese people unfamiliar with the culture of the Mekong Delta. Can Tho, situated 179 kilometres from Ho Chi Minh City, is in a sense the capital of Vietnam’s southwest. The city boasts a dense network of canals and rivers. All around the city is a green belt known as a “kingdom of succulent fruits and flowers.”
You can take a motorboat for an hour’s trip to Con Son, which is a separate islet in the middle of the Hau river. The islet is connected with the mainland by a ferry. All residents are farmers and many of the local population have never left the islet.
Nguyen Thi Ba is a 70-year old farmer who lives in a house surrounded by jackfruit, mangosteen and rambutan trees. “I like this simple life. I have visited the city [Can Tho] but I could not bear its lifestyle,” says Ba. “The air is quite fresh and it is not noisy here.”
In her kitchen, there is nothing modern – not even a plastic bag. Everything has been made out of rattan, wood and bamboo by Ba’s family members. “We don’t use piped water or water from dug wells. We use rain-water,” Ba says pointing at the large terra-cotta pots filled with rainwater in the corner of her yard.
At the back of her house, there is a large section of garden earmarked for chickens, ducks and pigs. The animals are – she tells me keenly – periodically vaccinated. Next to the cages is a large pond for raising fish and shrimp. Visitors can sit under the trees and fish or if that’s too taxing, take a nap in a hammock.
Ba also sells excellent xoi (steamed glutinous rice) which is wrapped in banana leaves. “The leaves keep the original flavour of the xoi and they don’t pollute the environment,” she says.
Making ends meet
“We are not rich but we have never lived in poverty because what we produce is enough to get by,” says Nguyen Thi Tu, who lives next door to Ba The islet is also home to “ban bung”, a new kind of buffet-style promotion. For just VND30,000- VND40,000 you can eat as much fruit as you like.
“We heard about this from my sister who lives in Vinh Long province,” says Tu whose farm is advertised with a simple handwritten signpost. Visitors are also permitted to wander around and pick fruit for themselves – you can even climb trees if you want. For the less accomplished climbers, you can grab a long hook and try to dislodge what you can.
Prices are cheap for local food and drinks – perhaps just a third of the price in Ho Chi Minh City. You can’t leave the farm with fruit you’ve picked during the ‘buffet”. If you want to take fruit home, you have to pay wholesale market prices, which are still extremely cheap.
“All fruit trees are grown without the use of pesticide,” Tu says. “All of our chicken and fish are also raised without industrial feed.”