Day 14 - April 30

Hochiminh City - Cambodia

After breakfast, we had a tour day of the Anglor Wat temple ruins. With the tour group on their way home, I was with my wife Mimi, my dear friend Chef Lawrence Chu and his wife Ruth. We stayed at the French-influenced Hotel de La Paix, where we feasted on such items as pineapple ravioli, soup of catfish amour, pommello salad, grapefruit with orchid and spaghetti noodle. We enjoyed cocktails and beautiful, modern sculpture in the hotel lobby.

Day 13 - April 29

Hochiminh City (formerly Saigon)
Last Day

The last day of the formal tour was a leisure day in Ho Chi Minh City. We played golf and sampled street food. The farewell dinner was held at the fabulous Com Neu-Saigon. Here we feasted on exquisitely prepared seafood, beef, pork and quail, prepared in Traditional Clay Pot.

Day 12 - April 28

Hochiminh - Cai Be - Hochiminh City

We took a car to Cai be Town. From there we took a boat cruise on Mekong river. We visited the Cai be floating market. This is the age - old agriculture implements of wet rice civilization of the Mekong Delta. We visited local houses, and a brick forging and husking factory. We enjoyed tropical fruits and some local products, such as sticky rice wrapped in coconut leaf with banana and black bean. Also coconut jam, rice wine and honey while listening to the "Tai Tu music" - the typical traditional music of Mekong Delta. We ate lunch on the island and then returned to Ho Ch Minh City. We then drove to Binh Quoi village for enjoying traditional show and dinner. We stayed at the Continental Hotel.

Day 11 - April 27

Nha Trang - Hochiminh

After breakfast, we took a flight from the Cam Ranh airport to Ho Chi Minh City. Later that day, we took a tour to the Vinh Ngheim Pagoda, the History Museum, Unification Palace, Notre Dame Cathedral, and the Post Office. We then took a boat to Binh Quoi village where we enjoyed a traditional Vietnamese show and dinner.

Day 10 - April 26

Nha Trang & Chef's Hometown of Dam Bay Island

Day 10 brought us to my hometown of Dam Bay Island. After breakfast in Nha Trang (at hotel), we took a boat trip to visit Dam Bay Island. A taxi boat took us to Dam Bay by private charter. It was a one-hour trip, the group really enjoyed it. Taken by pedicab around the island, we visited the lobster farm on the island and saw how beautiful it is.

My sister is also a chef. We were welcomed with a drink to our Island. She had beautiful orchids and flowers tied to trees. There are sandy smooth rocks on the beach. It is here we had an unbelievable lunch and dinner on the beach. My sister created from family recipes, a 15 course meal. All local Nha Trang chefs came to cook this meal. We had cognac fermented with scorpions and snakes for after-dinner drinks.

The group all said that this was a "once in a lifetime experience" and would never forget the beauty of the island.

Day 9 - April 25

Hue - Hoi An - Nha Trang

Hoi An is Asian - lots of Japanese settled there hundreds of years ago. It is also a UNESCO Heritage site. We had lunch in Hoi An Pho restaurant, it is very upscale.

After breakfast we departed for Da Nang by road, through Hai Van pass, Lang Co Village. We visited in Da Nang before departing for an evening flight to Nha Trang. We had an incredible dinner on the beach of Nha Trang at Bien Ngoc Restaurant, known for its fabulous seafood.

We stayed at the Saigon Nha Trang Yasaka hotel that evening.

Day 8 - April 24

Hue

After breakfast we took a cruise on the Perfume River to visit the Thein Mu Pagoda - the symbols of Hue and to contemplate Minh Mang Mausoleum. We then visited the Dong Ba market.

We had a fabulous "Emperor Dinner" for royals at the Royal Restaurant. Everyone was fitted in elegant royal silk with headwear. It was a lavish affair.

We stayed the night at the Saigon Morin Hue Hotel in Hue.