Ben Tre is well-known as the land of coconuts. The province, 86km from HCM City, is home to 40,000ha of various coconut species. Waterway travel is an attractive way of travelling the byways and highways of this destination.
The Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta province of Ben Tre is made up of three main islands wedged between the Tien River to the north and the Co Chien River to the south with the Ham Luong River running straight down the centre. All are effectively offshoots of the Mekong as it splits out into many fingers before spilling out into the sea.
Verdant and flat, the province is mostly given over to rice and fruit cultivation. Traditional Mekong life is the norm here, with easy going markets, plenty of opportunities to stop for coffee, take a boat trip or skip through the local museum.
The one-day tour to Phung (Phoenix), the 28ha islet emerging in the middle of the Tien River is a popular choice for tourists.
Tourists begin the trip on large ship departing from the ferry. Arriving at the coconut forests around Phung Isle, they transit to small boats to discover the coconut isle and thread their way through canals which only allow boats to pass one by one.
Rowers prove their ability in steering boats through narrow canals sometimes by using their legs. Our first stop is a large house built and roofed from coconut, surrounded by a garden of fruit trees. A young man briskly climbs up a coconut tree and picks fruits to serve us fresh, instant coconut milk.
We don't have to wait for long to enjoy local grapefruit, papaya, durian, dragonfruit and starfruit. The tropical fruits make us realise how blessed by nature Ben Tre is.
Another speciality of the southern isle is a performance of don ca tai tu (amateur singing) and hat boi (southern classical theatre). All the singers and instrumentalists are locals, and although they are amateurs, their performance is enjoyable. This kind of singing is popular and is a strong feature of people's ordinary life. They sing while working, rowing, and picking fruits. Enjoying the traditional music performance by local singers under a roof of coconut leaves is really wonderful.
After relaxing, we feel ready to continue exploring the isle. The tour guide leads us to a small irrigation canal and with a smile, promises us a game that we haven't experienced before.
We are to catch some fish. We wade across the irrigation ditch, and use mud to stop the current of water in a section. When the water is bailed out from the section, we find red snapper, anabas and snake-head fish and begin catching them. We use our hands, fishing baskets and bamboo fish traps to catch them. After a long time bailing out water, my friend has an idea. He lies and stretches his arms with the hope of stopping the water running but it's useless. We have lots of fun but we don't try to catch that many. We stop when we've got enough for lunch and leave some fish for other tourists.
We enjoy the fruits of our labour prepared and cooked in a local style.
The most common tree on the islet is without doubt the coconut. The people are extremely creative, making a range of things from coconut. We have a chance to visit small factory producing coconut products and handicrafts and learn how they are made.
No part of a coconut tree is wasted. Leaves are used for roofs. Fruit is eaten instantly and processed into candy and pancakes. Their shells are dried to put teapots inside to keep warm. Coconut roots are sculpted into masks and the faces of an old man with a long beard. Tree-trunks are used to build houses, make chopsticks and decorative objects. We even don't realise that some products are made of coconut because they have been transformed into sophisticated objects such as hairpins, handbags and wallets. There are so many things to buy as souvenirs.
Phung Isle is also home for craftsmen producing furniture with materials taken from the coconut tree, and families raising bees for honey from the longan flower. The product is sold on the spot to visitors.
It's also known as the islet of Dao Dua (Coconut Religion). There are lots of curious architectural features here and some relics of the religious activities such as a nine-storey tower where Nam preached, a huge censer, a yard decorated by nine dragons and a monument showing documents relating to the establishment of the religion.
The one-day tour is not enough to discover the character and uniqueness of the islet but we have really had some wonderful moments and experiences.