Travel guide Experiences

Month: June 2022

Soc Trang’s Green Rice Flakes – Eat Best Food in Soc Trang

Posted on by Thomas Vietnam

Every year, on the full moon of the tenth month of the lunar calendar (the full moon of Cadak according to the Khmer Buddhist calendar) comes the beautiful moon with bustling festivals during the traditional Okom festival of the Khmer people in the South. Particularly in Soc Trang, in addition to excitedly cheering for the fierce competition on the river of colorful Ngo boats, at night, you can admire the wind lanterns floating high in the sky, or rows of water lamps with brilliant flowers floating on the Maspéro; Impressive in the hearts of tourists is also a rustic Rice flakes dish with bold characteristics of Southern Khmer culinary culture.

By Thomas Vietnam at vemekong.com | All Best Foods & Restaurants in Soc Trang

Soc Trang’s Green Rice Flakes – Eat Best Food in Soc Trang

1. Better to Know as a Food Lover

Find them: Soc Trang city.

Best time: Dusk-Dawn

Don’t miss: Soc Trang’s Green Rice Flakes

Local’s pick: Market in Soc Trang

Tourist’s pick: Supermarket in Soc Trang

Blog: https://vemekong.com/soc-trang-green-rice-flakes/

Facts: Oc Om Boc festival is also known as moon worshiping festival. Each house presents a tray of offerings including: coconuts, potatoes (tapioca or taro), dwarf roots, bananas, gingerbread, fruits… and of course indispensable Rice flakes along with the custom of praying on a full moon night. On the night of the festival, after the moon worshiping ceremony, the Khmer elders scooped up the Rice flakes into large handfuls and put it in the children’s mouths as a blessing, praying for long-lasting satiety.

2. Better to Know Soc Trang’s Green Rice Flakes

Rice flakes needs ingredients that are delicious, long-grain sticky rice. At the beginning of the crop, when the glutinous rice grains have just passed the milking stage, they are harvested early to make nuggets in time for the moon season. Just finished washing, bring back fresh, choose the largest seeds to roast on a hot pan, mix continuously to not burn or scorch. When the glutinous rice seeds in the batch are roasted, the shell is slightly evaporated, there is a faint fragrance and the crackling explosion is immediately poured into the mortar. The mortar must be made of old jackfruit wood, with a narrow and deep heart. The beat of the pestle becomes more and more regular, strong and firm; The more quickly the sticky rice peels off, the more “blooms” into thin, large, even nuggets that retain their plasticity by roasting with enough fire and airy yellow-green color, emitting a scent that wakes up the cozy home garden sticky rice. After finishing pounding, the batch of nuggets is poured through a sieve, removing the rice husk and crumbs. Finished Rice flakes is poured into baskets, then put into bags for preservation.

Soc Trang Rice flakes is famous for its “folk brand” which is Phu Tan Rice flakes (in My Tu district – now in Chau Thanh district) and Chau Hung (Thanh Tri district), which are two communes that often produce special dishes. Picking up a handful of dry rice flakes into the mouth, chewing slowly, you can feel the plasticity of the sticky rice mixed in the light aroma of the new rice crop and the unforgettable sweet and delicate taste. The way to eat “right” is also quite simple and rustic: Just mix the dried nuggets with coconut water (preferably the type of coconut shell), add a few tablespoons of fine granulated sugar with a few grated desiccated coconut and mix well. After about 15-30 minutes, you can eat it right away or sprinkle some crushed roasted peanuts to increase the flavor. Rice flakes has bran shell, so it contains many nutrients such as vitamins B1, B2, PP, many essential amino acids, rich in minerals such as calcium, phosphorus and iron. The Rice flakes dish contains high starch content, lots of sugar and fatty coconut. Although it is just a “play” dish, it provides a lot of energy, compensating for farmers in hard days. Later, flat com is also used to make Rice flakes tet or “Decorate” in addition to fried banana cakes and deep-fried durian cakes, creating rustic dishes that have an unforgettable taste if anyone has tried it once

3. SocTrang’s Green Rice Flakes in Soc Trang

Every year at the end of autumn, there is an opportunity to visit the rural areas with a large number of Khmer people of Soc Trang, if you hear the echo of the beat of the drums and the shackles, mixed with the sound of the fiddle – Khe, you come to visit; You will probably come across for a moment the image of rural mothers roasting the first batch of rice nuggets by the flickering straw fire in the afternoon. A few feet away are the muscular boys spinning barefoot, showing off their muscular muscles, swinging their baseballs with each beat, a few young girls in the colorful traditional sarongs and dragons also rhythmically swinging their sieves, and A group of children happily frolicking by the tall straw dunes in the garden heralds a bountiful harvest – like an idyllic but lively picture of a Khmer village in Soc Trang.

Freshly pounded com is quite crunchy and flexible to eat, and smells like new sticky rice. But to eat better, people have to mix Rice flakes with grated coconut, less coconut water and white sugar. On average, about 1kg of Rice flakes, use a grated coconut, coconut water and ½ kg of sugar. Use a large bowl to mix the Rice flakes, sugar and coconut water, let it sit for about 30 minutes for the coconut water and sugar to be absorbed into the slightly soft nuggets. When eating to add a little grated coconut, crushed roasted peanuts or sesame will increase the attractiveness and fatness. Want to eat for a long time or give as gifts to relatives and friends, people pack pre-mixed nuggets in banana leaves, coconut leaves like banh tet, coconut cakes to cook or steam. At that time, we have flat, delicious and strange banh tet compared to normal banh tet.

4. How to Make Soc Trang’s Green Rice Flakes

Ingredients for mixing delicious Rice flakes

200g Rice flakes

50g pandan leaves

200ml coconut milk

½ dried coconut

Spices: Sugar, Salt

Good tip

Rice flakes has two types, green and white, you can use whichever you like.

To choose delicious desiccated coconut, use your fingernail to press the copra. If it feels hard to press, it’s a dried coconut. Using desiccated coconut will give the finished product more fleshy, sweet, and aromatic than other types of coconut.

How to mix delicious Rice flakes

Step 1. Prepare ingredients

First, you wash the Rice flakes with water to remove dirt and then dry.

To extract pandan leaf juice, wash the pandan leaves, cut them into small pieces, put them in a blender with 100ml of water to puree them. Then, you use a sieve to filter out the pineapple leaves, keeping the water.

For desiccated coconuts, you use a coconut scraper to scrape them into fibers.

Note

During the process of washing the nuggets, do not let the water soak for too long because it will make the nuggets mushy.

Step 2. Make pandan coconut milk

You put 200ml of coconut milk, 50g of sugar and ¼ teaspoon of salt in a pot, bring to a boil. Then, you add 2 tablespoons of pandan leaf juice and continue to boil until the mixture boils again.

Step 3. Mix the nuggets with coconut water

After draining, put the Rice flakes in a bowl, slowly pour the pandan coconut milk mixture into the nuggets. Remember to just pour and mix well, when you see that the nuggets are wet enough, stop and wait for about 30 minutes for the nuggets to absorb the coconut water.

You repeat the above mixing method 2 more times.

Note

Coconut milk with pandan leaves is only added to the Rice flakes when it is still hot and warm. So before you pour it into the bowl of nuggets, remember to reheat it!

Finally, you mix in the nuggets 1 tablespoon sugar to create more sweetness (increase or decrease the amount of sugar depending on taste). After that, you add coconut fiber to the nuggets and you’re done.

Good tip

You wait about 10-15 minutes after mixing to let the sugar soak into the nuggets before eating, it will be more delicious.

5. Pro tips:

Here are our tips for easing your mind (and stomach) around food-handling environments that you may not be used to.

Make sure the food is freshly cooked. If you’re eating hot street food, it’s always safest (not to mention more delicious) to eat food you can see being cooked to order.

Look for lines and busy stalls. Busy street food stalls are an indicator of popularity, and their high turnover rate means the food is never sitting out for hours and developing dreaded bacteria. Yes, long lines can be discouraging when you’re hungry after a full day of exploring, but it’s not worth the risk of grabbing precooked food from the empty spot next door.

Eat when the locals are eating. The last and most important element here is when to eat. You’re likely already on a weird eating schedule while you’re traveling, but it’s important to try and adjust to the eating times of where you are. A bowl of pho might be lunch for Americans, but it’s breakfast for the Vietnamese. This ensures that you’re eating freshly cooked food and that you can find the best and most popular places to eat.

If you can’t drink the water, then you can’t eat the salad. Most people get so hung up on not drinking the water or skipping ice in drinks that they don’t think about all of the other ways in which water is used in food service. Fruits and vegetables tend to be washed with tap water in most places, rather than the filtered water that locals drink—or sometimes it’s not washed at all. If you’re really craving some produce, try fruits you can peel or cooked veggies.

Trust your gut. If you’re unsure about the food or the way that it’s being prepared, then keep moving. Eating street food all over the world doesn’t make you an expert. Every stall and every country are different, and sometimes the rules can be harder to follow. When something doesn’t look, smell, or feel right, don’t eat it! Trust your judgment. Chances are that there’s another spot close by that’s making something more delicious.

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Can Tho: Co Ut’s Cong cake, Ut Dzach Fine Rice Vermicelli, Thanh Van Grilled Pork Sausage, Crab Noodle Soup At Floating Market, Scorched Rice with Caramelized Fish Sauce, 7-Toi’s Duck Meat Pancake, Banh Mi Thuy, Banana Blossom Salad, Fried Spring Rolls, Fresh Spring Rolls, Fetal duck egg (balut), Honeycomb Cake, Mini Sticky Rice Cake, Cassava Silkworm Cake, Grilled Banana Wrapped in Sticky Rice, Khmer-style Bun Goi Da Soup, Egg Coffee, Con Son Grilled Snakehead Fish, Bun Mam – Fermented Fish Noodle Soup, Lau Mam – Fermented Fish Hotpot, Grilled Snails with Pepper, Magenta Sticky Rice Cake, Duck cooked with Fermented Tofu, Rice Noodle Pizza, Vegetarian Noodle Soup, Snails Stuffed With Pork…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Chau Doc: Chau Doc Fish Noodle Soup, Sugar Palm Fruit, Basa Fish Hot Pot, Mam (Fermented fish), Phu Huong Beef Noodle Soup, Broken Rice with Pork Chop, Long Xuyen Broken Rice, Nui Cam Pancake, O Thum’s Chicken Grilled with Lime Leaves, Stir-fried Shrimp with Sesbania Flower, Sweet & Sour Soup with Siamese Mud Carp Soup & Sesbania Flower, Caramelized & Braised Catfish, Grilled Rice-field Rat with Salt and Chili…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Soc Trang: Pia Cake, Cong Cake (Banh Cong), Bun Nuoc Leo Soc Trang’s Noodle Soup, Soc Trang’s Bun Goi Da Soup, Duck Noodle Soup with black Pepper, Curry Noodle Soup, Grilled Beef on Tile, Khmer-style Tube Cake, Khmer-style Mung Bean Cake (Banh In), Dried Radish (Xa Bau), Stir-Fried Noodles with Seafood (Mi Sua), Soc Trang’s Green Rice Flakes…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Ben Tre: Phu Le Rice Wine, Ben Tre’s Coconut Candy, Flat Banana, Coconut Rice, Snail Pancake, Sea Snail with Coconut Milk, Coconut Worm, Young Coconut Salad with Shrimp & Pork, Son Doc Puff Rice Paper…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Cai Be: Puffed Rice Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Vinh Long: Elephant Ear Fish (fried giant gourami)…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in My Tho: Fried Sticky Rice, Snakehead Fish Rice Porridge, Hu Tieu My Tho (Noodle Soup), Coconut Banana Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Tra Vinh: Macapuno Coconut, Bun Nuoc Leo Tra Vinh’s Noodle Soup, Tra Cuon’s Sticky Rice Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Sadec: Sa Dec Noodle Soup, Sadec Crab Hotpot, Lai Vung Spring Rolls, Sa Giang Shrimp Puff Pastry, Lai Vung Tangerine…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Bac Lieu: Spicy Beef Noodle Soup, Bac Lieu’s Three-striped Crab, White Radish Pies, Bac Lieu Thick Noodles & Creamy Coconut Milk, Bon Bon Pickles…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Ca Mau: Banh tam ga cay (Silkworm rice cake with curried chicken), Grilled Vop clams with salt and pepper, Grilled Mudskipper Fish, Stone Crab Roast With Salt, Young Bee Salad, Nam Can’s Crab, U Minh Forest’s Honey, U Minh’s Fermented Fish Hotpot…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Hau Giang: Cau Duc Pineapple, Cai Tac’s Pork Organs Porridge, Hau Giang’s Bronze Featherback Fish Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Ha Tien: Herring Fish Salad, Spider crab cake soup, Ken Noodle soup, Xoi Xiem (Siamese sticky rice), Steamed Noodle soup, Ha Tien Oyster porridge…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Rach Gia: Stir Noodle Soup, Kien Giang Fish Noodle Soup…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Con Dao: Bang nut jam, Vu Nang Snail, Roasted Pork Bread (Banh Mi), Coconut Ice Cream…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Phu Quoc: Phu Quoc Sim Wine, Phu Quoc Pepper, Phu Quoc fish sauce…

Hopefully, the above tips will help you to come up with a great plan for your adventure in Mekong River Delta, Vietnam. Have a safe trip!

“Sleep less, travel more, respect more” – Thomas Vietnam – Local travel expert.

