Where? .... Chau Doc ! 36 hours in Chau Doc !

5:40
OMG, given that I was in bed by 8:30, there must be something about his room that makes me sleep well.

The village/city market is RIGHT in front of my balcony.  The Banh Mi I had last night was one of the best I have ever eaten.  My room costs US$ 12.50 per night.

It doesn't take a genius to figure out why I'm staying one more night, does it? LOL.

7:15

I got myself another Banh Mi.  There are two stands side by side and I think one of them had packed in early yesterday.  So I'm getting my Banh Mi from a different source.   My mouth is ON FIRE !  Good thing I still have a little of that Bordeaux Sauvignon Blanc left in the fridge to quench the flames ;-)

Time to have a look at this town. 

Fishing is important in these parts ?!

... but not on this boat ...

I might as well enter the local Co.op mart to see what they have.

As expected, the only Nivea they have here, is the WHITENING variety.

Buying this shirt is a good move.  The Neon lightning screws up the colours. It becomes my favourite shirt as soon as I see it in daylight. 

I'm the only foreigner in this store.  But all the signs are bilingual !

After buying the shirt, some wine and munchies, I head back to the hotel

Time for another nap ;-)

I'm HUNGRY.  But having some fancy food would be nice.  I start walking towards downtown.

A girl of about 13-15 carrying her Grandmother on her back. I spot her when she just strenuously put her Grandma down, who is now squatting on the pavement. The girl crossed the road to local street vendors (obviously not rich people) with her Viet rice hat extended upside down. She is collecting money.

And this is not Vancouver.  The first vendor puts bills in her hat and directs her to the next vendor.  The moment I see this, I get my wallet out of my backpack.

Please, DO make an effort to READ this book !

I wave her over. Why do I only give her VND 20,000?   Am I cheap? I hope not.  I think it is out of respect to the street vendor donors.   I could have easily put $10 in her hat, but that would have devalued the street vendor's efforts, which would be a horrible thing.

Experiencing this event makes my chosen destination even more questionable.  I'm STARVING and I'm walking to the fancy Victoria Chau Doc Hotel to feed.

I didn't like my decision earlier but now I detest it.  Why do I keep going?  

 Because I want to have good WiFi while sitting at a full-size table.  !%@

Wine is not on the menu, but I get a glass anyway.  When the food arrives, I ask how much I am paying for that small glass.  VND 135,000.   Cheap by American standards, but here it is a joke.   I order a Bia Sai Gon next.

They actually cut a REAL banana leaf to size to hold the peanuts. NO plastic here !

If all those tourists could drop their fears and realize that fancy hotels like the Victoria Chau Doc are NOT actually an experience but in reality serves as a Protective Shield AGAINST the real Viet experience and would consequently switch to my fabulous hotel, they would save US$ 80 PER NIGHT.   Just imagine what good that kind of money could do in the right poor pockets (or hats).

And I should NOT be exempted from that harsh verdict.  My meal at this post Colonialist place costs me $17.  My hotel room only costs me $12.50 per night.    YES, it is THAT easy to go over to the DARK SIDE !

The worst part comes when the fancy meal refuses to linger in my stomach but violently urges downward. Karma waving a fence post to get my conscience going?  Back at my hotel I am forced to remain in the vicinity of the toilet for most of the afternoon.

LOL.  I never hat the shits from Streetfood and now the 'fancy' restaurant got me. Lesson Learned

5:00
A night with much interrupted sleep (NO idea why. A remnant reaction from the fish burger?) later I decide to get up.

When I head down to the reception at 6 am to get a bottle of water from the stack in the lobby, I am confirmed in my earlier suspicion about the advertised '24 hour reception' of this hotel.   Scooters crowd the lobby surrounding the hotel staff snoring away on basic sun-lounger-type sleeping accommodations.  They don't even wake up so I leave 1$ in exchange for the large bottle I clandestinely snatch. 

At 7:00, the staff is finally awake so that I can get myself some HOT water for my instant coffee.

LOL, two years ago I would have been SCARED to walk roads like this. WHY? Can't remember !

8:30
My bus doesn't leave until 10:30, so I can head back to the COOP market to buy more stuff.  

Boulangerie on a stick ...

One more shirt (not Paisley this time, but little flowers), a bottle of Vang Dalat, and some Viet yogurt.  

Back at the hotel, I am DRENCHED in sweat.  But that's the price you pay to forget what a cold draft feels like, LOL.

10:15

A guy with a motorbike pulls up in front of the hotel and my hotel guy motions me to get mounted.  He quickly assures me that this is only meant to get me to the bus station and NOT all the way to Ha Tien.