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BEN TRE |
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The few travellers who push on beyond My Tho into riverlocked Ben
Tre Province are rewarded with breathtaking scenery of fruit orchards
and coconut groves. Ben Tre Town itself is a pleasant place, a world
away from touristed My Tho. Ferries from My Tho disgorge their
passengers 11km north of Ben Tre, from where a Honda loi will take you
into town. You could also catch a bus - buses either terminate at the
bus station 2km out of town, or nearer the centre at Truc Giang Lake.
Near here, on Dong Khoi, Ben Tre Tourism (tel 075/829618) can help with
tours and car-rental.
Once you've scanned Ben Tre's buzzing market in the centre of town,
you'll want to pass over the quaint bridge leading to Ben Tre River's
more rustic south bank, where scores of boats moor in front of thatch
houses. With a bicycle (bring one from My Tho, or ask at your hotel),
you can explore the maze of dirt tracks and visit the riverside wine
factory , 450m west of the bridge, where ruou trang (rice wine) fizzes
away in earthenware jars.
Honda oms congregate outside the GPO in the centre of Ben Tre, and for
$3.50 they'll whisk you off on a three-hour round-trip to the fruit
orchards of CAI MON . Ten minutes' ride west of town you cross a river
on the Ham Luong Ferry, then head off into waxy green paddy fields to
the coconut village of Ba Vat (20min). Twenty-five minutes later, the
road reaches Cai Mon, a sleepy community whose residents make a living
by cultivating fruit in the vast plain of orchards, veined by miles of
canals and paths.
The riverside Hung Vuong (tel 075/822866; $5-15) has the poorest rooms
but the best location of Ben Tre's hotels ; Ben Tre (tel 075/822223;
$5-15) is better value, but at the wrong end of town. The Ben Tre
Floating Restaurant, near the bridge, has seen better days, but is a
good spot for a sunset drink and more enticing than the hotel
restaurants.
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