A two and a half hour journey South took us well away from the bustle of Ho Chi Min to the Mekong Delta. At the island of Ben Tre we saw coconuts, a lot of coconuts. First the processing unit which is basically a group of workers who graft from 3am to 5pm, each with their own repetitive task, smashing, peeling or chopping. They get paid about $10 a day which seems little for such hard work in the heat.

We saw the coconut powder factory then crossed the river to see the coconut charcoal plant. Coconut overload by this point although we were quite happy to sample the fruit.

We carried on down the river and landed on a smaller island where it was a short cycle ride to our next stop, a farm that makes suong sam jelly. Never heard of it? It’s a jelly made out of leaves. It tastes like leaves but you can add sugar so it tastes like sweet leaves. This stuff is a miracle. Apparently it makes women beautiful, it helps children sleep better and it keeps men virile. I could only manage half of mine so I’m only half beautiful today and Tim slept like a log last night, but he is a child at heart. Won’t get into the virile thing – parents and children about 😳

No cars on the island so back on our bikes. I’m a wobbly cyclist but this was pleasant, cycling down paths running along the canals and shaded by palms and fruit trees, the constant sound of cockerels crowing and the odd dog coming to greet you.

We arrived at a house in a clearing by a canal and were greeted by the owners who were providing our lunch. We were getting treated to the “rustic experience”. A traditional family Thai meal. Slightly awkward in that it was just us and they were so attentive but the ambience was great and they couldn’t have been kinder hosts.

They had proudly made everything themselves and produced or caught most of the ingredients. First was an elephant-eared fish.

They removed the flesh and made us several large winter rolls with noodles and fresh basil and mint. Then 2 huge prawns and spring rolls. At this point I’m starting to panic. Kim has told us about the legendary hospitality of the Southern Vietnamese and how much pleasure they get from feeding guests. But she also said that it’s impolite to not finish what you are given as this is seen as rude and ungrateful. You know I don’t do big portions so I was busily offloading food to Tim when heir backs were turned. So the main dish arrives. Chicken curry with rice and morning glory. Then an unusual sweet soup of noodles, vegetables, prawns and pineapple. Then a sticky rice cake and fruit. All absolutely delicious but I was starting to lose the will so I wrapped my cake in a napkin and snuck it into Tim’s bag so as not to offend. Our hosts spoke no English but we communicated well because they were so friendly and kind, a common theme we are finding with the people we have met so far.

We waved our goodbyes and waddled to the canal to board a bamboo rowboat that glided us through the shade of the mangroves to the bigger boat that would take us back to Ben Tre.

Back to the frantic hustle of Ho Chi Min.

Flying north tomorrow….