delta rice fields.
Along the way we made a stop at an alligator farm. There were so many, that
in some of the enclosures, it looked like a mosh pit. Pretty exciting to
watch these bad boys scramble for the food - they are not in to sharing.
Chau Doc is seven miles East of the Cambodian border with a mixed population
of Vietnamese, Khmer, Cham and Chinese people. Consequently this region has
a bizarre mix of pagodas, temples and mosques. This frontier town was one of
the last to be settled by the Vietnamese and is said to still retain some of
its "wild wooliness" with smugglers on motorbikes blazing through town. We
visited a Cham community here famous for their weaving and beautiful
fabrics - some of the children here definitely were on their way to being
hooligans!
This evening we stayed at a lovely resort built in the side of the hill
about halfway up Sam Mountain. At the top of the mountain one can take in
the views at an old military base with some shrines cared for by locals.
At the foot of the Sam Mountain is Tay Au Pagoda, a colorful, traditional
Buddhist shrine dating back to 1847 and restored in 1958. Further up the
road is the Ba Chua Xu Temple where many make the pilgrimage to pray to a
local goddess known as the Holy Lady. This lady is on no diet, evident by
the abundant amounts of food being brought to her. I always wondered what
they do with all this food at these temples when so many around these parts
of the world seem to be needy. I finally asked and was told that the gifts
of food do not go to waste and are donated to feed starving children.
Headed back to our lovely accommodations halfway up the mountain, had the
first "Western" meal since leaving the ship in Hong Kong and sat by the pool
watching the sun go down.
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