Yen Duc Village 26th -27th of June

Initially we had booked two nights on the Indochina Junk, but when we changed our itinerary around we were unable to do that. The company offered that we stay in a village for the night instead , I was dubious about this as they offered working in the rice paddy as entertainment and I could not muster much enthusiasm about working in soaring temperatures wading knee deep in mud plus I don't even like rice ( yes I know that's odd for an Asian girl). So we hesitatingly clambered aboard the bus not realising what a treat the were in for.

I must impress upon you that I do not have the words to express just how perfect our experience at  Yen Duc Village was. We were taken to our private villa by our tiny personal tour guide Cuc (pronounced Cook), the villa was newly built in 2012 and was modelled on a traditional Vietnamese house- with a large alter in the centre of the room and two beds either side. We were shown to our bedroom and introduced to the six ladies who would be looking after our every need. After a quick freshen up and a drink of indescribably bitter fresh green tea, we went off on a tour of the village. It was lovely stretching our legs whilst walking through the village. We meandered through the rice paddies and vegetable gardens .

We met some women who were volunteer farmers at rice paddies which belong to the pagoda. The rice grown here is distributed to the poor and some is used as an altar sacrifice. The village leader welcomed us into his home and we were regaled by stories of his ancestors and shown his impressive family tree. Next we ventured off to a communal hall where leaders from others villages had come to meet so they could discuss whether they might wish to have Westerners visit their villages as well. We were given the opportunity to use the rice hulling machine, I was of course too uncoordinated but Liz was a natural. The village leaders were very keen to try this 'women's job' and had a turn as well. 

Fishing was the next activity on the agenda. The fish farms are huge dams but are awfully muddy. We were encased in what I presume must be trout waders - not flattering at all but very sensible. Then we were given a woven cane basket . The idea is that you use the basket as a third leg and blindly place it in front of you in the hope that you trap a fishy whilst doing so. If you are unlucky / lucky enough to catch a fish you put your hand in through the hole in the top to tickle it. Apparently once you and the fish are on a first name basis you snatch it up through the hole and toss it into a communal fish basket. A great way to fish to be sure! We were meant to dig up the rice paddies next but unfortunately I had a terrible headache and went off for a rest in our lovely air conditioned room.

That evening dinner was set up for us in the court yard outside our room, it was heavenly. The surrounding were gorgeous, the sun was setting in shades of vermillion and we could hear the tranquil sounds of birds singing goodnight. Our meal was incredible eight courses of traditional food, everything was either grown or caught at the village . Our guide Cuc was an extremely interesting woman who had studied Russian and English at university it was truly a memorable evening.