Our morning excursion via sampan boats brought us to the city of Sa Dec, one of the larger cities on the Mekong Delta. It was also the location of an American patrol boat base during the Vietnam War. Our first stop was at the colorful Cao Dai temple. This temple functions as the Holy See for Vietnam’s third most popular religion after Buddhism and Catholicism – the Cao Dai religion. Cao Dai followers believe in one God but worship and integrate the teachings of Buddha, Jesus Christ, and Confucius. All three are integrated into each temple with symbols and statues. The Divine Eye is the most prevalent and most important symbol of their religion and represents God as all-seeing, all-knowing.
We toured the Sa Dec Hokkien Assembly Hall, a Buddhist place of worship. We were entertained by a traditional Vietnamese lion dance, a ritual believed to ward off evil spirits and spread prosperity and happiness.
We then made our way through the city's massive local market. The place was sensory overload – smells, sounds, sights. Seeing raw meat – of every kind, type, and part – hanging from open-air stands with suffocating heat in the air was about too much to handle! Their produce market was easier to stomach and was incredibly impressive – rows upon rows of every type of produce you can imagine. Their seafood section was equally impressive, while not palatable, and contained unusual offerings like several varieties of turtles.
Our last stop was at Huynh Thuy Le House, built by a wealthy rice trade family in the late 1800s. It was used as a hospital during the Vietnam War. Large, tall planters in its courtyard boasted the most beautiful Lotus flowers. After a lovely taste of ginger tea, we made our way back to the sampans. On our way back to our ship, you couldn't help but notice the water hyacinth – an invasive floating plant that produces light purple blossoms. It litters the waterways all along the Mekong Delta.
After a shower, a change of clothes (our now thrice-daily ritual), and lunch, we again boarded the sampans for our afternoon adventure to Gieng Island. Our first stop was to a small cottage village of craftsmen who still make handmade wooden row boats, a dying art as wooden boats are fast being replaced with manufactured fiberglass boats.
We boarded a motorcycle-led, flatbed, rickshaw-type vehicle and drove through mangrove orchards under the drizzle of light rain. As we got closer to town, we were taken aback by the schoolchildren cheering us on as we passed. The biggest smiles and happiest faces – such a delight to see.
We stopped at the home of a family who carries on the generational tradition of nón lá hat making – the iconic conical Vietnamese hat. Meticulously crafted from thin, flat strips of bamboo pressed flat by hot rocks, these hats are often decorated on the inside with colorful stitching. Unfortunately, this centuries-old tradition is quickly fading; the artisan shared that she is the last of her family to continue making these (the irony of seeing her daughter play on her iPhone while sitting behind her wasn't lost on us).
Our final visit of the afternoon was to Phanxico Church, a Franciscan Monastery built more than 150 years ago. The friar of the monastery was a dermatologist who initially treated leprosy. They have since eradicated the disease from the area. This kind-hearted man was so genuine and emotional as he spoke to us, often extending gratitude for our interest in visiting their church and referring to us as his "brothers and sisters." His message of unity touched many of us.
This trip was quickly becoming one of those trips with moments that create memories etched into our hearts.
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