The Mekong Delta slowboat ticket workplace was at the leading of the pier, and it was a quite straightforward transaction – all I necessary was my passport and the rate in money. I was assigned a seat quantity, even though in observe these are arbitrary. Listed here there was a bit of ready, but I utilized the likelihood to laden myself with snacks at the nearby stall – a thing I’d remarkably suggest, as there aren’t precisely shops on the river. I also introduced myself to a several of my fellow passengers, some of whom were being on organised group excursions and some solo-travelling.
The boat still left about eleven, but it is much better to board a small before. You want to be close to the entrance or center, as the engines are at the back and are deafening more than enough to transform this idyllic journey into anything completely much more annoying. Some boats have rather uncomfortable wood pew-sort seats, while some have chairs repurposed from coaches, so a travel pillow can be incredibly valuable. Mine was the previous, and it did signify a good deal of shifting from cheek to cheek, but for the cost it was much more than cosy ample. Although the real experience down the river is rather sleek, the boat rocks quite significantly in the course of passenger boarding and cargo loading, so if you are a little bit nervous about sailing you could possibly want to get ready yourself.
Although it experienced only been a several small several hours because I’d woken up, I felt like I’d by now packed in a number of days’ truly worth of travelling. But now I understood I could sit back again, loosen up, and choose in the river scenery. The nature of the boat usually means shade and a continual breeze to battle the pulsing Southeast Asian sun, so it was a enjoyable journey from the getgo. Though my surroundings were a delight, the views were being rather dependable all over the very first working day, so I obtained by way of a several web pages of my book. However, I also had a deck of playing cards, perhaps the most helpful product any traveller can have if they want to socialise. The playing cards promptly manufactured me well-liked among the other passengers on the lookout for one thing to do, and quickly there were a couple unique teams of us all acquiring to know every single other.
