Kinh

These are people I met when my friend brought me to a place called Tinh Bien in the far southwest corner of Vietnam. They are relatives of my friend’s wife. The boys are 12 I think, a good age to be. The woman is pressing sugar cane to make and sell a sweet iced beverage.

Mountain Biking on Fansipan

We did a mountain bike trek from Tram Ton (Heaven’s Gate) Pass on Mt. Fansipan to Binh Lu, through myriad villages in the area. Coasting down winding mountain roads it was the easiest 40 km I’ve done on a bike, since it was – thankfully – mostly downhill, and fun as hell.

Inner sanctum

My friend brought me to his wife’s village, Tinh Bien, in remote southwestern Vietnam, in An Giang province near the Cambodian border. There is a large Khmer population there. A man let us into a Khmer Bhuddist temple that featured dazzlingly colourful religious murals on every square inch of wall and ceiling.

Fishing village and market

This is the harbour in Mui Ne where thousands of boats bring in the bounty of the sea. At night you can see lights strung out on the horizon, like stars fallen from the sky: squid fishers. They eat land creatures too – crocodile is popular.