Thank you

Dried Radish (Xa Bau) – Eat Best Food in Soc Trang

Posted on by Thomas Vietnam

In addition to purple onions, white radish is also one of the crops that bring high economic value in Soc Trang. In particular, dried radish (xa bau) is popular with people inside and outside the province.

By Thomas Vietnam at vemekong.com | All Best Foods & Restaurants in Soc Trang

Dried Radish (Xa Bau) – Eat Best Food in Soc Trang

1. Better to Know as a Food Lover

Find them: Soc Trang city.

Best time: Dusk-Dawn

Don’t miss: Xa bau

Local’s pick: Market in Soc Trang

Tourist’s pick: Bowl pagoda in Soc Trang

Blog: https://vemekong.com/dried-radish-xa-bau-soc-trang/

Facts: Xa Bau in Chinese means nutritious radish, which Vietnamese call Dried radish.

2. Better to Know Dried Radish (Xa Bau)

Xa Bau is a pickled radish dish originating from the Tieu people (Tieu Chau). During the process of cultural exchange and migration to the Southern region, this dish was introduced into Vietnam and became a specialty dish that you cannot ignore when coming to Bac Lieu, Soc Trang. Xa Bau is a name that is misread from “chai pau” in the Tieu language

3. Dried Radish (Xa Bau) in Soc Trang

Xa Bau is made from the main ingredients of white radish, salt and sugar. White radish will be dried to peel and then mixed with salt until the radish is slightly moist and supple, then mixed with white sugar and incubated for a few days, it can be used.

Xa Bau after completion will have a dark brown color, the surface is a bit dry and tough. When eaten, it tastes sweet, salty, and has a radish aroma. In Soc Trang, people often use it to serve with white porridge, white rice, banh tet, or to process it into dishes such as: Stir-fried Xa Bau with bacon, Sauteed with lemongrass and chili, cooked soup….

4. How to Dried Radish (Xa Bau)

Ingredients for making Xa bau

3kg white radish

1.2kg salt granules

How to make amnesty

Step 1. Preliminary processing of white radish

Buy white radish, wash thoroughly and drain. When buying, you should choose elongated, firm, heavy-handed tubers so that the salt is better.

Step 2. Salting

You prepare a large bowl, then spread a layer of salt on the bottom of the bowl. Then arrange the radish on top. Make a layer of salt, a layer of radish in turn until all ingredients are gone.

Use a tray to cover the bowl and marinate the beets overnight. After 1 night of marinating, the radish will soften slightly and the water will appear to have been drawn from the radish due to the salt.

Note: Do not pour out the water drawn by the salt.

Step 3. Let it dry

Next, you put the radishes on a tray and let them dry in the sun for a day. After drying in the sun, the radish will shrivel slightly and appear a little powdery white on the stem.

Next, you continue to marinate the radish for 1 night in a bowl of brine that has soaked the radish the day before. Do continuously in the order of bringing radishes to the sun in the morning, marinating the radishes in such salt water for 7-8 days in the evening.

After 7-8 days, you have a very delicious soft and chewy pickled radish salad. However, in order for the radish to have a beautiful color, you should put the radish in a glass jar, cover the lid and incubate for another 7 days.

Step 4. Finished Product

After 7 days of incubating radishes in a glass jar, you will get a pickled radish with natural brown color, very beautiful. Radishes are crispy, fragrant, attractive and can be used to process many different dishes such as: Sweet and sour sago, soup…

5. Pro tips:

Here are our tips for easing your mind (and stomach) around food-handling environments that you may not be used to.

Make sure the food is freshly cooked. If you’re eating hot street food, it’s always safest (not to mention more delicious) to eat food you can see being cooked to order.

Look for lines and busy stalls. Busy street food stalls are an indicator of popularity, and their high turnover rate means the food is never sitting out for hours and developing dreaded bacteria. Yes, long lines can be discouraging when you’re hungry after a full day of exploring, but it’s not worth the risk of grabbing precooked food from the empty spot next door.

Eat when the locals are eating. The last and most important element here is when to eat. You’re likely already on a weird eating schedule while you’re traveling, but it’s important to try and adjust to the eating times of where you are. A bowl of pho might be lunch for Americans, but it’s breakfast for the Vietnamese. This ensures that you’re eating freshly cooked food and that you can find the best and most popular places to eat.

If you can’t drink the water, then you can’t eat the salad. Most people get so hung up on not drinking the water or skipping ice in drinks that they don’t think about all of the other ways in which water is used in food service. Fruits and vegetables tend to be washed with tap water in most places, rather than the filtered water that locals drink—or sometimes it’s not washed at all. If you’re really craving some produce, try fruits you can peel or cooked veggies.

Trust your gut. If you’re unsure about the food or the way that it’s being prepared, then keep moving. Eating street food all over the world doesn’t make you an expert. Every stall and every country are different, and sometimes the rules can be harder to follow. When something doesn’t look, smell, or feel right, don’t eat it! Trust your judgment. Chances are that there’s another spot close by that’s making something more delicious.

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Can Tho: Co Ut’s Cong cake, Ut Dzach Fine Rice Vermicelli, Thanh Van Grilled Pork Sausage, Crab Noodle Soup At Floating Market, Scorched Rice with Caramelized Fish Sauce, 7-Toi’s Duck Meat Pancake, Banh Mi Thuy, Banana Blossom Salad, Fried Spring Rolls, Fresh Spring Rolls, Fetal duck egg (balut), Honeycomb Cake, Mini Sticky Rice Cake, Cassava Silkworm Cake, Grilled Banana Wrapped in Sticky Rice, Khmer-style Bun Goi Da Soup, Egg Coffee, Con Son Grilled Snakehead Fish, Bun Mam – Fermented Fish Noodle Soup, Lau Mam – Fermented Fish Hotpot, Grilled Snails with Pepper, Magenta Sticky Rice Cake, Duck cooked with Fermented Tofu, Rice Noodle Pizza, Vegetarian Noodle Soup, Snails Stuffed With Pork…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Chau Doc: Chau Doc Fish Noodle Soup, Sugar Palm Fruit, Basa Fish Hot Pot, Mam (Fermented fish), Phu Huong Beef Noodle Soup, Broken Rice with Pork Chop, Long Xuyen Broken Rice, Nui Cam Pancake, O Thum’s Chicken Grilled with Lime Leaves, Stir-fried Shrimp with Sesbania Flower, Sweet & Sour Soup with Siamese Mud Carp Soup & Sesbania Flower, Caramelized & Braised Catfish, Grilled Rice-field Rat with Salt and Chili…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Soc Trang: Pia Cake, Cong Cake (Banh Cong), Bun Nuoc Leo Soc Trang’s Noodle Soup, Soc Trang’s Bun Goi Da Soup, Duck Noodle Soup with black Pepper, Curry Noodle Soup, Grilled Beef on Tile, Khmer-style Tube Cake, Khmer-style Mung Bean Cake (Banh In), Dried Radish (Xa Bau), Stir-Fried Noodles with Seafood (Mi Sua), Soc Trang’s Green Rice Flakes…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Ben Tre: Phu Le Rice Wine, Ben Tre’s Coconut Candy, Flat Banana, Coconut Rice, Snail Pancake, Sea Snail with Coconut Milk, Coconut Worm, Young Coconut Salad with Shrimp & Pork, Son Doc Puff Rice Paper…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Cai Be: Puffed Rice Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Vinh Long: Elephant Ear Fish (fried giant gourami)…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in My Tho: Fried Sticky Rice, Snakehead Fish Rice Porridge, Hu Tieu My Tho (Noodle Soup), Coconut Banana Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Tra Vinh: Macapuno Coconut, Bun Nuoc Leo Tra Vinh’s Noodle Soup, Tra Cuon’s Sticky Rice Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Sadec: Sa Dec Noodle Soup, Sadec Crab Hotpot, Lai Vung Spring Rolls, Sa Giang Shrimp Puff Pastry, Lai Vung Tangerine…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Bac Lieu: Spicy Beef Noodle Soup, Bac Lieu’s Three-striped Crab, White Radish Pies, Bac Lieu Thick Noodles & Creamy Coconut Milk, Bon Bon Pickles…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Ca Mau: Banh tam ga cay (Silkworm rice cake with curried chicken), Grilled Vop clams with salt and pepper, Grilled Mudskipper Fish, Stone Crab Roast With Salt, Young Bee Salad, Nam Can’s Crab, U Minh Forest’s Honey, U Minh’s Fermented Fish Hotpot…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Hau Giang: Cau Duc Pineapple, Cai Tac’s Pork Organs Porridge, Hau Giang’s Bronze Featherback Fish Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Ha Tien: Herring Fish Salad, Spider crab cake soup, Ken Noodle soup, Xoi Xiem (Siamese sticky rice), Steamed Noodle soup, Ha Tien Oyster porridge…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Rach Gia: Stir Noodle Soup, Kien Giang Fish Noodle Soup…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Con Dao: Bang nut jam, Vu Nang Snail, Roasted Pork Bread (Banh Mi), Coconut Ice Cream…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Phu Quoc: Phu Quoc Sim Wine, Phu Quoc Pepper, Phu Quoc fish sauce…

Hopefully, the above tips will help you to come up with a great plan for your adventure in Mekong River Delta, Vietnam. Have a safe trip!

“Sleep less, travel more, respect more” – Thomas Vietnam – Local travel expert.

Thank you

Ben Tre’s Coconut Candy – Eat Best Food in Ben Tre

Posted on by Thomas Vietnam

Ben Tre’s coconut candy is not only a processed dish for family entertainment, but it is also an intimate gift for friends and relatives. With quite simple ingredients from malt and coconut milk, it has made an interesting specialty that anyone who comes to Ben Tre must try once.

By Thomas Vietnam at vemekong.com | All Best Foods & Restaurants in Ben Tre

Ben Tre’s Coconut Candy – Eat Best Food in Ben Tre

1. Better to Know as a Food Lover

Find them: Ben Tre city.

Best time: Dusk-Dawn

Don’t miss: Ben Tre’s Coconut Candy

Local’s pick: Ben Tre’s Coconut Candy Shops

Tourist’s pick: Supermarket in Ben tre

Blog: https://vemekong.com/ben-tre-coconut-candy/

Facts: Coconut candy is a type of candy made from the main ingredients of coconut rice and malt sugar. This is a specialty candy and a traditional craft imbued with the country’s culture. In Vietnam, there are many coconut-growing areas, but Ben Tre is the birthplace and development of the coconut candy processing industry.

2. Better to Know Ben Tre’s Coconut Candy

Ben Tre’s Coconut Candy – Eat Best Food in Ben Tre

Ben Tre coconut candy originates from Mo Cay district. According to collected documents, the first person to make candy was Mrs. Nguyen Thi Ngoc, born in 1914, living in Quarter 1, Mo Cay town. Coconut candy at that time was called Mo Cay candy. In 1970, Nguyen Thi Vinh, born in 1945, lived in Ben Tre town, changed the way candy is processed. She established the Thanh Long coconut candy production facility, the first in Ben Tre town, and from there created the name Ben Tre coconut candy. Ingredients for making coconut candy include: coconut milk, malt, sugar (in the past people used canned sugar, but today we use granulated sugar). Malt is distilled from the sugar of sticky rice when it is incubated to germinate.

From the very rich source of coconut raw materials of Ben Tre, plus the ingenuity of the processor, the coconut people have known to add cultural values, the value of traditional manual labor to the product to make the fruit. Coconut is not only a source of raw materials but it has increased in value many times. Here, cultural factors in handicraft products have created economic value, contributing to improving and improving the lives of people in the coconut land. On the other hand, it is thanks to such economic development that traditional handicrafts are treasured, preserved and constantly developed.

Coconut candy production facilities have not hesitated to invest billions to innovate traditional candy production technology, creating more and more attractive designs and designs for customers. According to the old production tradition, coconut candy production facilities always attach great importance to quality, credibility, and do not use preservatives, chemical sugars and other banned substances to affirm their brands. As a result, Ben Tre coconut candy has been present in markets throughout the country and also exported to many countries in Asia, Europe and America.

3. Ben Tre’s Coconut Candy in Ben Tre

Ben Tre’s Coconut Candy – Eat Best Food in Ben Tre

The best Ben Tre coconut candies

Coconut candy with coconut milk

With the pure greasy taste of coconut milk when not mixed with other flavors. This type of candy is quite popular, especially suitable for customers who do not like their own deep smell.

Peanut gummy coconut candy

This coconut candy has peanuts left intact to give the candy a rich flavor when you chew. This Ben Tre coconut candy is also an ideal choice for you if you want to try different types of coconut candies.

Durian coconut candy

Durian when combined with coconut milk creates a greasy, delicious flavor and creates a delicious and different candy compared to other Ben Tre coconut candies.

Coconut candy Cocoa and cocoa durian

The characteristic aroma of cocoa, slightly bitter when mixed with coconut milk, creates a unique aroma, great for customers who like candy that is not too sweet. The combination of cocoa and durian also creates a different type of coconut candy with a different flavor than other common candies.

Pineapple coconut candy and pineapple durian gummy candy

This candy has the taste of faint pandan leaves, striped coconut candy, green white coconut candy with pandan leaf flavor that looks very attractive. This is a type of candy that many domestic and foreign tourists find and buy.

Coconut candy taro and strawberry jelly

The color and taste of these two candies are loved by ladies and children. You can try the candies before buying to feel the taste of the candies and choose the one you like best!

