All aboard the Mekong's mighty history

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Darren Devlyn
From: National Features
December 19, 2010

RIVER LIFE: A woman rows a sampan in the Mekong delta. Picture: Getty Images

THE twists and turns of this iconic Asian river reflect the troubles and triumphs experienced by the communities perched on its banks for the past 1500 years, writes Darren Devlyn.

Water buffalo, in a break from heaving carts around sun-scorched rice and turnip plantations, wade lazily through water that resembles tepid soup.

This scene, near the Vietnamese port Tan Chau, symbolises the sense of timelessness that can overcome you as you cruise the twists and turns of the Mekong River.

I'm in the middle of an eight-day APT cruise that began near Ho Chi Minh City. We'll wind our way to Phnom Penh, then take a turn up the Tonle River to get to Siem Reap to see the stunning Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom temples. Visiting everything from thriving cities to remote, self-sufficient villages, you begin to understand how extraordinary reserves of resourcefulness, resilience, courage and forgiveness have, over 1500 years, shaped the history of the region.

You visit communities that exude warmth and open-heartedness, but to gain proper insight into their surreal beauty and appreciation of the most basic requirements of life, you cannot ignore the periods of turmoil, war and, in the case of Cambodia, genocide that have torn at their heart.

Vietnam has endured French and Japanese occupation, defeated attacks from Genghis Khan's forces on no fewer than three occasions, and the devastation of the Vietnam War.

Cambodia, meanwhile, is a place of contradictions. In one sense, it has a unique, unspoilt charm, but lives with the reality that HIV is its No.1 cause of death. It is, however, slowly but surely recovering from the loss of a third of its population about two million people when Pol Pot's campaign of terror swept across it from 1975 to '79.

The starting point for this expedition is an acclimatisation day in Ho Chi Minh City, where arrival can be a jolt to your senses. The sun beats down, humidity is 85 per cent, and traffic is chaotic.

But don't let any of this worry you as you make your first attempt to cross a busy street. Here's the drill, according to a travel expert. Traffic movement is like a complicated ballet where only those in charge of cars and scooters know the steps. So walk at an even pace do not run or stop while crossing the road and the traffic will go around you. Somehow, this works.It is well worth looking around this city, which features a thriving business district with high-end boutiques and traditional markets and architectural icons.

The following morning, we take a 90-minute bus ride to the bustling port, My Tho. The first thing that strikes you about the Mekong is its width and colour rich in silt, it looks like it's flowing upside down. We settle into life on the luxury cruiser La Marguerite, meet fellow passengers and crew and get our first taste of the ship's cuisine, a brilliant combination of Asian and European influences. The ship, with its colonial-Asian decor, is all class.

The next day is a stark reminder of the pleasures of the simple things in life. We board a small cruiser, necessary for most visits to shore, and wonder at the frantic activity of Cai Be's floating markets, where produce is sold from weather-beaten boats.

On shore, we explore myriad family-run businesses that produce everything from rice paper to coconut candy and even snake wine jokingly referred to in these parts as Vietnamese Viagra. Bottled, it looks like a mad scientist's experiment, with cobras and scorpions immersed in alcohol. This concoction also is said to have medicinal properties that will soothe aches and pains.

We visit a bonsai farm accessible only by sampan paddled by a thin Vietnamese girl who must be groaning inwardly at having to transport the hefty weight of this Aussie.

A visit to the agricultural and industrial trading centre of Sa Dec could be just the thing to inspire a diet. This port town, which in the Vietnam War was the site of an American Swift Boat base, boasts a riverbank market that offers a vast array of local "delicacies". Fish, in water that barely covers their gills, flip-flop about in shallow metal tubs. As do frogs. We also pass on the tub of skinned rats.

A highlight of the trip is a visit to the bustling port town of Tan Chau, which sits in the Giang Province and was formed in 1757. Sharing a border with Cambodia to the northwest, it is criss-crossed by canals and small rivers and is famous for its rice production and silk industry.

This port has been largely untouched by tourism. APT is the only operator that takes tours there, so expect inquisitive kids to run to the road, wave and shout hello as you scoot past in a rickshaw.

