Traveling along the Mekong Delta

“You can never step in the same river twice”, as the saying goes. Asia’s third longest watercourse (after the Yangtze and Yellow rivers of China), the Mekong, which originates in the Tibetan plateau at an elevation of 5500m, changes dramatically as it winds it way down through six nations to empty in the East Sea. I have never followed the entire length of this great river, although I have visited many portions of it at different times.

Langcang Jiang is the Chinese name for the Mekong. Flowing for 1826 km through the country, this is the narrowest, steepest and wildest part of the river.  In China, it is known as one of the three parallel rivers – though one of the other two, the famous Chang Jiang, nonetheless breaks the tacit commitment by making a sudden turn at Shiguzhen near Lijang to flow west-east, traveling the entire length of the Middle Empire to North China Sea. The other two continue their north-south course, and in the case of Langcang Jiang, flows to the Lao border town of Huayxai.
 
The boat trip into Laos from Huayxai to Pakbeng took me about eight hours. Eight hours sitting on the floor, with hardly any free space to stretch my legs, would have been incredibly long, had it not been for the beauty of the scenery that could be seen through the boat’s large windows. In contrast with the wildness of the river in China, the sight of blue mountains appearing at each turn gave rise to a serene feeling. There was not much traffic on the river, except for some local long-tails passing by from time to time, making such noise that one couldn’t help but wonder whether they had mistakenly put helicopter engines in them. Sometimes, we would see fishermen, sitting alone on their wooden boat or on a rock, patiently waiting. Mae Kong is home to the three largest fresh water fishes: the Mekong giant catfish (Pangasianodon gigas), the giant Pangasius, and the Siamese giant carp. All of them can grow up to three meters long, and weigh 300 kg.  Naturally, no fisherman expects to have the giant fish caught on their hook every time they go fishing. Only two or three such fish are caught in a year, and that already suffices to put them at risk of extinction. Sadly enough, as long as gourmets in Bangkok’s high-end restaurants are still ready to pay substantial sums for a plate of Pangasius steamed with ginger, the survival of these fishes will remain endangered. 
 
Luang Prabang – another eight hours into Laos by boat from Pakbeng – is one of the jewels that can be found along the Mekong. The town is situated on a peninsula formed by the confluence of the Mekong as it flows eastward from Huayxay and Pakbeng, and the Nam Kha River. The former capital of a Buddhist kingdom, and the residence for both the French governor and Lao King under French protectorate, the town has both a well-preserved Buddhist heritage in the form of temples and monastic communities, and strong colonial heritage manifested through colonial-style shops, restaurants and houses. Recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, the town has been receiving an increasing number of tourists who are attracted by the relaxed atmosphere of the local life, the charm of its numerous historical sites, and the natural beauty of its surroundings. Apart from the classic city tour and other lovely land excursions, visitors coming to Luang Prabang rarely miss the opportunity to cruise up the Mekong to visit Pak Ou cave where thousands of big and small Buddha statues stand, and to watch the scene of local women, skirts rolled up, washing clothes as children play on the river banks.
 
Following the river down in the direction of Vientiane, we will soon reach the Thai frontier, and for the next 800 km after Vientiane, the river will serve as the natural border between the two countries. People living on both sides of the river speak very similar languages. According to Thai-Lao language, Mekong or Mae Nam Khong signifies “the Mother River”: Mae means Mother, Nam means river, and Khong is probably a Thai derivation from the Indian Holy River, the Gange. From here on, the river becomes gradually broader, receiving more and more water  from tributaries. 
 
There are many interesting spots to be explored along this part of the river. Most notable are the ruins of Vat Phu, another World Heritage Site, considered as the Lao counterpart of Angkor Wat – although it is on a smaller scale and is less well preserved. Riverside villages and monasteries can also offer interesting experiences. Once I made a stop in a monastery called Hin Mak Poeng situated near the river. The monastery was founded by Ajahn Thate, an eminent Thai Buddhist Master, who passed away some time ago. It was a typical Thai forest monastery, with rather simple lodgings surrounded by woods. The monastery had no kitchen of its own. Meals were prepared by devotees at home and were offered to the monks once a day on their alms-rounds. A frugal life is expected of monastics, who are supposed to be vigilant against attachments to a sense of enjoyment. However, owing to the privileged location of the monastery, the monks and nuns here were certainly not deprived of visual pleasures: the forest and especially the view over the Mekong from the kutis (monastics’ lodgings) are truly beautiful. If a good setting could alone lead to awakening, I am sure all of them would have already become enlightened.
 