4. How to Make Ben Tre’s Coconut Candy

Ben Tre’s Coconut Candy – Eat Best Food in Ben Tre

Ingredient

Coconut milk: 220g

Sugar: 60g

Malt: 35g

Salt: 1g

Coconut oil, butter: 10g

Containers, stencils

Step 1: The coconut candy mold is lined with a layer of wax paper, press the stencil to be perpendicular to the candy mold and then set aside to prepare for the freezing process. Linen with parchment paper so the candy doesn’t stick to the mold. You should line it with parchment paper, because the candy is very sticky, it will be a bit difficult to remove the candy from the mold.

Step 2: Put the ingredients prepared in the above part including coconut milk, malt, salt, and sugar into the pot. Turn on the stove on low heat to cook until the candy becomes thick. Measuring a temperature of about 125 degrees Celsius is okay. This candy slug you should stir constantly because the candy is quite sweet, so it will burn very easily.

Step 3: When you see that the candy is thick and sticky, the candy is done, quickly add coconut oil and pour the candy into the prepared mold.

Step 4: Wait for the candy in the mold to freeze and dry down, cool down, then put the candy on a cutting board, apply a thin layer of cooking oil on the knife and then cut the candy into small squares about 1cm to taste. complete.

Step 5: Take candy wrappers or stencils to wrap the candy beautifully.

5. Pro tips:

Here are our tips for easing your mind (and stomach) around food-handling environments that you may not be used to.

Make sure the food is freshly cooked. If you’re eating hot street food, it’s always safest (not to mention more delicious) to eat food you can see being cooked to order.

Look for lines and busy stalls. Busy street food stalls are an indicator of popularity, and their high turnover rate means the food is never sitting out for hours and developing dreaded bacteria. Yes, long lines can be discouraging when you’re hungry after a full day of exploring, but it’s not worth the risk of grabbing precooked food from the empty spot next door.

Eat when the locals are eating. The last and most important element here is when to eat. You’re likely already on a weird eating schedule while you’re traveling, but it’s important to try and adjust to the eating times of where you are. A bowl of pho might be lunch for Americans, but it’s breakfast for the Vietnamese. This ensures that you’re eating freshly cooked food and that you can find the best and most popular places to eat.

If you can’t drink the water, then you can’t eat the salad. Most people get so hung up on not drinking the water or skipping ice in drinks that they don’t think about all of the other ways in which water is used in food service. Fruits and vegetables tend to be washed with tap water in most places, rather than the filtered water that locals drink—or sometimes it’s not washed at all. If you’re really craving some produce, try fruits you can peel or cooked veggies.

Trust your gut. If you’re unsure about the food or the way that it’s being prepared, then keep moving. Eating street food all over the world doesn’t make you an expert. Every stall and every country are different, and sometimes the rules can be harder to follow. When something doesn’t look, smell, or feel right, don’t eat it! Trust your judgment. Chances are that there’s another spot close by that’s making something more delicious.

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Can Tho: Co Ut’s Cong cake, Ut Dzach Fine Rice Vermicelli, Thanh Van Grilled Pork Sausage, Crab Noodle Soup At Floating Market, Scorched Rice with Caramelized Fish Sauce, 7-Toi’s Duck Meat Pancake, Banh Mi Thuy, Banana Blossom Salad, Fried Spring Rolls, Fresh Spring Rolls, Fetal duck egg (balut), Honeycomb Cake, Mini Sticky Rice Cake, Cassava Silkworm Cake, Grilled Banana Wrapped in Sticky Rice, Khmer-style Bun Goi Da Soup, Egg Coffee, Con Son Grilled Snakehead Fish, Bun Mam – Fermented Fish Noodle Soup, Lau Mam – Fermented Fish Hotpot, Grilled Snails with Pepper, Magenta Sticky Rice Cake, Duck cooked with Fermented Tofu, Rice Noodle Pizza, Vegetarian Noodle Soup, Snails Stuffed With Pork…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Chau Doc: Chau Doc Fish Noodle Soup, Sugar Palm Fruit, Basa Fish Hot Pot, Mam (Fermented fish), Phu Huong Beef Noodle Soup, Broken Rice with Pork Chop, Long Xuyen Broken Rice, Nui Cam Pancake, O Thum’s Chicken Grilled with Lime Leaves, Stir-fried Shrimp with Sesbania Flower, Sweet & Sour Soup with Siamese Mud Carp Soup & Sesbania Flower, Caramelized & Braised Catfish, Grilled Rice-field Rat with Salt and Chili…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Soc Trang: Pia Cake, Cong Cake (Banh Cong), Bun Nuoc Leo Soc Trang’s Noodle Soup, Soc Trang’s Bun Goi Da Soup, Duck Noodle Soup with black Pepper, Curry Noodle Soup, Grilled Beef on Tile, Khmer-style Tube Cake, Khmer-style Mung Bean Cake (Banh In), Dried Radish (Xa Bau), Stir-Fried Noodles with Seafood (Mi Sua), Soc Trang’s Green Rice Flakes…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Ben Tre: Phu Le Rice Wine, Ben Tre’s Coconut Candy, Flat Banana, Coconut Rice, Snail Pancake, Sea Snail with Coconut Milk, Coconut Worm, Young Coconut Salad with Shrimp & Pork, Son Doc Puff Rice Paper…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Cai Be: Puffed Rice Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Vinh Long: Elephant Ear Fish (fried giant gourami)…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in My Tho: Fried Sticky Rice, Snakehead Fish Rice Porridge, Hu Tieu My Tho (Noodle Soup), Coconut Banana Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Tra Vinh: Macapuno Coconut, Bun Nuoc Leo Tra Vinh’s Noodle Soup, Tra Cuon’s Sticky Rice Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Sadec: Sa Dec Noodle Soup, Sadec Crab Hotpot, Lai Vung Spring Rolls, Sa Giang Shrimp Puff Pastry, Lai Vung Tangerine…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Bac Lieu: Spicy Beef Noodle Soup, Bac Lieu’s Three-striped Crab, White Radish Pies, Bac Lieu Thick Noodles & Creamy Coconut Milk, Bon Bon Pickles…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Ca Mau: Banh tam ga cay (Silkworm rice cake with curried chicken), Grilled Vop clams with salt and pepper, Grilled Mudskipper Fish, Stone Crab Roast With Salt, Young Bee Salad, Nam Can’s Crab, U Minh Forest’s Honey, U Minh’s Fermented Fish Hotpot…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Hau Giang: Cau Duc Pineapple, Cai Tac’s Pork Organs Porridge, Hau Giang’s Bronze Featherback Fish Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Ha Tien: Herring Fish Salad, Spider crab cake soup, Ken Noodle soup, Xoi Xiem (Siamese sticky rice), Steamed Noodle soup, Ha Tien Oyster porridge…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Rach Gia: Stir Noodle Soup, Kien Giang Fish Noodle Soup…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Con Dao: Bang nut jam, Vu Nang Snail, Roasted Pork Bread (Banh Mi), Coconut Ice Cream…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Phu Quoc: Phu Quoc Sim Wine, Phu Quoc Pepper, Phu Quoc fish sauce…

Hopefully, the above tips will help you to come up with a great plan for your adventure in Mekong River Delta, Vietnam. Have a safe trip!

“Sleep less, travel more, respect more” – Thomas Vietnam – Local travel expert.

Thank you

Phu Le Rice Wine – Best Local Drink in Ben Tre

Posted on by Thomas Vietnam

Famous wine in the South cannot fail to mention Xuan Thanh wine, Go Den wine and never forget Phu Le wine – a wine imbued with cultural traditions in the Mekong Delta, known as the first famous wine in Ben Tre

By Thomas Vietnam at vemekong.com | All Best Foods & Restaurants in Ben Tre

Phu Le Rice Wine – Best Local Drink in Ben Tre

1. Better to Know as a Food Lover

Find them: Ben Tre city.

Best time: Dusk-Dawn

Don’t miss: Phu Le Rice Wine

Local’s pick: Phu Le Rice Wine Village Shop

Tourist’s pick: Supermarket in Ben Tre

Blog: https://vemekong.com/phu-le-rice-wine-ben-tre/

Facts: Famous wine in the South cannot fail to mention Xuan Thanh wine, Go Den wine and never forget Phu Le wine – a wine imbued with cultural traditions in the Mekong Delta, known as the first famous wine.

2. Better to Know Phu Le Rice Wine

Phu Le Rice Wine – Best Local Drink in Ben Tre

Phu Le rice wine is the pride of the land of Ben Tre, a precious product passed down by our ancestors. Therefore, not only the people of Ben Tre preserve it, but everyone also cherishes and constantly develops the quintessence of Vietnamese wine to international friends. Many people say that Phu Le wine is delicious because of the quintessential winemaking technique, so it has a strong, delicious and heavy taste. Then many people also said that Phu Le rice wine is delicious because the tradition of Phu Le commune is purely agricultural and has produced precious ingredients: glutinous rice, wine yeast, and well water. In fact, whatever the cause, the good wine explanation is correct.

3. Phu Le Rice Wine in Ben Tre

Phu Le Rice Wine – Best Local Drink in Ben Tre

Wine making is not only a livelihood for families in Phu Le village but also a traditional cultural activity, imbued with the cultural identity of a land. With them, each grain of sticky rice, each pot of water, each yeast ball is carefully selected. The selected rice must be long-lasting sticky rice grown on local land. The water must be fresh and cool from the village well. And the yeast must be made from 36 medicinal herbs such as cinnamon, anise… plus laksa leaves, longan…. Standard quality ingredients are 50%, the rest is cooking technique. The most experienced person, usually the elderly in the house or skilled women who have been trained in the profession. Cook glutinous rice into rice, stir until your hands feel warm to the touch, then sprinkle with crushed yeast. Use both hands to spread the yeast into the rice and put it in a clean bowl covered with plastic wrap and store it in a cool, dry place such as under the bed, or in the closet. After three days of fermentation, add water according to the appropriate ratio. If you want to eat rice wine, before pouring water in, extract the sticky rice into a small jar. All remaining ingredients will continue to incubate for seven days. At this point, the rice is cooked, just bring it to cook. When cooking, you must use large firewood, simmer the fire so that the steam rises and turns into fragrant drops of wine. Cooking wine is a process, it takes time and care to make it best. That’s also why these stitches are usually done by women’s hands.

4. How to Make Phu Le Rice Wine

Step 1: Choose ingredients

The selection of ingredients for winemaking is also an extremely important step. It directly determines the quality of the wine produced later.

When choosing rice wine ingredients, you need to be careful when choosing rice and yeast.

There are two types of rice: plain rice and glutinous rice. You should choose rice grains that have had the husk removed and the bran still intact. Because rice has bran skin, a lot of vitamin B1 is very good for health and makes wine more delicious.

Depending on the needs of use, people use plain or sticky rice. Because cooking wine with glutinous rice, the finished wine will be very delicious, bold, sweet in the mouth, feeling warm. As for plain rice, it is not as delicious but the price is cheap.

The selection of yeast cake depends on the taste and experience of the winemaker. You can choose from yeast, herbal medicine or probiotics. Note to choose quality enamel, not moldy, dirty. Should choose to buy yeast at reputable establishments or acquaintances to avoid fake yeast.

Step 2: Cook rice wine

Cooking rice wine is also very simple. As long as you know how to cook everyday, you can cook. First of all, you have to soak the rice and wash all the dirt in the Rice and make the rice soft and swollen, then pour it into a big pot to cook rice wine.

Depending on the needs of family use or production for sale, you can cook less or more. To cook rice, the wine is not crushed and mushy, normally the ratio of rice and water will be 1:1. The purpose is to ripen rice grains, gelatinize rice starch to help microorganisms easily ferment alcohol.

Step 3: Mix yeast

You remove the husk. Then puree or crush the yeast. Wait for the rice to cool down, then sprinkle the yeast evenly on top. Then mix well so that the yeast covers the glutinous rice grains.

Step 4: Fermentation

Fermentation has 2 stages: dry yeast fermentation and wet yeast fermentation.

Stage 1: Dry incubation

This is the stage of fermenting rice wine in an anaerobic environment. Put the sticky rice sprinkled with yeast into a large-capacity glass or ceramic jar with a tight-fitting lid. After about 4-5 days, the rice cooker will automatically wake up with water and smell of wine

The suitable temperature for successful fermentation of rice wine is about 20-25 degrees Celsius. Cold weather can be overcome for brewing near the stove. If the weather is hot, but the production place does not have air conditioning, the wine will sour quickly and the yield will be low.

Stage 2: Wet tempering

When the dry incubation period is complete. You bring fermented rice wine and add water. For every 10 kg of rice, you will add 15 liters of water to make the fermentation process complete, the alcohol turns off the starch and sugar.

Wet incubation for 1-2 weeks. Time depends on the weather. When you taste the rice and water, you find it spicy, the water is clear and can be distilled.

Step 5: Distilling Alcohol

Pour all the water and wine into the pot. If you want productivity and resistance, you can just squeeze the water out. When distilling, it is necessary to pay attention to the temperature. Avoid fire or sudden spillage. It will make the wine bitter, cloudy and difficult to drink.

First distillation: With the first distillation, we will obtain the original alcohol, which is quite heavy with an alcohol content of 55-65 degrees. This type of alcohol often has a high amount of Andehyde, which is directly harmful to health, and people who drink it are very susceptible to alcohol poisoning. Therefore, the first distilled alcohol should not be used for drinking, but should only be used for soaking.

