Not for nothing has the delta ofthe Mekong River been termed the "rice bowl of the Universe". Sixcountries and well over fifty million people depend upon the Mekong fortheir very livelihood. And in no country is this dependence so profoundas in Vietnam.

"Gettingout into the Delta" makes for a popular day trip from Saigon. Somevisitors go further afield, to the provincial capital of Can Tho - andfewer still to the city of Chau Doc, near the Cambodia-Vietnam border.But until very recently (early 2001) it was impossible for foreignersto go by river across the Cambodian border.

Now,all this has changed. The Victoria Sprite and her larger sister vesselthe Victoria Princess, for the very first time, offer a river servicefrom Saigon all the way to the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh. No doubtwhatsoever, this trip is destined to become one of the world's greatriver journeys.

Aswith any new venture, the Victoria boat service is still getting itsscheduling in order. So on this occasion I get to travel by road fromSaigon, to join the boat at Chau Doc. The road trip provides anothertake on Mekong life, which from any perspective is fascinating in itsever-changing variety.

Wetake the near-empty Saigon Parkway, a multi-lane freeway leading fromnowhere to not-anywhere - or more precisely to the new satellite cityof Saigon South, with its Saigon Wonderland amusement park,Korean-Japanese School and executive golf course. I'm wondering whetherthis is still Vietnam, or whether perchance we have suddenly beenteleported to another planet.

Then,abruptly, we hit the main road to My Tho. Here, near the Mekong's oceanoutfall, the river-drenched plains are hugely fertile. Women standchest-deep in the water, planting rice. Ducks swarm in their thousands.Barely a square millimetre of potential cropland is wasted.

Religionis big time in this region. The indigenous Cao Dai sect, with itsstrange "revelation through séance" philosophy, has impressive templesin Bén Lúc and Long An, their near-psychedelic murals invitinginspection. The priest at the Bén Lúc temple is welcoming and obliging,showing us some of the pantheon of French and Chinese saints that adornthe eclectic interior. To the uninitiated, Cao Dai seems to be either areligion for the future or a belief system from another planet.

ThroughMy Tho (the furthest that the vast majority of travellers venture),both the riverboats and road traffic head on through the impressivecity of Vinh Long. From here, paths diverge slightly. The Victoriariverboats take a through channel to Can Tho. However, we decide totake a shortcut through to Sa Dec, on the Hau Giang arm of the Mekong.

Thehorizon around the riverine settlement of Lo Gach is a sky-sea ofbrick-kiln chimneys, their belching fumes turning the air into a hazysmog. Everywhere are bricks - stacked bricks, bricks on pallets, brokenbricks used as pavers or heaped in vacant allotments.

Ithas just rained, and I feel like I'm living inside a hot, damp sponge.We pass over numerous canals, where the steady flow of river trafficsuggests that the region is on a totally focussed export drive. Indeed,Vietnam is set soon to overtake Thailand to become the world's leadingrice exporter. Across the Hau Giang the big city of Long Xuyên, aglowwith sparkling new hotels and apartment buildings, also finds the timeto process over 50 cubic metres of Mekong Ca tra fish a day, much of itdestined for the tables of Europe and America.

Earlyin the next morning, we board the River Sprite, a spritely vesselindeed. Amazingly enough, I get to ride on the roof most of the way, aprime opportunity that affords a great view of river life. However, therooftop vantage point is not without its dangers. Inevitably, it won'tbe very long before someone falls off, and the company bans roof-ridingcompletely. So, the time to take the boat trips is right now!

Wesail up the Tem River towards the Bassac, the wide southern arm of theMekong River. Along the way, the riverside teems with life andcommerce. Floating shops, service stations and markets complement theirland-based counterparts. Then, after about 45 minutes' cruising wereach the Bassac River junction.

Herethe river widens, becoming nearly an inland sea. But as before, I'mtotally bowled over by the industriousness of the riverine peoples.Along the riverbanks, baskets of potatoes and other freshly-harvestedvegetables are loaded straight onto barges. Everyone is meaningfullyengaged with life, always and everywhere.

Theborder crossing at Tonlé is a leisurely affair. So few people as yetcross the Vietnam-Cambodia frontier here that the whole procedure takesnearly an hour (by the time the relevant stamps have been found, andforms that you'll never need are laboriously filled in). At the sametime, much friendly banter accompanies the formalities.

