We left our lovely guest house in Cần Thơ on the 17th October and took a 3 hour bus journey to our next destination – Châu Đốc which is near the border with Cambodia.
We stayed in Châu Đốc for a week to recharge and catch up on some school work. We didn’t venture far during our time there – we just mooched around town visiting the local market, cafes and restaurants, and the riverside where there were exercise machines for the kids to play on.
We made friends with some ladies from a local tour agency who wanted to improve their English so we chatted with them and let them photocopy Martha’s English textbooks!
They organised our visit to Sam Mountain to visit the Hang Pagoda and the Tra Su Bird Sanctuary for a day which we all enjoyed.
Sam Mountain
Hang Pagoda (or Chùa Hang, or Cave Pagoda) on Sam Mountain is a Buddhist temple and is reached by climbing a few hundred steps up. There were some great views of the surrounding countryside of the Mekong Delta when we got to the top.
There were several levels to explore, as well as a network of tunnels deep within the mountain with various rooms and places to worship.
Tra Su Bird Sanctuary
In the afternoon we went to Tra Su forest which contains cajaput trees and flooded mangroves and areas turned green by water ferns during the rainy season.
We took a boat trip through the flooded forest along narrow channels, which the kids enjoyed, and then climbed a watchtower to get a view above the forest canopy.
The tunnels look fascinating. Very bright green everywhere. A complete contrast to the uk at the moment.