Second distillation: Continuing the second distillation, we will be able to distill the middle alcohol. Usually this wine has an alcohol content of 35 to 45 degrees, this wine will be used to drink hot or will be distilled, stored or marketed.

Third distillation: Continue distilling, this time we will obtain a top wine with a low alcohol content, a slightly acidic taste and no taste of alcohol anymore. This wine is only used to mix with the base wine. The alcohol is obtained from the first distillation and then distilled again to lower the strength of the base alcohol. At this point, the same alcohol will be obtained as the second distilled (middle wine). Then store, hoard or sell.

5. Pro tips:

Here are our tips for easing your mind (and stomach) around food-handling environments that you may not be used to.

Make sure the food is freshly cooked. If you’re eating hot street food, it’s always safest (not to mention more delicious) to eat food you can see being cooked to order.

Look for lines and busy stalls. Busy street food stalls are an indicator of popularity, and their high turnover rate means the food is never sitting out for hours and developing dreaded bacteria. Yes, long lines can be discouraging when you’re hungry after a full day of exploring, but it’s not worth the risk of grabbing precooked food from the empty spot next door.

Eat when the locals are eating. The last and most important element here is when to eat. You’re likely already on a weird eating schedule while you’re traveling, but it’s important to try and adjust to the eating times of where you are. A bowl of pho might be lunch for Americans, but it’s breakfast for the Vietnamese. This ensures that you’re eating freshly cooked food and that you can find the best and most popular places to eat.

If you can’t drink the water, then you can’t eat the salad. Most people get so hung up on not drinking the water or skipping ice in drinks that they don’t think about all of the other ways in which water is used in food service. Fruits and vegetables tend to be washed with tap water in most places, rather than the filtered water that locals drink—or sometimes it’s not washed at all. If you’re really craving some produce, try fruits you can peel or cooked veggies.

Trust your gut. If you’re unsure about the food or the way that it’s being prepared, then keep moving. Eating street food all over the world doesn’t make you an expert. Every stall and every country are different, and sometimes the rules can be harder to follow. When something doesn’t look, smell, or feel right, don’t eat it! Trust your judgment. Chances are that there’s another spot close by that’s making something more delicious.

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Can Tho: Co Ut’s Cong cake, Ut Dzach Fine Rice Vermicelli, Thanh Van Grilled Pork Sausage, Crab Noodle Soup At Floating Market, Scorched Rice with Caramelized Fish Sauce, 7-Toi’s Duck Meat Pancake, Banh Mi Thuy, Banana Blossom Salad, Fried Spring Rolls, Fresh Spring Rolls, Fetal duck egg (balut), Honeycomb Cake, Mini Sticky Rice Cake, Cassava Silkworm Cake, Grilled Banana Wrapped in Sticky Rice, Khmer-style Bun Goi Da Soup, Egg Coffee, Con Son Grilled Snakehead Fish, Bun Mam – Fermented Fish Noodle Soup, Lau Mam – Fermented Fish Hotpot, Grilled Snails with Pepper, Magenta Sticky Rice Cake, Duck cooked with Fermented Tofu, Rice Noodle Pizza, Vegetarian Noodle Soup, Snails Stuffed With Pork…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Chau Doc: Chau Doc Fish Noodle Soup, Sugar Palm Fruit, Basa Fish Hot Pot, Mam (Fermented fish), Phu Huong Beef Noodle Soup, Broken Rice with Pork Chop, Long Xuyen Broken Rice, Nui Cam Pancake, O Thum’s Chicken Grilled with Lime Leaves, Stir-fried Shrimp with Sesbania Flower, Sweet & Sour Soup with Siamese Mud Carp Soup & Sesbania Flower, Caramelized & Braised Catfish, Grilled Rice-field Rat with Salt and Chili…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Soc Trang: Pia Cake, Cong Cake (Banh Cong), Bun Nuoc Leo Soc Trang’s Noodle Soup, Soc Trang’s Bun Goi Da Soup, Duck Noodle Soup with black Pepper, Curry Noodle Soup, Grilled Beef on Tile, Khmer-style Tube Cake, Khmer-style Mung Bean Cake (Banh In), Dried Radish (Xa Bau), Stir-Fried Noodles with Seafood (Mi Sua), Soc Trang’s Green Rice Flakes…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Ben Tre: Phu Le Rice Wine, Ben Tre’s Coconut Candy, Flat Banana, Coconut Rice, Snail Pancake, Sea Snail with Coconut Milk, Coconut Worm, Young Coconut Salad with Shrimp & Pork, Son Doc Puff Rice Paper…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Cai Be: Puffed Rice Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Vinh Long: Elephant Ear Fish (fried giant gourami)…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in My Tho: Fried Sticky Rice, Snakehead Fish Rice Porridge, Hu Tieu My Tho (Noodle Soup), Coconut Banana Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Tra Vinh: Macapuno Coconut, Bun Nuoc Leo Tra Vinh’s Noodle Soup, Tra Cuon’s Sticky Rice Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Sadec: Sa Dec Noodle Soup, Sadec Crab Hotpot, Lai Vung Spring Rolls, Sa Giang Shrimp Puff Pastry, Lai Vung Tangerine…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Bac Lieu: Spicy Beef Noodle Soup, Bac Lieu’s Three-striped Crab, White Radish Pies, Bac Lieu Thick Noodles & Creamy Coconut Milk, Bon Bon Pickles…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Ca Mau: Banh tam ga cay (Silkworm rice cake with curried chicken), Grilled Vop clams with salt and pepper, Grilled Mudskipper Fish, Stone Crab Roast With Salt, Young Bee Salad, Nam Can’s Crab, U Minh Forest’s Honey, U Minh’s Fermented Fish Hotpot…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Hau Giang: Cau Duc Pineapple, Cai Tac’s Pork Organs Porridge, Hau Giang’s Bronze Featherback Fish Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Ha Tien: Herring Fish Salad, Spider crab cake soup, Ken Noodle soup, Xoi Xiem (Siamese sticky rice), Steamed Noodle soup, Ha Tien Oyster porridge…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Rach Gia: Stir Noodle Soup, Kien Giang Fish Noodle Soup…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Con Dao: Bang nut jam, Vu Nang Snail, Roasted Pork Bread (Banh Mi), Coconut Ice Cream…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Phu Quoc: Phu Quoc Sim Wine, Phu Quoc Pepper, Phu Quoc fish sauce…

Hopefully, the above tips will help you to come up with a great plan for your adventure in Mekong River Delta, Vietnam. Have a safe trip!

“Sleep less, travel more, respect more” – Thomas Vietnam – Local travel expert.

Thank you

Bac Lieu Foods & Restaurants You Must Eat in Bac Lieu

Posted on by Thomas Vietnam

Food, in other words, eating is an indispensable activity in every travel trip. Traveling offers the perfect opportunity to try new and exciting foods from different parts of the world. You can enjoy for yourself the unique flavors that you have never tasted in your life. Bac Lieu foods & drinks are the link connecting the characteristics of the cuisine of the river with the tourists who have visited. Not only famous for its fruit-laden orchards, but this land also has countless delicious dishes that delight people to enjoy.

By Thomas Vietnam at vemekong.com | Official Bac Lieu Visitor Guide

1. Bun bo cay

Bun bo cay (Spicy beef noodle soup) Address: Bun bo cay Nguyet Anh – 119 Cao Van Lau Street, Bac Lieu Town. The bowl of “bun bo cay” needs fried lemongrass and beef but won’t need shrimp sauce just like Hue beef noodle soup. Since it’s spicy, you must be a chili lover to enjoy this food. With a smoky dish and the thick broth, you won’t resist it any longer but try it immediately. The food is served with lemon, chili salt, and basil.

2. Three-striped crab

Three-striped crab (Freshwater crab in Bac Lieu) Ba khac is a type of seacream living in brackish water alluvial ground, under the canopy of mangroves, fish sauce. This is one of the famous specialties in the West. Traveling to Bac Lieu, visitors should not miss this dish. Ba khia is often used to create many attractive dishes such as salt, ba khia, three khat salad, mixed three knots. In which, ba khia sauce is the most favorite dish of customers.

3. Banh cu cai (White radish pies).

Banh cu cai (White radish pies). Address: You can find a lot of stalls selling radish pies along Hoang Van Thu street, Hoang Dieu Street, or 23/8 Street. Coming to Bac Lieu, there’s no way that you can miss stopping by at some street stalls to try out this unique radish pie. It looks elegant and stuffing at the same time. The crust is made of flour and the ground white radish flour. Looking inside it, it’s a mixture of shrimp marinated with some local ingredients.

4. Banh tam bi Bac Lieu

Banh tam bi Bac Lieu (Bac Lieu thick noodles & creamy coconut milk). Address: Ngan Dua market: 34 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street, Hong Dan, Bac Lieu or at Bac Lieu night market: Ngo Gia Tu Street, Ward 3, Bac Lieu. There’s a Vietnamese dish that makes you cannot stop slurping, and that’s “banh tam bi Bac Lieu”. The food is an elegant combination of the thick noodle, coconut milk, fish sauce and lettuce. Feel free to reduce the fat taste by reducing the amount of creamy coconut milk. And don’t miss adding some slices of chili to the sauce if you want it to be spicier. Herbs can’t be lacking here, especially the leaves of lettuce, basil, and slices of cucumber.

5. Pho Ngheu Thanh Huong

(43 Tran Quynh; mains 25,000-47,000d) When you are likely to be able to buy similar pho (noodle soups) and banh mi (filled baguettes) from a street stall, this fine eatery serves a fairy-lit rooftop from which guests can watch the traffic zoom by.

6. Bon Bon Pickles

It is a popular dish of Bac Lieu people. Pickles are sour and crispy so they should be used to dip with soy sauce, fish sauce, shrimp sauce, and mixed salad shrimp … Bon bon pickles are also processed for other dishes such as fried meat, cooked sour soup with fish,…The price per kilogram of pickles is VND 40,000 – 50,000.

7. Hong Gam fish sauce hotpot

Address: No.3/225b Provincial Road 38, Ward 5, Bac Lieu or residential area of ​​Ward 2, go through Ngoc Lien Vihara, run about 100m, see on the left is Ben Ben karaoke, turn right on Nguyen Thi Nho Street to enter Hong Gam restaurant.

Opening hours: 10am – 10pm

The first delicious and famous restaurant in Bac Lieu that I want to share with you is Hong Gam fish sauce hotpot. This restaurant is not only mine, but many Bac Lieu people know it.  The fish sauce hot pot has a delicious, rich broth, and a lot of food, so order a pot of 2 people to eat, sometimes it takes 4 people to eat it all. As far as I know, this Hong Gam fish sauce hot pot restaurant has been open since 1994 and has 2 branches. There are types of fish sauce hotpot such as goby fish, pineapple fish, basa fish, potato fish, snakehead fish with prices from 170k – 250k/pot.  In addition to fish sauce hotpot, the restaurant has more Thai hot pot and sour hot pot for customers to choose from.

8. Bac Lieu night market food court

Address: Ngo Gia Tu Street, Ward 3, City.  Bac Lieu

Opening hours: 16h – 22h

This is an extremely attractive, nutritious, and cheap eating place in Bac Lieu that you should not miss. In the food court of Bac Lieu night market, there are many local specialties such as banh cong, banh beo, vermicelli, fish hotpot, silkworm cake… Besides eating and drinking, when you come to Bac Lieu night market, you can also eat and drink.  Go to shopping malls for clothes, jewelry, handicrafts to buy things for yourself or as gifts to take home.

9. Kachu Grilled Buffet 99k in Bac Lieu

Address: 81 Ninh Binh, Hamlet 3, Ward 2

Opening hours: 15h30 – 23h

This is an extremely crowded restaurant in Bac Lieu with affordable prices and delicious and diverse food.  There is a buffet with the price of 99k/person, you can eat about 50 different dishes, note that the price of 99k only applies to Mondays to Fridays, the rest of the days and holidays the price is 119k/person. Dishes at Kachu grilled restaurant such as pork roll with enoki mushrooms, grilled shrimp, grilled frog, crab soup, fried noodles, steamed clams with lemongrass, grilled octopus with salt and pepper, steamed clams with lemongrass…With delicious, nutritious and cheap standards, I see that this famous restaurant in Bac Lieu also has gift giving and lucky draw activities!

10. Co Ba shrimp and bean paste vermicelli noodles

Address: No. 2B Ba Huyen Thanh Quan Street, Ward 8

This is a delicious restaurant in Bac Lieu that accepts delivery with each serving of 25k/person.  If you can’t eat shrimp paste, everyone can eat fish sauce, in general, fish sauce or mixed shrimp sauce are delicious.  I have a lot of vermicelli noodles with shrimp paste.

Free Itineraries from VeMekong

As a local travel expert, we have some ideas for you to think about.

From Vinh Long city center:

Route 1:

Route 2:

Route 3:

If you do not have much time left, it is easy to check out spots in one full day by boat or with bike or with motorbike and car. But there are much more than tourist sites like these in Bac Lieu. Make sure you have more time to feel and explore more about the hidden gems and the culture, food, night life, wildlife and forest as well. Top tip: Stay in a homestay nearby, so you have more chances to visit it and surroundings. If you are looking for the package Bac Lieu daily tours or Can Tho daily tours with local, you can contact www.vemekong.com or Hotline/WhatsApp/WeChat/Zalo +84939888559; email: hello@vemekong.com

Pro Tips

Here are our tips for easing your mind (and stomach) around food-handling environments that you may not be used to.