Thecomparison between the two sides of the border could not be morepronounced. By comparison with the hard-working Vietnamese, theCambodians seem positively indolent. And the results are evidenced in amuch lower standard of living - poorer houses, few big river vessels(the only large vessel I see all the way to Phnom Penh is carrying aVietnamese flag).

Bycomparison with the cultured and sophisticated Vietnamese, I foundmyself thinking that today's Khmers are lower than a pus-sucker'spodiatrist. Of course, I was wrong. The Khmer in fact have their ownsophisticated body language, one in which I'm very far from beingfluent.

Cambodiaalso has a glorious ancient history to which it can look. This history,epitomised in the temples of Angkor, is a real anchor, a lynch-pinaround which the country is slowly rebuilding itself. After theprotracted trauma of the genocidal Khmer Rouge era, when most of thecountry's managers were exterminated, full recovery will take severalgenerations.

AtNeak Luong, an important town on the Phnom Penh-Ho Chi Minh City Road,we cut across the route of the vehicular ferry that crosses the Mekong.Neak Luong is the gateway to Prey Veng province, an agriculturaldistrict starting about 40 km east of Phnom Penh. The name Prey Vengmeans "long forest" in the Khmer language; but today you see few trees,merely a landscape of vast fields of rich lime-green rice paddies.

PreyVeng province is one of the poorest in Cambodia, but thankfully escapedthe worst ravages of the Khmer Rouge. While agriculture is slowlyreturning to normal despite the disastrous floods of 1999,"agriculture" in Prey Veng still means "rice", and little else. Thismonoculture mentality is something the government is trying tooverturn, with extensive plantings of sugar-palms, a tree that yieldssugar, fibre, building materials and fuel.

Finally,the high-rises of Phnom Penh's skyline become visible. Fronting theTonlé Sap River, Sisowath Quay (a landscaped boulevard and boardwalk),stretches for about four kilometres.

I'mtotally stunned to see the transformation that has occurred in PhnomPenh. Sisowath Quay was in my memory little more than a dusty lane, arubbish-strewn road with potholes so big that a bicycle-rickshaw coulddisappear into one of them without leaving a trace.

Butnow, in the year 2001, Sisowath Quay is emerging as one of the world'sgreat promenades, with new cafés, boardwalks and landscaping making thewhole boulevard one of those rare cityscapes that immediately inviteyou to linger and enjoy.

OppositeSisowath Quay, the peninsula formed where the Tonlé Sap and MekongRivers meet is for now nothing but grazing land for cows and waterbuffalo. However, things are changing fast. Phnom Penh's MunicipalGovernor Chea Sophara dreams of turning this area into a "City ofTomorrow", which will attract tourists from around the globe. Work onthe giant redevelopment project began in earnest in January 2001.

Indrenching humidity, I take a walk to the National Museum, with itssuperb sculpture collection. The Museum is one of the few culturalmonuments to survive the Khmer Rouge era. The spires and roof cornicesof the Museum nearly seem to puncture the clouds, while the strikingred ochre façade stands out starkly against the sky.

TheMuseum's treasures include bronze sculptures from all over the country,particularly showcasing the riches of the civilisation that built thetemples of Angkor. In pride of place at the Museum is the uniquelyKhmer figure of Harihara, a god said to be half Vishnu and half Siva.

Inthe evening, anybody who is anybody (together with most who aren't)congregates at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Cambodia, right onSisowath Quay overlooking the River. The FCCC is world-famous, both asa hangout for respected reporters and as a haven for hack journalists.This notwithstanding, the Foreign Correspondents' Club is still a"must" for all visitors to Phnom Penh. Talk may turn to the latestantics of President Hun Sen, but all are agreed that, like the figureof Harihara in the National Museum, the Cambodian leader is a master atcarefully balancing opposing forces.

Asimilar balancing act must surely have been the task of those whomanaged to get the Victoria Sprite service up and running. To travelfrom Chinese-influenced Vietnam to Cambodia (with its Hindu-derivedKhmer culture) is just a short journey in terms of distance, butlight-years in terms of bridging ethnic and religious differences. Ifeel highly privileged to be in on the trip.

(Source: http://www.thingsasian.com)