Khone and Pha Pheng waterfalls make up the border between Laos and Cambodia and were the very place where a French explorer Francis Garnier renounced his dream of using the Mekong as a trade route to China. Even without the fame of Francis Garnier’s expedition, the waterfalls today are a tourist attraction in their own right, since they are the biggest and most impressive waterfalls of all Southeast Asia. The area is also known to be inhabited by the Irrawaddy dolphins, which can measure 2,5 meters in length. Some 40 km before the Khon Pha Pheng waterfalls is the widest part of the Mekong, which can be as large as 14 km during the rainy season. Si Phan Don, the name of the place, consists of numerous (4000 if we stick to the literal meaning of Si Phan Don!) islands and sandbars that appear at the middle of the river during the dry season. Some of the islands are permanent, inhabited and can be visited all year round.
 
After the falls, the river becomes much gentler. At the confluence with the Tongle Sap river near Phnompenh, Cambodia, the Mekong experiences an interesting phenomenon: the reversing of its current into the Tongle Sap lake during the rainy season. The Mekong and the Tongle Sap are two symbiotic entities: during the dry season, the Tongle Sap drains into the Mekong so that the latter can continue to supply water to the lower delta in Vietnam and southwestern Cambodia; during the rainy season, it absorbs half of the water volume of the Mekong, sparing the downriver dwellers from dramatic flooding. The reverse flow during the rainy season brings the richness of the Mekong into the lake, increasing it to six times its normal size. Thanks to this phenomenon, the Tongle Sap is recognized as a World Biosphere, while the Mekong is considered a generous, stable Mother for the Cambodian and Vietnamese people who draw their life from it. 
 
Historically speaking, the Mekong was associated with the Angkor Empire’s glory. As Siem Reap in Cambodia was well surrounded by thick jungles, its only gateway to the outside world was the Mekong river via Tongle Sap lake. Over six centuries, enemy troops made countless futile attempts to invade Angkor by sailing upstream from the Mekong river. Inevitably, Angkor’s far superior naval forces defeated them. Eventually, Jayavarman VII opened a new road network for facilitating trade, which turned out to be a double-edged sword since it rendered Angkor more vulnerable to invaders.  Angkor eventually fell under Authaya kingdom in 1431.
 
Passing Phnompenh and its lovely riverside promenade at the city center (a place that you should come if you want to meet a maximum of Cambodians in a minimum of time!), the Mekong divides into two branches. The new, smaller one acquires a Cambodian name: the Bassac. Both branches flow eastward to enter the sixth and last nation on its course: Vietnam. The branches will be sub-divided again into nine branches before joining the salted water of the East Sea through nine large mouths, which is the origin of its Vietnamese name: Cửu Long Giang- the Nine Dragons river. There is apparently little in common between the wildness of the upper Mekong and the immensity of the Nine Dragons river.
 
Every year, the East Sea penetrates some dozen meters further inland. The coastal soil is getting more and more salted, threatening the agricultural wealth of the delta, and even its existence in the long run. If the sea level rises up one more meter by 2100, the entire lower delta will be submerged. Added to nature’s threat, the existing dam projects on the upper Mekong area, if carried out, will destroy the biodiversity of the river basin as a whole, and of course, millions of lives that are dependent on it will be affected. The Mekong River Commission has been founded as an initiative of all concerned countries to reconcile its members’ differing interests with regard to the Mekong. It is far from enough, though. The future for the Mekong River remains unclear. Only one thing is certain: the Mekong of tomorrow will not be the same as the Mekong of today. We can never step in the same river twice.