Make sure the food is freshly cooked. If you’re eating hot street food, it’s always safest (not to mention more delicious) to eat food you can see being cooked to order.

Look for lines and busy stalls. Busy street food stalls are an indicator of popularity, and their high turnover rate means the food is never sitting out for hours and developing dreaded bacteria. Yes, long lines can be discouraging when you’re hungry after a full day of exploring, but it’s not worth the risk of grabbing precooked food from the empty spot next door.

Eat when the locals are eating. The last and most important element here is when to eat. You’re likely already on a weird eating schedule while you’re traveling, but it’s important to try and adjust to the eating times of where you are. A bowl of pho might be lunch for Americans, but it’s breakfast for the Vietnamese. This ensures that you’re eating freshly cooked food and that you can find the best and most popular places to eat.

If you can’t drink the water, then you can’t eat the salad. Most people get so hung up on not drinking the water or skipping ice in drinks that they don’t think about all of the other ways in which water is used in food service. Fruits and vegetables tend to be washed with tap water in most places, rather than the filtered water that locals drink—or sometimes it’s not washed at all. If you’re really craving some produce, try fruits you can peel or cooked veggies.

Trust your gut. If you’re unsure about the food or the way that it’s being prepared, then keep moving. Eating street food all over the world doesn’t make you an expert. Every stall and every country are different, and sometimes the rules can be harder to follow. When something doesn’t look, smell, or feel right, don’t eat it! Trust your judgment. Chances are that there’s another spot close by that’s making something more delicious.

You can stay in a homestay which is near the riverside, this will help you out the best option. Then you can hire a scooter, car or bike and explore it by yourself and I hope you have an amazing Mekong Delta river sunrise.

If you plan to extend your travel to Bac Lieu homestay, do not forget to bring mosquito repellent cream.

Visit Bac Lieu or do any customized tours, please choose reputable providers with boat trips equipped with lifebuoys, jackets, motorcycle and cycling tours with the helmets and. Safety is a priority! Choose Bac Lieu responsible tours which help you give back while traveling. It’s a cliché, but it’s true.

Bac Lieu food & drink guide ranges from street food, authentic, fancy to fusion foods. As a tropical land of many fresh vegetables and homegrown gardens, which always make Bac Lieu cuisines fresh, close to nature and very traditional. If you are a food lover, don’t hesitate to put other bites onto your food lists such as Bun bo cay (Spicy beef noodle soup), Three-striped crab (Freshwater crab in Bac Lieu), Banh cu cai (White radish pies), Banh tam bi Bac Lieu (Bac Lieu thick noodles & creamy coconut milk), Pho Ngheu, Bon Bon Pickles

Bring your hat, sunglasses, and sunblock, scarf to wear when visiting temples, pagodas, and the cathedral.

Bring the raincoat if you’re planning a trip to Bac Lieu in the rainy season, as Bac Lieu always looks fantastic in the full rain and full sun.

Bac Lieu tourist attractions are magnificent itself, but if you have enough time, don’t forget to put other places onto your bucket lists such as Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary, Bac Lieu Salt Farm, Buddha Temple Ba Nam Hai, Cong Tu Bac Lieu House, Ghositaram Pagoda in Bac Lieu, Bac Lieu Wind Farm, Ancient longan orchards, Vinh Hung Ancient Temple, Xiem Can Pagoda Bac Lieu, Can Van Lau Theater (Conical Hat Non La Theater), Tac Say Church, Cao Van Lau Musician Memorial Site, Nha Mat amusement park, Bac Lieu Beach and mangrove forests, Phuoc Duc Ancient Temple and Dia Mau Cung (Ba Pagoda).

Hopefully, the above tips will help you to come up with a great plan for your adventure in Bac Lieu province, Mekong Delta, Vietnam. Have a safe trip!

“Sleep less, travel more, respect more” – Thomas Vietnam – Local travel expert.

Thank you

Bac Lieu Market – Where to Shop & Eat in Bac Lieu

Posted on by Thomas Vietnam

Coming to Bac Lieu, you should go through an attractive place to visit and shop, which is Bac Lieu market. This place focuses a lot of tourists and is considered the most beautiful market in the Bac Lieu. So let’s explore this place with us!

By Thomas Vietnam at vemekong.com | Official Bac Lieu Visitor Guide

1. Better to Know as a Tourist

Ticket: Free

Spend-time: One and a half hour (approx)

Hours: Dawn – dusk 

Food: Yes   

Shop: Yes

Parking lot: Yes

Blog: https://vemekong.com/bac-lieu-market/

Address: Located in ward 3, Bac Lieu city

Added values: Bac Lieu Market is not only famous for its beauty, but also for the variety of products, especially the friendly personality of the people here. Please visit Bac Lieu when you have the opportunity to experience unique things that only Bac Lieu market has.

Nearby attractions and hidden gems: Looking for places to stop on your way to and from Bac Lieu Market? Ghositaram pagoda (4 km), Cong Tu Bac Lieu House (5 minutes), Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary (6 km), Bac Lieu Salt Farm (48 km), Tac Say Church (38 km), Dia Mau Cung – Ba pagoda (13 minutes)…

2. Travel Guide to Bac Lieu Market

This place has just been completed and rebuilt in 2018. Currently, it is very spacious and busy, recognized by visitors as a “second Ben Thanh Market” in the West.

On the way in, we will see countless shops selling breakfast with famous specialties of the West such as dried noodles or coconut cake… All are very delicious and nutritious, worth trying once when you come to Bac Lieu.

This place is designed with 4 main doors, which are North Gate – South Gate – East Gate and West Gate. Both North gate and South gate are located on the main road.

South Gate is located next to Bac Lieu river, which is filled with alluvium for commercial purposes, making the atmosphere in the market more bustling.  Right at the north door leading to the top of the citadel is clearly written – Bac Lieu Market.

Because this place is always crowded with people and tourists to shop as well as visit, so when entering the inner market, you need to park your car outside.

In the center, right at the entrance to the South Gate Market, we will see the stairs of the entrance to the 2nd floor.

The stairs are located right at the entrance, so it’s not difficult to find when you want to buy urgent items. Or it is not difficult for anyone who needs to buy a lot of things and carry heavy loads in moving up and down between two floors.

West Gate also has a very small area, opposite the West Gate at the entrance are shops selling food and dry goods. For example, spices, salt, fish sauce… people do not need to go far but can choose the West gate area.

The goods sold at the West Gate are not only rich and diverse, but also have many large and small stalls next to each other. This shows the character of people in the West being harmonious and helping each other.

Therefore, the atmosphere here is always happy, friendly and comfortable.

At North Gate is for tourists to visit, there are many Chinese who have lived here for a long time. The North gate area has a lot of silk, soft silk, suitcases or basic utensils. Visitors who lack basic personal items can come here to visit and shop.

And most of the sellers here have great tricks to communicate with foreign tourists. Although most of them do not know the language and have never been trained in basic schools.

People here don’t know the surrounding street names very well, but just talking about a certain place or area is for sure to know. On the main road going to the market, it is always crowded with people, even at rush hour, there is a traffic jam. Although it cannot be compared with the big markets in Saigon, it cannot be denied that this market is truly a beautiful market and worth a visit in the West.

3. What to Do –See – Eat at Bac Lieu Market

Outside the market there are many different stalls, as crowded and vibrant as the inside of the floor (main market). After the renovation, the areas outside the market are also classified according to the right areas, making it easy for buyers to find what they want.

On the side of the first intersection from Ha Huy Tap to turn in is Hoang Van Thu street, typically selling Northern medicines and clothes.

On the first floor of the main market, when entering from the South gate, there are dry goods, when visitors come, they will see thousands of clothes.  As well as cute little accessories such as: hairpins, earrings… Going inside is a cloth market, for those who want to buy to wear ao dai.  The stalls are placed close to each other, so visitors can choose freely.

Fresh food area. Even on the first floor of the main market, there is also a fresh food stall, selling fresh seafood, beef, and pork… The fresh food stalls here also open very early from 4-5 o’clock to 12 noon, catering to guests who have to prepare food all day.

4. Free Itineraries from VeMekong

As a local travel expert, we have some ideas for you to think about.

From Bac Lieu city center:

Route 1:

Route 2:

Route 3:

If you do not have much time left, it is easy to check out spots in one full day by boat or with bike or with motorbike and car. But there are much more than tourist sites like these in Bac Lieu. Make sure you have more time to feel and explore more about the hidden gems and the culture, food, night life, wildlife and forest as well. Top tip: Stay in a homestay nearby, so you have more chances to visit it and surroundings. If you are looking for the package Bac Lieu daily tour with local, you can contact www.vemekong.com or Hotline/WhatsApp/WeChat/Zalo +84939888559; email: hello@vemekong.com

5. Google Maps of Bac Lieu Market

Google Maps made a name for itself helping people travel from one place to another, avoid traffic (You probably know the route from your hotel to the gas station by heart, but what you can’t be sure about is gridlock), measure a distance, get back to the hotel on time, share the location… 

6. Visit Bac Lieu Market by yourself

Solo traveller? Travelling on your own means you will get out of any difficult situations by yourself. This, in turn, leads to more satisfying travel experiences and helps you improve your problem-solving skills. These days we rarely get the chance to sit with ourselves and simply be. That’s why you should consider the time you spend alone on your trip as a gift.

It is possible for solo travellers to use google maps and do it alone. But sometimes they need to update local maintained roads and bridges which close and lead you a longer road than the road from Google maps. It is just about the time. It takes more time to find the correct garden to come. Adventure is always fun. Wifi is strong in Bac Lieu village! The locals find it hard to speak English as well. Top tip: Sticking to one canal and keeping going along it which gives you more things to see and avoids getting lost. Contact vemekong.com to hire a car, scooter with English-speaking-guide or cycling tours in Bac Lieu.

7. Responsible Travel and Advice Bac Lieu Market

Don’t get us wrong. But we assure you that you totally agree with us. “Do not give candy and things to the children when you plan to visit any local villages”, the kids will leave the school and follow the sweets and later they find some things to give you or sell to you. The garden is a little forest, don’t pick and touch the flowers or fruits without the local’s smiles. We deal with traveling green and leaving green behind, not plastic. Top tip: Vemekong.com are some of the companies that care a lot about responsible travel and local respectation.

8. Amazing Video flycam/drone of Bac Lieu Market (4k) 

If a picture says a thousand words, it stands to reason that the video says many times more. 

9. Incredible Tips for Photography, Specialists, KOLs, Media and Influencers 

To get the best of the best for your unique writing, featuring, photo, video and insider’s stories. We do recommend you to have a local travel expert, the one who always gets more ground information and makes sure every single element is solved perfectly. The Vemekong (very exclusive Mekong) team is your priority choice. Email and have a private talk with them to customize your journey smoothly, personal and the most ultimately amazing. You can contact www.vemekong.com or Hotline/WhatsApp/WeChat/Zalo +84939888559; email: hello@vemekong.com

10. Pro Tips 

You can stay in a homestay which is near the riverside, this will help you out the best option. Then you can hire a scooter, car or bike and explore it by yourself and I hope you have an amazing Mekong Delta river sunrise.

If you plan to extend your travel to Bac Lieu homestay, do not forget to bring mosquito repellent cream.

Visit Bac Lieu or do any customized tours, please choose reputable providers with boat trips equipped with lifebuoys, jackets, motorcycle and cycling tours with the helmets and. Safety is a priority! Choose Bac Lieu responsible tours which help you give back while traveling. It’s a cliché, but it’s true.

Bac Lieu food & drink guide ranges from street food, authentic, fancy to fusion foods. As a tropical land of many fresh vegetables and homegrown gardens, which always make Bac Lieu cuisines fresh, close to nature and very traditional. If you are a food lover, don’t hesitate to put other bites onto your food lists such as Bun bo cay (Spicy beef noodle soup), Three-striped crab (Freshwater crab in Bac Lieu), Banh cu cai (White radish pies), Banh tam bi Bac Lieu (Bac Lieu thick noodles & creamy coconut milk), Pho Ngheu, Bon Bon Pickles

Bring your hat, sunglasses, and sunblock, scarf to wear when visiting temples, pagodas, and the cathedral.

Bring the raincoat if you’re planning a trip to Bac Lieu in the rainy season, as Bac Lieu always looks fantastic in the full rain and full sun.

Bac Lieu tourist attractions are magnificent itself, but if you have enough time, don’t forget to put other places onto your bucket lists such as Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary, Bac Lieu Salt Farm, Buddha Temple Ba Nam Hai, Cong Tu Bac Lieu House, Ghositaram Pagoda in Bac Lieu, Bac Lieu Wind Farm, Ancient Longan Orchards, Vinh Hung Ancient Temple, Xiem Can Pagoda Bac Lieu, Cao Van Lau Theater (Conical Hat Non La Theater), Tac Say Church, Cao Van Lau Musician Memorial Site, Nha Mat amusement park, Bac Lieu Beach and mangrove forests, Phuoc Duc Ancient Temple and Dia Mau Cung (Ba Pagoda), Bac Lieu Market, Hung Vuong Square in Bac Lieu…

Hopefully, the above tips will help you to come up with a great plan for your adventure in Bac Lieu province, Mekong Delta, Vietnam. Have a safe trip!

