Viet Nam bicycle tour
 

 

Vietnam flagPhoto essay:
Vietnam Bicycle Tour: Cultural Collage of the South
   

Go Cong – Cai Be (70km, 45mi).  Cycle through scenic flat farm land and cross numerous canals.

Points of interest: My Tho, Vinh Tuong Pagoda, Cai Be floating market.

  
  Beyond the influence of its numerous market centers, the Mekong Delta is very bucolic and rural.
  This patch of plants was being harvested like it was destine for a cut flower market.  The buds are still tights so I was never able to determine for certain what flower it is.
  Traveling through the Mekong Delta by road you cross numerous canals and channels.  Most have significant boat traffic, including barges carrying sand and other building materials, boats carrying farm produce, fishing boats, house boats, ferries and small boats and canoes moving up and down and back and forth across the water.
  The Vinh Tuong Pagoda is a bastion of tranquility in Mytho.  Surrounding the temple are shaded gardens and ponds.  The courtyards within the temple is full of bonsai.  The Pagoda is inhabited by a couple dozen monks and novices.  The image at  right is the main shine of the temple.  The color is distorted from neon lights used in the ornamentation of the shrine.
  The second of the three major religion in the Mekong Delta region is Catholicism.  
  Chang Thang Rach Gam Xoai Mut monument
“Chang Thang Rach Gam Xoai Mut” monument.		 In January, 1785, the Vietnamese Tay Son Army defeated thousands of Thai invaders in the battle of  “Chang Thang Rach Gam Xoai Mut”.  The secret of the Tay Son's success was “Tay Son Kung Fu” devised by the national hero Nguyen Hue.  Local warrior Nguyen Hue had assembled all of the best Vietnamese sifu masters along with Chinese and Thai settlers in Vietnam during a time of great war. He studied their fighting techniques, and then synthesized and streamlined them into a new, varied art of combat that suited the strengths of the Vietnamese nation. That new martial art was named “Tay Son Kung Fu”.  Nguyen Hue’s wider goal was to promote a winning spirit among the Vietnamese fighters that would know no defeat.  He became the first king of the Tay Son Dynasty.  
  The third major religion of the Mekong Delta is Cao Dia, an indigenous Vietnamese religion.  Their temples can be similar to the Buddhist Pagodas in the area, but often have additional symbolism drawn from Hinduism, Catholicism and other religions.
  Cai Be is a city half on land and half on the river.  Business along the river have docks that handle passengers and goods.  On the river is a floating market.
  Floating produce venders.
   

 


Floating "beverage cart" (coffee included) and floating "breakfast kiosk".
  The most prominent building in Cai Be is the Cathedral.  Much of the upland area of Cai Be has a lot of trees and is a very lush and pleasant town.  
  Glimpse of life along the shore of Cai Be. Note the customary plastic chairs (left).  They are adequately sized for most Vietnamese but a tad on the small size for most westerners.
   
 

Return to Go Cong Continue to Trang Bang

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