8th Nov - Tan Chau and Chau Doc

This morning Denise and I selected different excursions.  I was going to the Tra Su Forest and Bird Sanctuary and Denise was going to the fish farm.  The bird sanctuary was quite a long way and it was going to be a 5.5 hour trip altogether, so I left the ship early at 8am.  The trip involved quite a few different modes of transport.  Initially there was a 45 minute speedboat ride, then we transferred to a bus for another 45 minute drive. Within the bird sanctuary itself there were 2 more different kinds of boats.  We saw quite a few birds, but I was even more impressed with the beautiful scenery.  To be honest the Mekong itself is quite industrialized and rather polluted, but once we got on the bus and went inland we were surrounded by greenery and beautiful mountains.

I returned to the ship around 1.30pm, only to find that Denise had slept through half the morning and missed her trip to the fish farm.

After such a long trip in the morning, I spent my afternoon relaxing by the pool as the ship sailed downriver towards the border with Cambodia.  We reached the border mid-afternoon and Scenic took care of arranging our Cambodian visas.  Whilst it's possible to get an e-visa for Cambodia on-line, that method is only good for certain entry points into the country - and the border crossing on the Mekong is not one of those entry points.  So you just have to get one on the spot as the cruise ship arrives.  The cruise company have obviously got a routine for doing this now, and took care of everything for us.


In the evening we were treated to a Lion Dance by some of the local children and then the Farewell to Vietnam Gala dinner.  Most of the crew on board are Cambodian, and were happy to be crossing over into their home country.

We ended the evening in the bar as usual, where 3 of the excursion staff put on a version of "Liar's Club" for us. Lots of fun was had by all.