“Sleep less, travel more, respect more” – Thomas Vietnam – Local travel expert.

Thank you

Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary – Where to Watch Bird in Mekong Delta

Posted on by Thomas Vietnam

Bac Lieu Bird Garden has long been a familiar eco-tourism destination for locals and tourists.  Bac Lieu Bird Garden has bold wild nature, beautiful landscape, charming green space, and is home to many rare species of birds and storks.

By Thomas Vietnam at vemekong.com | Official Bac Lieu Visitor Guide

Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary – Where to Watch Bird in Mekong Delta

1. Better to Know as a Tourist

Ticket: Free

Spend-time: One and a half hour (approx)

Hours: Dawn – dusk 

Food: Yes     

Shop: 

Parking lot: Yes

Blog: https://vemekong.com/bac-lieu-bird-sanctuary/

Address:  Located in Nha Mat Ward, Bac Lieu City

Added values: Bac Lieu Bird Park is an interesting natural environment with values ​​in terms of biodiversity resources, as well as a valuable conservation area for scientific research. Besides, Bac Lieu bird garden is also an ideal meeting point and tourist destination in Bac Lieu. Visitors from far and wide coming here will get lost in the rare biodiversity nature reserve of the world of birds, which will be an unforgettable experience.

Nearby attractions and hidden gems: Looking for places to stop on your way to and from Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary? Ghositaram pagoda (11 km), Xiem Can Pagoda (11 km), Cong Tu Bac Lieu House (6 km), Bac Lieu Salt Farm (37 km), Tac Say Church (43 km), Bac Lieu market (6 km)…  

2. Travel Guide to Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary

Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary – Where to Watch Bird in Mekong Delta

From the center of Bac Lieu city, follow the road named Cao Van Lau or Ninh Binh street, about 3km towards Nha Mat, right through Vuon Chim bridge 1km, visitors will reach the bird garden area.

The ideal time to travel to Bac Lieu to visit the bird garden is from May to October every year.  This is the breeding season of birds and the ideal bird watching season, the space is filled with the chirping of birds, with hundreds of different vocal lines.

Bac Lieu Bird Park is a remnant of the coastal mangrove forest, due to natural accretion, which has gradually moved away from the East Sea.  Bac Lieu Bird Park with an area of ​​130ha, has more than 100 species of birds, storks, the number of individuals is more than 60,000, in which there are many rare bird species recorded in the Red Book of Vietnam and the world.

The bird park has preserved a rich and diverse ecosystem, with 150 species of animals and 109 species of plants.  Characteristic of the natural forest with species of date tree, bamboo and mangrove… It is the main habitat that plays a major role in the life, nesting and breeding habitat of wild birds. The date palm tree is suitable for birds belonging to the stork group which is a good place to build breeding nests. All intertwined to create a green environment suitable for owls to shelter.  The birds living here seem to have a clear convention and division of territory.  At the top, the species of birds, while the white stork and grey stork divide to make nests on medium-high tree floors.

With high biodiversity, the bird garden in Bac Lieu has been recognized as a Nature Reserve since 1986. By 2014, the park was recognized by the Government as a species-habitat conservation area.

Just entering the Bac Lieu bird garden, you can check-in the place with a row of canary flowers that are bright and full of life; Go deep inside on the asphalt road with both sides of the road full of green trees and flowers.

3. What to Do –See – Eat at Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary

Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary – Where to Watch Bird in Mekong Delta

To discover Bac Lieu Bird Park, you can row a dinghy, pass through a few bridges, then go down the canal to the scenic garden.  The banks are two rows of slanted trees, sometimes seeing a few birds soaring high, or discreetly camouflaged on branches and leaves, curiously watching the visitors.

Or walk, ride a tram under the canopy of the forest, look up high, it is easy to see that for every ten trees, there is a heavy tree carrying several nests of storks, nests with eggs and young birds.  Whenever a person is detected entering the garden, the mother bird immediately raises the alarm, while the young birds raise their heads and look around.

Climbing to the high observation platform, visitors can also admire an interesting natural corner of the South with the green forest carpet, spreading vastly, dotted with the birds’ wings.

Visiting Bac Lieu Bird Park, visitors seem to be lost in a bustling world of sounds with hundreds of voices of different birds.  Especially in the early morning when the sun is still shining over the sea, visitors coming here will be amazed by the performances in the large gland behind the bird garden: flocks of birds in formation drop themselves from above and swoop down to the water surface then flap their wings and soar into the air in moves that are repeated many times as if they are exercising in the morning, making anyone who has witnessed it once feel impressive and unforgettable.  If you come here at sunset, from the direction of the East Sea it is purple in the afternoon, from the golden fields of Bac Lieu to nurse ripe rice … flocks of birds fly back to the nest.  They fly orderly, separating between feather color and species.  There are formations like arrows rushing forward, other formations are scattered… when they come to “home”, the archipelago is in a corner of the forest.

There are also extremely fun and attractive folk games such as: Cycling across the bridge, swinging rope, slapping the pond to catch fish, blindfolded & catching pigs, damming, sampan racing…

After watching birds, watching animals to your heart’s content, you can visit the shops set up on the banks of a quiet lake, adorned with lotus flowers, water lilies, etc., where there is a hammock for you to lie down and rest.  Do not forget to enjoy Mekong-style dishes such as: Crab and vegetable salad, fish sauce, fried catfish dipped in ginger fish sauce…

4. Free Itineraries from VeMekong

As a local travel expert, we have some ideas for you to think about.

From Bac Lieu city center:

Route 1:

Route 2:

Route 3:

If you do not have much time left, it is easy to check out spots in one full day by boat or with bike or with motorbike and car. But there are much more than tourist sites like these in Bac Lieu. Make sure you have more time to feel and explore more about the hidden gems and the culture, food, night life, wildlife and forest as well. Top tip: Stay in a homestay nearby, so you have more chances to visit it and surroundings. If you are looking for the package Bac Lieu daily tour with local, you can contact www.vemekong.com or Hotline/WhatsApp/WeChat/Zalo +84939888559; email: hello@vemekong.com

5. Google Maps of Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary

Google Maps made a name for itself helping people travel from one place to another, avoid traffic (You probably know the route from your hotel to the gas station by heart, but what you can’t be sure about is gridlock), measure a distance, get back to the hotel on time, share the location… 

6. Visit Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary by yourself

Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary – Where to Watch Bird in Mekong Delta

Solo traveller? Travelling on your own means you will get out of any difficult situations by yourself. This, in turn, leads to more satisfying travel experiences and helps you improve your problem-solving skills. These days we rarely get the chance to sit with ourselves and simply be. That’s why you should consider the time you spend alone on your trip as a gift.

It is possible for solo travellers to use google maps and do it alone. But sometimes they need to update local maintained roads and bridges which close and lead you a longer road than the road from Google maps. It is just about the time. It takes more time to find the correct garden to come. Adventure is always fun. Wifi is strong in Bac Lieu village! The locals find it hard to speak English as well. Top tip: Sticking to one canal and keeping going along it which gives you more things to see and avoids getting lost. Contact vemekong.com to hire a car, scooter with English-speaking-guide or cycling tours in Bac Lieu.

7. Responsible Travel and Advice Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary

Don’t get us wrong. But we assure you that you totally agree with us. “Do not give candy and things to the children when you plan to visit any local villages”, the kids will leave the school and follow the sweets and later they find some things to give you or sell to you. The garden is a little forest, don’t pick and touch the flowers or fruits without the local’s smiles. We deal with traveling green and leaving green behind, not plastic. Top tip: Vemekong.com are some of the companies that care a lot about responsible travel and local respectation.

8. Amazing Video flycam/drone of Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary (4k) 

If a picture says a thousand words, it stands to reason that the video says many times more. 

9. Incredible Tips for Photography, Specialists, KOLs, Media and Influencers 

To get the best of the best for your unique writing, featuring, photo, video and insider’s stories. We do recommend you to have a local travel expert, the one who always gets more ground information and makes sure every single element is solved perfectly. The Vemekong (very exclusive Mekong) team is your priority choice. Email and have a private talk with them to customize your journey smoothly, personal and the most ultimately amazing. You can contact www.vemekong.com or Hotline/WhatsApp/WeChat/Zalo +84939888559; email: hello@vemekong.com

10. Pro Tips 

You can stay in a homestay which is near the riverside, this will help you out the best option. Then you can hire a scooter, car or bike and explore it by yourself and I hope you have an amazing Mekong Delta river sunrise.

If you plan to extend your travel to Bac Lieu homestay, do not forget to bring mosquito repellent cream.

Visit Bac Lieu or do any customized tours, please choose reputable providers with boat trips equipped with lifebuoys, jackets, motorcycle and cycling tours with the helmets and. Safety is a priority! Choose Bac Lieu responsible tours which help you give back while traveling. It’s a cliché, but it’s true.

Bac Lieu food & drink guide ranges from street food, authentic, fancy to fusion foods. As a tropical land of many fresh vegetables and homegrown gardens, which always make Bac Lieu cuisines fresh, close to nature and very traditional. If you are a food lover, don’t hesitate to put other bites onto your food lists such as Bun bo cay (Spicy beef noodle soup), Three-striped crab (Freshwater crab in Bac Lieu), Banh cu cai (White radish pies), Banh tam bi Bac Lieu (Bac Lieu thick noodles & creamy coconut milk), Pho Ngheu, Bon Bon Pickles

Bring your hat, sunglasses, and sunblock, scarf to wear when visiting temples, pagodas, and the cathedral.

Bring the raincoat if you’re planning a trip to Bac Lieu in the rainy season, as Bac Lieu always looks fantastic in the full rain and full sun.

Bac Lieu tourist attractions are magnificent itself, but if you have enough time, don’t forget to put other places onto your bucket lists such as Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary, Bac Lieu Salt Farm, Buddha Temple Ba Nam Hai, Cong Tu Bac Lieu House, Ghositaram Pagoda in Bac Lieu, Bac Lieu Wind Farm, Ancient Longan Orchards, Vinh Hung Ancient Temple, Xiem Can Pagoda Bac Lieu, Cao Van Lau Theater (Conical Hat Non La Theater), Tac Say Church, Cao Van Lau Musician Memorial Site, Nha Mat amusement park, Bac Lieu Beach and mangrove forests, Phuoc Duc Ancient Temple and Dia Mau Cung (Ba Pagoda), Bac Lieu Market, Hung Vuong Square in Bac Lieu…

Hopefully, the above tips will help you to come up with a great plan for your adventure in Bac Lieu province, Mekong Delta, Vietnam. Have a safe trip!

“Sleep less, travel more, respect more” – Thomas Vietnam – Local travel expert.

Thank you

Ancient Longan Orchards in Bac Lieu Hidden Gem

Posted on by Thomas Vietnam

In Bac Lieu, there is an ancient longan garden that is over a hundred years old. This is the most special longan garden in the Mekong Delta, the pride of local people and also an attraction for tourists from far away to visit. Bac Lieu ancient longan garden is about 230ha wide, running over 1km long.

By Thomas Vietnam at vemekong.com | Official Bac Lieu Visitor Guide

Ancient Longan Orchards in Bac Lieu Hidden Gem

1. Better to Know as a Tourist

Ticket: 

Spend-time: Half an hour (approx)

Hours: Dawn – dusk 

Food: Yes             

Shop: Yes

Parking lot: Yes

Blog: https://vemekong.com/ancient-longan-orchard-bac-lieu/

Address: Located in Vinh Trach Dong commune, in Bac Lieu town, Bac Lieu province

Added values: Visiting the longan garden, it will be interesting to lie down under the swaying ancient canopy of longan trees to welcome the cool breeze from the sea, feel the space filled with longan fragrance and release your soul for endless contemplations of life of people.

Nearby attractions and hidden gems: Looking for places to stop on your way to and from ancient longan orchards? Ghositaram pagoda (17 km), Xiem Can Pagoda (13 km), Cong Tu Bac Lieu House (13 km), Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary (9 km), Tac Say Church (49 km), Bac Lieu market (12 km)…

2. Travel Guide to Ancient longan orchards

Bac Lieu longan garden has long been famous everywhere, not only for its ethereal taste and seductive fragrance, but also for its longevity. The longan trees here are over a hundred years old, so the locals often call them ancient longan with a sinewy, curved style like works of art that one must turn out.

Bac Lieu longan has entered many poems and songs and has revived the lives of Bac Lieu people for hundreds of years.  For visitors from afar, having the opportunity to travel to Bac Lieu, everyone sometimes wants to witness with their own eyes the natural beauty of the ancient longan bodies over a hundred years old and the sweetness of the ancient longan.

According to the people here, Bac Lieu longan garden was planted over a hundred years ago. In the past, this area was a sandy land formed through the process of natural sedimentation and man-made dikes to encroach on the sea.  This is a soil with good drainage, deep water level, thick cultivation layer…which is considered quite suitable for growing fruit trees and crops. When the Chinese migrated here at the beginning of the 19th century, Mr. Truong Hung was the first to bring two varieties of longan, Subic and Tuhut, from China to plant on the sandy soil of Bac Lieu. Like Subic for large fruit, thin skin, thick rice, very fragrant and sweet.  As for the Tuhut variety, the fruit is small, the seeds are small, but the rice is thick and sweet. Both varieties of longan are well-adapted and grow well on sandy soils, especially the popular Subic variety. So many people multiply the area of ​​​​the Subic label. From Hiep Thanh to Vinh Trach Dong, where there is sandy soil, longan will grow.

