Day 7: Tay Ninh - Out in the Boonies

       I stayed over in the capital of Tay Ninh province.  It is famous for being the hometown of the Cao Dai religion.  I stayed at a place that was mostly surrounded by farmland.  A nice change of pace from waking up to the buzzing noise of the city to  quietness of the boonies.    

        Around the house was a pool filled with goldfishes and the never ending longan fruit orchard.  I can also see Ba Den mountain (A.k.a Black Virgin mountain) from a distance.  The mountain happens to be the highest mountain in southeast Vietnam.

There was also mangosteen and lychee trees there too.

      

        Lychees grow on bushes while the mangosteens grow super high in the trees.  I had to poke them a stick to get them down.  I collected a batch of fruit.  Victory for me! 

           

       Separate from the house I stayed in was a kitchen area (right) , what seems like a large gazebo  and a storage building.   I absolutely love places with thatched leaves for roofing.  They could be made out of  banana leaves or grass, it doesn't really matter to me because they've saved me from the sun and the rain.  They are surprising sturdy and oddly enough I like the smell.  Reminds me of sleeping on a bamboo mat or something, it has a really earthy and natural smell that is really pleasant.

      I got to feed some chickens that day as well.  When you look around, you see baby ducks and a few adult chickens wandering around the orchard but barely any smaller chicks.  That is ...until you scatter food.  They just start running and waddling out of nowhere O_O.

Some looked like tennis balls, soooo fluffy.  I love it when they chirp chirp chirp, it's so cute! 

         There was not much to do in Tay Ninh except for going to the Cao Dai Temple and the local markets.  I went to say hi to the neighboring houses in the afternoon.    They were extremely nice and chill.

You know you're in the boonies when people start offering you moonshine in broad daylight!  Oh gosh, bless these kind souls XD