We board a small motorboat for a half-hour journey up a narrow stream. One of the most spectacularly tranquil villages on the trip beckons. Evergreen Island, with its corn, turnip and chilli crops and cattle, is completely self-sufficient.

Then comes the shock revelation. This unassuming, intensely proud community was ravaged by Khmer Rouge forces in April 1978, with about 30 villagers, including women and children, killed and flung into the river.Late afternoon, we board the ship for the 100km cruise to Cambodia's capital, Phnom Penh, which, despite its social ills and history of genocide, is getting back on its feet economically.

The barbaric Khmer Rouge, under the French-educated Pol Pot, seized power on April 17, 1975 initially a cause of celebration in Cambodia because its people believed it signalled a new era of peace.

But a regime of terror followed, under a program of Mao Zedong-inspired re-education, centred around forced agricultural collectives. Up to 2.2 million of Cambodia's population of seven million died from murder, starvation or disease under the Khmer Rouge.

The unified Vietnam, in conjunction with anti-Khmer Rouge forces, intervened in 1978 and toppled the monster dictator, but Cambodia would not be considered safe as a tourist destination for another 20 years.As recently as 2001, a travel book warned if you were to visit Cambodia you should expect to be hustled, ripped off and maybe robbed during your stay. None of these threats seem apparent while touring the city centre, including its market and magnificent royal palace by day, anyway.

By night, you discover there are plenty of up-market bars and restaurants and more than a few dodgy ones, with clientele to match.

Some in our tour group are either hesitant about or openly against visiting the former Khmer Rouge interrogation and extermination centre, Toul Sleng, also known as S21, and the nearby Genocide Museum, which sits hauntingly in the middle of one of 347 known Khmer Rouge killing fields in Cambodia.

At the killing field, you follow narrow trails between the excavation sites where 10,000 men, women and children were executed and hurled into shallow pits.

The following morning, we take a 40-minute cruise to the little-known silk-weaving village of Chong Ko, providing a cause for unbridled excitement from the locals. Boarding the ship again is not as simple as it seems. The villagers who have befriended us on the tour are now going the hard sell with their silk to the point where you begin to feel flustered. You grow to expect this in the regions that see very little tourism you can't begrudge them for trying to exploit a sales opportunity. Their scarves, rugs and table runners, priced between $10 and $15, are magnificently crafted.

We jump back on La Marguerite and sail 150km to Kampong Chhnang. Low water levels mean we must jump off La Marguerite on what would have been the final morning of the cruise. This seems a bitter disappointment, robbing us of the chance to cruise the wide expanses of the Tonle Sap. What's more, we face a five-hour bus ride to Siem Reap, where we are to visit the stunning Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom temples.

The bus trip offers some fun when we pull into a town called Skun, aka Tarantula Town. This place is renowned across Asia for its deep-fried delicacy, tarantula, which you can buy readily from roadside stalls. If you can't summon the courage to eat a fried one, at least let the local kids sit a couple of the furry friends on your chest for a photo opportunity.

What better way to finish the tour than a trek through the ancient ruins of Angkor. They're hidden in the jungles of northern Cambodia temples of the Khmer kingdoms that date back as far as the 9th century.

Angkor Wat is renowned for intricate detail in mythological scenes of Hindu origin.

Its construction was followed by the Buddhist-inspired Angkor Thom. Both are breathtaking in their beauty.

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Wish you were here

Getting there: APT has a free return flights to Vietnam deal ($550, air taxes are extra) on the April 8, 2011, departure of its 13-day Mekong Delights package, cruising on the La Marguerite. It is priced from $3695 a person, twin share. Includes cruising, 30 meals, shore excursions, three nights in Siem Reap, a seven-night cruise, two nights in Ho Chi Minh City and tips.

APT's new Vietnam brochure featuring Mekong River cruise packages onboard the La Marguerite or the new APT-owned MS Amalotus soon will be released.

Seeing there: On this APT tour, you won't find better tour guides anywhere. Unfailingly polite, these people have extraordinary knowledge of the history of the region. In cruising time, fun activities are scheduled on-board. And guides run optional Q&A sessions that offer deep insight into the places you are about to go to and places you've just been.

For more details, call APT on 1300 229 804, go to www.aptouring.com.au or see a travel agent.