Floating Markets

5 am start to get to the floating markets. We went on the trip with just one German guy (Andreus), the two of us, a guide and the lady who drove the boat. The trip was all on a small sampan boat which was great. It took about an hour to get to the first market which is the biggest of the two we visited. On the way we got to see the people who live on the river, both in ramshackle huts on the river's edge and also on boats. A very simplistic lifestyle. They use the river for everything - to wash themselves, their clothes and to dump their waste. Its pretty filthy.

The floating markets are not for tourists. They are people selling what they have grown or bought from farmers to wholesale (4am - 6am) and then retail (6am onwards). The supermarkets and restaurants shop here daily apparently. The sellers display what they are selling on bamboo canes above their boats. Quite an experience. We then went a further hour or so down the river to a smaller market in the countryside. These sellers had been to the bigger market earlier and were now selling their produce locally. Walking through the countryside was nice and we crossed a couple of monkey bridges. Precarious bridges made of one bamboo cane to walk on and just one handrail to hold onto.

As part of the trip we also saw people making rice noodles and had lunch at a nice place on the river. All in all a pretty good day. Back to the hotel and out to the night market for dinner. The town was buzzing with teenagers on mopeds ... Friday night in Can Tho. Early to bed as early start tomorrow as we are travelling to the island of Pho Quoc for some beach days.