Each ancient longan root in Bac Lieu contains many cultural elements that cannot be found anywhere else.  It proves the history of formation of Bac Lieu hilly land, the attachment of 3 ethnic groups Kinh, Hoa and Khmer in the development process. That long-term association has created a thick soil culture. Therefore, Bac Lieu’s ancient longan garden is not merely picking fruit and bringing it to the market to sell, but it also contains historical value.

In Chom Xoai hamlet, Hiep Thanh commune, there is a longan garden of Mr. Truong Kiet’s family (the third grandchild of Mr. Truong Hung) with an area of ​​3ha, the largest in the commune. The garden was planted by the ancestors of the past, so far the life expectancy is over 100 years.  There is a longan tree first planted by Mr. Truong Hung, now it has become an old longan tree with a big root. These ancient longan trees are still flowering and bearing fruit in season, albeit slightly. The ideal time to travel to Bac Lieu to visit Bac Lieu’s ancient longan garden is around May or September. May is when the longan garden is in full bloom, the whole longan garden is full of beautiful white flowers, attracting butterflies, bees, and bees.  September is the time to harvest longan, so guests can enjoy the delicious taste of Bac Lieu longan.

3. What to Do –See – Eat at Ancient longan orchards

Coming to the longan garden, visitors can rest under the shady trees, breathe in the fresh air of a quiet countryside with the songs and chants of Don Ca Tai Tu. Coming here in the ripe longan season, visitors can also enjoy delicious, garden-style longan, and join the people in harvesting ripe longan. The delicious taste of each longan makes the eater unforgettable.

In addition to enjoying and buying sweet and fragrant longan clusters as gifts, on the way to the ancient longan garden, there are many famous delicious pancake shops that you should remember to enjoy.

On the Bac Lieu longan field today, the hundred-year-old longan trees are still being nurtured and preserved as a cultural feature of a time when the land was reclaimed and opened. Besides, Bac Lieu province is constantly researching and breeding new varieties of longan that inherit the aroma and sweetness of the famous ancient longan. Up to now, the most successful in creating new flavor and new economic value for ancient longan is the Thanh longan Bac Lieu variety. Thanh longan is a mutant in the population of Bac Lieu longan, discovered by a gardener in Giong Nhan hamlet, Hiep Thanh commune, Bac Lieu city and has been granted a certificate of trademark registration by the National Office of Intellectual Property Brand. In addition to the advantage of large fruit, aroma, thick rice, small seeds, drained… Another outstanding feature of Thanh longan Bac Lieu is that it does not suffer from disease. Along with ancient longan, Thanh longan Bac Lieu has become a new flavor, one of the typical specialties of Bac Lieu province.

4. Free Itineraries from VeMekong

As a local travel expert, we have some ideas for you to think about.

From Bac Lieu city center:

Route 1:

Route 2:

Route 3:

If you do not have much time left, it is easy to check out spots in one full day by boat or with bike or with motorbike and car. But there are much more than tourist sites like these in Bac Lieu. Make sure you have more time to feel and explore more about the hidden gems and the culture, food, night life, wildlife and forest as well. Top tip: Stay in a homestay nearby, so you have more chances to visit it and surroundings. If you are looking for the package Bac Lieu daily tour with local, you can contact www.vemekong.com or Hotline/WhatsApp/WeChat/Zalo +84939888559; email: hello@vemekong.com

5. Google Maps of Ancient longan orchards

Google Maps made a name for itself helping people travel from one place to another, avoid traffic (You probably know the route from your hotel to the gas station by heart, but what you can’t be sure about is gridlock), measure a distance, get back to the hotel on time, share the location… 

6. Visit Ancient longan orchards by yourself

Solo traveller? Travelling on your own means you will get out of any difficult situations by yourself. This, in turn, leads to more satisfying travel experiences and helps you improve your problem-solving skills. These days we rarely get the chance to sit with ourselves and simply be. That’s why you should consider the time you spend alone on your trip as a gift.

It is possible for solo travellers to use google maps and do it alone. But sometimes they need to update local maintained roads and bridges which close and lead you a longer road than the road from Google maps. It is just about the time. It takes more time to find the correct garden to come. Adventure is always fun. Wifi is strong in Bac Lieu village! The locals find it hard to speak English as well. Top tip: Sticking to one canal and keeping going along it which gives you more things to see and avoids getting lost. Contact vemekong.com to hire a car, scooter with English-speaking-guide or cycling tours in Bac Lieu.

7. Responsible Travel and Advice Ancient longan orchards

Don’t get us wrong. But we assure you that you totally agree with us. “Do not give candy and things to the children when you plan to visit any local villages”, the kids will leave the school and follow the sweets and later they find some things to give you or sell to you. The garden is a little forest, don’t pick and touch the flowers or fruits without the local’s smiles. We deal with traveling green and leaving green behind, not plastic. Top tip: Vemekong.com are some of the companies that care a lot about responsible travel and local respectation.

8. Amazing Video flycam/drone of Ancient longan orchards (4k) 

If a picture says a thousand words, it stands to reason that the video says many times more. 

9. Incredible Tips for Photography, Specialists, KOLs, Media and Influencers 

To get the best of the best for your unique writing, featuring, photo, video and insider’s stories. We do recommend you to have a local travel expert, the one who always gets more ground information and makes sure every single element is solved perfectly. The Vemekong (very exclusive Mekong) team is your priority choice. Email and have a private talk with them to customize your journey smoothly, personal and the most ultimately amazing. You can contact www.vemekong.com or Hotline/WhatsApp/WeChat/Zalo +84939888559; email: hello@vemekong.com

10. Pro Tips 

You can stay in a homestay which is near the riverside, this will help you out the best option. Then you can hire a scooter, car or bike and explore it by yourself and I hope you have an amazing Mekong Delta river sunrise.

If you plan to extend your travel to Bac Lieu homestay, do not forget to bring mosquito repellent cream.

Visit Bac Lieu or do any customized tours, please choose reputable providers with boat trips equipped with lifebuoys, jackets, motorcycle and cycling tours with the helmets and. Safety is a priority! Choose Bac Lieu responsible tours which help you give back while traveling. It’s a cliché, but it’s true.

Bac Lieu food & drink guide ranges from street food, authentic, fancy to fusion foods. As a tropical land of many fresh vegetables and homegrown gardens, which always make Bac Lieu cuisines fresh, close to nature and very traditional. If you are a food lover, don’t hesitate to put other bites onto your food lists such as Bun bo cay (Spicy beef noodle soup), Three-striped crab (Freshwater crab in Bac Lieu), Banh cu cai (White radish pies), Banh tam bi Bac Lieu (Bac Lieu thick noodles & creamy coconut milk), Pho Ngheu, Bon Bon Pickles

Bring your hat, sunglasses, and sunblock, scarf to wear when visiting temples, pagodas, and the cathedral.

Bring the raincoat if you’re planning a trip to Bac Lieu in the rainy season, as Bac Lieu always looks fantastic in the full rain and full sun.

Bac Lieu tourist attractions are magnificent itself, but if you have enough time, don’t forget to put other places onto your bucket lists such as Bac Lieu Bird Sanctuary, Bac Lieu Salt Farm, Buddha Temple Ba Nam Hai, Cong Tu Bac Lieu House, Ghositaram Pagoda in Bac Lieu, Bac Lieu Wind Farm, Ancient Longan Orchards, Vinh Hung Ancient Temple, Xiem Can Pagoda Bac Lieu, Cao Van Lau Theater (Conical Hat Non La Theater), Tac Say Church, Cao Van Lau Musician Memorial Site, Nha Mat amusement park, Bac Lieu Beach and mangrove forests, Phuoc Duc Ancient Temple and Dia Mau Cung (Ba Pagoda), Bac Lieu Market, Hung Vuong Square in Bac Lieu…

Hopefully, the above tips will help you to come up with a great plan for your adventure in Bac Lieu province, Mekong Delta, Vietnam. Have a safe trip!

“Sleep less, travel more, respect more” – Thomas Vietnam – Local travel expert.

Thank you

Vien Minh Pagoda – Thing to See Ben Tre Hidden Gem

Posted on by Thomas Vietnam

Vien Minh Pagoda is a Buddhist pilgrimage site known to many locals and neighbors. The following article will accompany visitors to Ben Tre to visit Vien Minh Pagoda – a small temple that still retains many ancient features in this land.

By Thomas Vietnam at vemekong.com | Official Ben Tre Visitor Guide

1. Better to Know as a Tourist

Ticket: 

Spend-time: Half an hour (approx)

Hours: Dawn – dusk 

Food:    

Shop: 

Parking lot: Yes

Blog: https://vemekong.com/vien-minh-pagoda-ben-tre/

Address: Located at 156 Nguyen Dinh Chieu Street, in Ward 2, Ben Tre City, Ben Tre Province.

Added values: Vien Minh Pagoda is currently considered one of the famous spiritual tourist attractions in Ben Tre. With a quiet space along with a spacious and airy campus will bring you the most relaxing moments.

Nearby attractions and hidden gems: Looking for places to stop on your way to and from Vien Minh Pagoda? Ben Tre City (3 minutes), Son Doc Rice paper village (25 minutes), Ben Tre Brick Factory (5 km), Thoi Son Island (15 km), Cho Lach Flower Village (24 km), Ben Tre Coconut Candy (12 km),…

2. Travel Guide to Vien Minh Pagoda

Vien Minh Pagoda was originally a shrine to worship Quan Cong.  Then, the shrine was restored and rebuilt into a temple.  In 1951, the pagoda was built larger and the architecture is preserved to this day. At this time, the abbot of the temple was the monk Vinh Thien.  In 1961, Venerable Vinh Thien handed over the pagoda to three disciples, Thien Tin, Huyen Vi and Thanh Tu, to take care of the pagoda.

After 1975, the pagoda was handed over by Venerable Thien Tin to his disciple, Venerable Thich Thien Phuoc.  Currently, the abbot of Vien Minh Pagoda is the Venerable Thich Hue Tri.  The pagoda still retains many architectural features of the 20th century, so it has ancient features, subtle simplicity.  The temple belongs to the Northern sect.

3. What to Do –See – Eat at Vien Minh Pagoda

Inside, the main hall of the temple worships Quan Thanh De statue and Buddha image. The most unique feature is the two statues of Shakyamuni and Amitabha Buddha with bamboo poles. Outside the yard, there is a 3m high statue of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara standing on a lotus pedestal and a statue of Buddha Shakyamuni.  The area of ​​the temple is about 3,000 square meters.

Because of its spacious campus, on major Buddhist holidays such as Vu Lan, Buddha’s Birthday, Lunar New Year… the temple organizes solemn ceremonies, attracting thousands of devotees to attend. 

Gradually, the pagoda became more known and now becomes a pilgrimage and tourist destination of Ben Tre.

The pagoda is located on the easy-to-find route of Ben Tre city, so it is quite convenient for visitors to visit this place. 

4. Free Itineraries from VeMekong

As a local travel expert, we have some ideas for you to think about.

From Ben Tre city center:

Route 1:

Route 2:

Route 3:

If you do not have much time left, it is easy to check out spots in one full day by boat or with bike or with motorbike and car. But there are much more than tourist sites like these in Ben Tre. Make sure you have more time to feel and explore more about the hidden gems and the culture, food, night life, wildlife and forest as well. Top tip: Stay in a homestay nearby, so you have more chances to visit it and surroundings. If you are looking for the package Ben Tre daily tour with local, you can contact www.vemekong.com or Hotline/WhatsApp/WeChat/Zalo +84939888559; email: hello@vemekong.com

5. Google Maps of Vien Minh Pagoda

Google Maps made a name for itself helping people travel from one place to another, avoid traffic (You probably know the route from your hotel to the gas station by heart, but what you can’t be sure about is gridlock), measure a distance, get back to the hotel on time, share the location… 

6. Visit Vien Minh Pagoda by yourself

Solo traveller? Travelling on your own means you will get out of any difficult situations by yourself. This, in turn, leads to more satisfying travel experiences and helps you improve your problem-solving skills. These days we rarely get the chance to sit with ourselves and simply be. That’s why you should consider the time you spend alone on your trip as a gift.

It is possible for solo travellers to use google maps and do it alone. But sometimes they need to update local maintained roads and bridges which close and lead you a longer road than the road from Google maps. It is just about the time. It takes more time to find the correct garden to come. Adventure is always fun. Wifi is strong in Ben Tre village! The locals find it hard to speak English as well. Top tip: Sticking to one canal and keeping going along it which gives you more things to see and avoids getting lost. Contact vemekong.com to hire a car, scooter with English-speaking-guide or cycling tours in Ben Tre.

7. Responsible Travel and Advice Vien Minh Pagoda

Don’t get us wrong. But we assure you that you totally agree with us. “Do not give candy and things to the children when you plan to visit any local villages”, the kids will leave the school and follow the sweets and later they find some things to give you or sell to you. The garden is a little forest, don’t pick and touch the flowers or fruits without the local’s smiles. We deal with traveling green and leaving green behind, not plastic. Top tip: Vemekong.com are some of the companies that care a lot about responsible travel and local respectation.

8. Amazing Video flycam/drone of Vien Minh Pagoda (4k) 

If a picture says a thousand words, it stands to reason that the video says many times more. 

