Cruising the Mekong Delta – The Antithesis of a Groundhog Day Vacation

[vc_row inner_container=”true” no_margin=”true” padding_top=”0px” padding_bottom=”0px” border=”none”][vc_column width=”1/1″][text_output]The Story: “So where are you going for your vacation?” I asked Ellie.

She quickly responded, “Back to the resort in Mexico, you know, the same place I’ve been going to for the last few years.”

“Why do you go to the same place year after year?” I knew the answer but just had to ask.

“It’s a familiar place. I know what I’m getting, I see a lot of the same staff and it’s comfortable,” she replied back.

The Inspiration: For me, going back to the same place for my vacation, year after year, just won’t do. Where’s the sense of adventure and discovery?

Last summer, It came down to a cruise vacation — board a huge cruise ship which I’ve done countless times or be truly daring and try a river cruise. I will admit it — I was very hesitant based on what I’ve heard. Fortunately, the latter won out for a bunch of different reasons and I’m so glad it did. Sailing down the Mekong River in South East Asia was an experience of a lifetime.

Home-away-from-home: The Amalotus river ship by AmaWaterways

The Takeaway: Reinvent your vacations every now and then and try something off the beaten path, well at least different from your normal path. You’ll walk away with moments you may have never imagined and new stories to share. Break the “Groundhog Day” vacation cycle! 

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[dropcap] T [/dropcap]he small, dimly lit room filled with a chorus of “If You’re Happy and You Know It” while outside, the rain poured down upon the one-room school house. I stood at the front of the room smiling back at approximately 25 Cambodian children, ages 6 and up, all dressed in their white uniforms. They stood by their wooden desks and benches and clapped loudly as they sang with pride. There were portions of the song that I didn’t even know, but I, along with the rest of our tour group, sang along with the kids.

After the song, we were allowed to ask them questions about what they were studying and the kids were so excited to practice their English as they eagerly raised their hands to respond. It would have been time for us to go since we had probably used up more than half an hour of their school day, but because of the continued rain, we had a wonderful opportunity to sit down with the kids at their desks and chat with them one-on-one.

Nadal with his new friend in a Cambodian classroom

My 10 year old nephew Nadal sat down with one of the boys towards the back of the room and it was funny how they quickly started chatting, despite the language barrier. I joined them and found out that Nadal’s new friend was the same age but I could have sworn that there was at least a 3 – 4 year age difference based on height alone. Must be the milk in the U.S.

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A moment like this was one among many during my river cruise that I will never forget. This type of intimate moment with the locals is something that I just haven’t experienced aboard large cruise ships that I have sailed, but it’s a clear distinction in terms of what a small river ship, like AmaWaterways‘ Amalotus ship can offer based on unique and much smaller ports of call. Many of our stops required us to cross a wooden plank onto shore – no large cruise terminals or piers for this trip.

Truth be told, vacationing aboard a river ship wasn’t my first choice at all when it came to how I would use my precious vacation days. I had gotten very comfortable sailing on large ships from Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Holland America and Norwegian Cruise Lines, but based on the time of year, the part of the globe that I would be in and what was available, a river cruise was the best option and something new to try.

Having sailed many large ships, even one that held 6,000+ passengers at one time, I was used to endless options of activities to take up my days. From excursions during the day, to numerous restaurants to explore, to amazing shows, casinos, fun events hosted by the crew and clubs to dance the night away — there’s never a dull moment aboard a cruise ship.

The Staircase of the Amalotus Ship

But what would I do aboard a river ship filled with only 4 decks and enough room for only 100+ people? There were no shows, only one dining room, a lounge indoors and one outdoors on the sundeck and a small workout room – that would be it!

For me, it was a way to actually slow down. There’s a very different pace on a river ship and though I prefer to be on-the-go during my vacations exploring as much as I can and covering as much ground as possible, I actually sat still once back on board.

A funny thing happens though when you find yourself with downtime, sporadic internet connection, no TV and no schedule of events to race off to and attend – you find a way to actually connect with the people who you’re with in ways that may have gotten lost with the advent of smartphones, ipads, internet connections and all the other distractions by which our lives have been filled. And on a river ship, there aren’t many distractions. The family gathered up on the lounge deck after dinners – we’d read books together, played games of chess with the kids and overall, just relaxed in a quiet way enjoying the view as the ship sailed onward to our next destination and enjoying each other’s company.

There were two performances by locals at various stops along the sailing and the crew even put on a variety show which was so much fun to watch. On a small ship as this, you basically know everyone on board – even the crew. Watching them perform and in costumes was such a treat for all us.

Also to my surprise, our cruise had a wide range of ages represented. While the nephews were the only kids on board, there were some college students with their families, a few Millennials, middle-aged folks and yes, there were baby boomers on board as I had expected. Our cruise covered the age spectrum and brought a nice diversity to the passenger list not only in age, but also geography from Americans, Brits, Australians and some individuals from China.

At the end of the cruise, I wanted to do it again, but this time along the rivers of Europe for the Christmas markets. It was hot in South East Asia, very hot, and I wanted some place a bit cooler.

No words can ever describe the experiences I had while discovering the villages, meeting the people and exploring the jungles that I walked through during the eight-day cruise. I invite you to get flavor of what I saw and captured on film. Hopefully, these images will entice you to give this type of vacation a try.

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