The Can Tho Floating Market gets going about 6am, and we really had to hustle to get down to the boats before the market closes up for the day.  Since the hotel breakfast (the most extensive so far! Continental, Vietnamese, hot and cold; soup noodles and omelettes to order; breads and cold cuts; and of course fresh fruits and coffee/tea) starts at 6am, we headed out about 6:30 (try getting teenagers up and going by then on a non-school day!).

Right outside the hotel's front door were sidewalk vendors selling meats (yes, not allowed in the U.S.), fish, other seafood, frogs (remember: French), fruits and vegetables -- everything you'd need for tonight's dinner. This lady is selling lotus seeds, lotus root, and lotus stems (remember the salad about which I previously wrote?); beyond that are orange pumpkin flowers (last night Minh ordered those--stuffed with pork a deep fried in a tempura-like batter).

I also pointed out the monk across the street. Minh said he was from Thailand.  People give monks food/money in the mornings (to receive blessings, especially on your birthday as our maid did when we lived in Bangkok), as they can only "beg" before noon, and eat one meal a day.   The monks must eat a little of everything given to them.

Then we walked a short distance to the "pier", from where Vinh left in 1980 (?). The boat carried over 120 people, sitting space only. People were packed in like sardines (thus the lower level, where Vinh was sitting, received "presents" from those sitting above). The boat became stuck on a sandbar on the way out, and all the men pushed and pulled but couldn't free it. Fortunately, the tide came in, freed th boat, and then they were off.  But pirates found them and stole anything of value. Now penniless, the boat was rescued by the Germans, and passengers then dropped off in Singapore, where they were allowed to enter only if they promised to leave - the refugees were definitely not allowed to stay in Singapore.

For our excursion, we opted for our own (smaller) boat, rather than joining a big group of Europeans. This allowed us flexibility to do what/when we wanted.  Here's a view from the river: The big white hotel on the left is where we are staying, West Hotel. That is in such contrast to some of the locals' dwellings on the river. But unfortunately, this reality is not unique to Vietnam....

As we neared the market, a lady selling beverages "pirated" our boat by hooking on to our boat! Minh bought coconuts--1/2 the price as in Saigon! (VD 10,000, or slightly less than US$0.50) Yes, they made us wear these life vests, but we gave it up at the rice noodle factory.

The goods for sale are displayed at the top of poles; we saw cabbage, pineapple, watermelon, onions, potatoes, and more.

Here's another beverage vendor.

Most live aboard their boats; you can't "leave the office"!

Don't forget the lottery tickets!

On the way back to the dock, I saw this scene. While some local people have only basic necessities, modern technology is also a "must"!  (Sorry, you probably have to enlarge the photo to see the mobile device.) Don't share this with my students, as they'll probably say it's "required" for them to be "online" during class!

Time for lunch!

Laters...