9. Incredible Tips for Photography, Specialists, KOLs, Media and Influencers 

To get the best of the best for your unique writing, featuring, photo, video and insider’s stories. We do recommend you to have a local travel expert, the one who always gets more ground information and makes sure every single element is solved perfectly. The Vemekong (very exclusive Mekong) team is your priority choice. Email and have a private talk with them to customize your journey smoothly, personal and the most ultimately amazing. You can contact www.vemekong.com or Hotline/WhatsApp/WeChat/Zalo +84939888559; email: hello@vemekong.com

10. Pro Tips 

You can stay in a homestay which is near the riverside, this will help you out the best option. Then you can hire a scooter, car or bike and explore it by yourself and I hope you have an amazing Mekong Delta river sunrise.

If you plan to extend your travel to Ben Tre homestay, do not forget to bring mosquito repellent cream.

Visit Ben Tre or do any customized tours, please choose reputable providers with boat trips equipped with lifebuoys, jackets, motorcycle and cycling tours with the helmets and. Safety is a priority! Choose Ben Tre responsible tours which help you give back while traveling. It’s a cliché, but it’s true.

Ben Tre food & drink guide ranges from street food, authentic, fancy to fusion foods. As a tropical land of many fresh vegetables and homegrown gardens, which always make Ben Tre cuisines fresh, close to nature and very traditional. If you are a food lover, don’t hesitate to put other bites onto your food lists such as Cai Mon durian, Phu Le Rice Wine, coconut wine, coconut candy, coconut rice, snail pancake, elephant ear fish, Coconut Worm, Young Coconut Salad with Shrimp & Pork…

Bring your hat, sunglasses, and sunblock, scarf to wear when visiting temples, pagodas, and the cathedral.

Bring the raincoat if you’re planning a trip to Ben Tre in the rainy season, as Ben Tre always looks fantastic in the full rain and full sun.

Ben Tre tourist attractions are magnificent itself, but if you have enough time, don’t forget to put other places onto your bucket lists such as Ben Tre brick & pottery kiln, Coconut Candy Traditional Village & Small Canals, mighty Mekong river cruise, educational tour and community tour in Ben Tre, Ben Tre homestay 2D1N, cocohome homestay, Ben Tre cycling tours, Son Doc Puff Rice Paper Village, Dong Khoi Guerrilla Village, Vam Ho bird sanctuary, Cai Mon Ornamental Flower Village in Cho Lach, Ben Tre Museum, An Hiep Nhon Thanh Mat Weaving Villages, Ben Tre Night Market, Phung Island (Phoenix islet), Thoi Son Island, Turtle Islet (Con Quy)…

Hopefully, the above tips will help you to come up with a great plan for your adventure in Ben Tre province, Mekong Delta, Vietnam. Have a safe trip!

“Sleep less, travel more, respect more” – Thomas Vietnam – Local travel expert.

Thank you

Vam Ho bird sanctuary – Where to Go in Ben Tre

Posted on by Thomas Vietnam

If you have the opportunity to visit the coconut land of Ben Tre, do not forget to come to Vam Ho which is the largest bird sanctuary of Ben Tre province to explore the wonderful nature, listen and see firsthand the flocks of birds flying in the sky.

By Thomas Vietnam at vemekong.com | Official Ben Tre Visitor Guide

Vam Ho bird sanctuary – Things to see in Ben Tre

1. Better to Know as a Tourist

Ticket: 

Spend-time: One and a half hour (approx)

Hours: Dawn – dusk 

Food:  Yes      

Shop: Yes

Parking lot: Yes

Blog: https://vemekong.com/vam-ho-bird-sanctuary-ben-tre/

Address: Located in the communes of My Hoa, Tan My and Tan Xuan, Ba Tri district, Ben Tre province, with an area of ​​over 67ha.

Added values: Vam Ho bird sanctuary is a precious asset that nature has bestowed on Ben Tre province. Coming here, visitors will enjoy the fresh air, as well as discover many interesting things of the mangrove forest, have the opportunity to learn about the life of animals, and at the same time, you will also find here the natural habitat.  Agro-ecological features typical wet rice civilization where there are many rivers, canals and gardens.

Nearby attractions and hidden gems: Looking for places to stop on your way to and from Vam Ho bird sanctuary? Ben Tre City (35 km), Son Doc Rice paper village (35 minutes), Ben Tre Brick Factory (30 km), Thoi Son Island (47 km), Cho Lach Flower Village (60 km), Ben Tre Coconut Candy (44 km),…

2. Travel Guide to Vam Ho bird sanctuary

Vam Ho bird sanctuary – Ben Tre hidden gem

From the center of Ben Tre province, there are many roads leading to the Vam Ho Bird Park eco-tourism area with the imprint of mangroves. In which, the most convenient route: through Giong Trom to Tan Xuan, Ba Tri district, the route is about 30 km.

The time when Ben Tre tourists come to visit the most is around October to April, birds begin to gather here to breed, which can be clearly seen on the tops of mangroves, cork trees. In August they fly away again.  This custom has been maintained for decades.

Ben Tre nature & forest

Vam Ho bird sanctuary is a unique ecological area, typical for coastal mangrove forests of the Mekong Delta, with high biological value and potential for ecotourism development.

Ben Tre nature & forest

Traveling to Ben Tre, to Vam Ho Bird Sanctuary, you will experience canoeing into the green old forests and bustling with birds. Visit the resistance base area, go through the loose bamboo bridges, lie back on the hammock swinging under the forest canopy, and breathe the fresh air of the Ba Lai river.

Vam Ho bird sanctuary – Ben Tre hidden gem

It is rare to find a place that is wild, beautiful and genuine, with many birds and seafood like here.  Currently, this place owns over 120 rare bird species such as storks, gray herons,… and many kinds of wild animals such as pythons, snakes, squirrels, weasels, bats, iguanas…

Vam Ho is a mangrove area, with an average height of 1.25 meters above sea level, so it is safe for annual high tides. Vegetation of Vam Ho has nipa palm, dates, mangroves… on the high zone, which is ideal for birds to reside; In the lower section, there are dominant plants such as mangroves, hibiscus, hollyhocks, sea spinach, reeds, etc., which are very convenient for storks and heron to breed. Inside the bird garden is a system of canals interlaced like spider webs, so there are many fish, crab and shrimp, etc… which are a rich source of food for birds and storks here.

3. What to Do –See – Eat at Vam Ho bird sanctuary

Vam Ho bird sanctuary – a short trekking in the forest

Visiting the Vam Ho Bird Court, tourists can also visit the old resistance base that used to hide many revolutionary armies in the ground; and participate in a number of folk games such as monkey bridge, crossing the lake with rope, old swing game…

This place also develops an area to grow many kinds of tropical fruits that produce fruit all year round, for visitors to enjoy fruits such as grapefruit, jackfruit, papaya, soursop, etc., which are grown organically without chemical fertilizers.

Ben Tre forest & wildlife in Vam Ho

After watching nature full of interesting birds, guests can stop at the restaurant, enjoy delicious dishes prepared by the skillful people here: cork fruit hotpot, braised fish in clay pot, pancakes, fish sauce hotpot, and all kinds of folk cakes…

The most interesting thing is in the afternoon, when the sun is about to set, visitors will hear an interesting “symphony” of thousands of birds of all kinds from all over the world, chirping together after a day of flying around to eat.  and even the sound of the heron preparing to flap its wings to find food at night.

4. Free Itineraries from VeMekong

A big restaurant in Vam Ho bird sanctuary station and entrance

As a local travel expert, we have some ideas for you to think about.

From Ben Tre city center:

Route 1:

Route 2:

Route 3:

If you do not have much time left, it is easy to check out spots in one full day by boat or with bike or with motorbike and car. But there are much more than tourist sites like these in Ben Tre. Make sure you have more time to feel and explore more about the hidden gems and the culture, food, night life, wildlife and forest as well. Top tip: Stay in a homestay nearby, so you have more chances to visit it and surroundings. If you are looking for the package Ben Tre daily tour with local, you can contact www.vemekong.com or Hotline/WhatsApp/WeChat/Zalo +84939888559; email: hello@vemekong.com

5. Google Maps of Vam Ho bird sanctuary

Google Maps made a name for itself helping people travel from one place to another, avoid traffic (You probably know the route from your hotel to the gas station by heart, but what you can’t be sure about is gridlock), measure a distance, get back to the hotel on time, share the location… 

6. Visit Vam Ho bird sanctuary by yourself

Vam Ho bird sanctuary – Ben Tre secret

Solo traveller? Travelling on your own means you will get out of any difficult situations by yourself. This, in turn, leads to more satisfying travel experiences and helps you improve your problem-solving skills. These days we rarely get the chance to sit with ourselves and simply be. That’s why you should consider the time you spend alone on your trip as a gift.

A lovely lotus pond in Vam Ho bird sanctuary

It is possible for solo travellers to use google maps and do it alone. But sometimes they need to update local maintained roads and bridges which close and lead you a longer road than the road from Google maps. It is just about the time. It takes more time to find the correct garden to come. Adventure is always fun. Wifi is strong in Ben Tre village! The locals find it hard to speak English as well. Top tip: Sticking to one canal and keeping going along it which gives you more things to see and avoids getting lost. Contact vemekong.com to hire a car, scooter with English-speaking-guide or cycling tours in Ben Tre.

7. Responsible Travel and Advice Vam Ho bird sanctuary

We do not see many birds, maybe we visited this place in the dry season, but we enjoyed the jungle trekking so much.

Don’t get us wrong. But we assure you that you totally agree with us. “Do not give candy and things to the children when you plan to visit any local villages”, the kids will leave the school and follow the sweets and later they find some things to give you or sell to you. The garden is a little forest, don’t pick and touch the flowers or fruits without the local’s smiles. We deal with traveling green and leaving green behind, not plastic. Top tip: Vemekong.com are some of the companies that care a lot about responsible travel and local respectation.

8. Amazing Video flycam/drone of Vam Ho bird sanctuary (4k) 

If a picture says a thousand words, it stands to reason that the video says many times more. 

9. Incredible Tips for Photography, Specialists, KOLs, Media and Influencers 

Ben Tre trekking tour

To get the best of the best for your unique writing, featuring, photo, video and insider’s stories. We do recommend you to have a local travel expert, the one who always gets more ground information and makes sure every single element is solved perfectly. The Vemekong (very exclusive Mekong) team is your priority choice. Email and have a private talk with them to customize your journey smoothly, personal and the most ultimately amazing. You can contact www.vemekong.com or Hotline/WhatsApp/WeChat/Zalo +84939888559; email: hello@vemekong.com

10. Pro Tips 

You can stay in a homestay which is near the riverside, this will help you out the best option. Then you can hire a scooter, car or bike and explore it by yourself and I hope you have an amazing Mekong Delta river sunrise.

If you plan to extend your travel to Ben Tre homestay, do not forget to bring mosquito repellent cream.

Visit Ben Tre or do any customized tours, please choose reputable providers with boat trips equipped with lifebuoys, jackets, motorcycle and cycling tours with the helmets and. Safety is a priority! Choose Ben Tre responsible tours which help you give back while traveling. It’s a cliché, but it’s true.

Ben Tre food & drink guide ranges from street food, authentic, fancy to fusion foods. As a tropical land of many fresh vegetables and homegrown gardens, which always make Ben Tre cuisines fresh, close to nature and very traditional. If you are a food lover, don’t hesitate to put other bites onto your food lists such as Cai Mon durian, Phu Le Rice Wine, coconut wine, coconut candy, coconut rice, snail pancake, elephant ear fish, Coconut Worm, Young Coconut Salad with Shrimp & Pork…

Bring your hat, sunglasses, and sunblock, scarf to wear when visiting temples, pagodas, and the cathedral.

Bring the raincoat if you’re planning a trip to Ben Tre in the rainy season, as Ben Tre always looks fantastic in the full rain and full sun.

Ben Tre tourist attractions are magnificent itself, but if you have enough time, don’t forget to put other places onto your bucket lists such as Ben Tre brick & pottery kiln, Coconut Candy Traditional Village & Small Canals, mighty Mekong river cruise, educational tour and community tour in Ben Tre, Ben Tre homestay 2D1N, cocohome homestay, Ben Tre cycling tours, Son Doc Puff Rice Paper Village, Dong Khoi Guerrilla Village, Vam Ho bird sanctuary, Cai Mon Ornamental Flower Village in Cho Lach, Ben Tre Museum, An Hiep Nhon Thanh Mat Weaving Villages, Ben Tre Night Market, Phung Island (Phoenix islet), Thoi Son Island, Turtle Islet (Con Quy)…

Hopefully, the above tips will help you to come up with a great plan for your adventure in Ben Tre province, Mekong Delta, Vietnam. Have a safe trip!

“Sleep less, travel more, respect more” – Thomas Vietnam – Local travel expert.

Thank you

Photo of the day

When people ask me what to see in Mekong today. I tell them view our MekongDelta365.

Can Tho Rice Noodle Factory & Villages
March 27, 2021
PHOTO BY THOMAS VIETNAM, MEKONG COLLECTION
Can Tho Rice Noodle Factory & Villages

Nowadays, there are more and more green and responsible tours which are meaningful and educational as well. This is why Can Tho noodle factory is getting popular for both Vietnamese and foreigners to come and explore the cuisine culture and the typical local life in Can Tho, Mekong Delta.