Behind him in a compound of beaten earth, the syncopated music of a school vacation concert seemed to have lost its tenuous grip on the audience, now kicking footballs in the dust. Under a nearby shelter a noisy petrol-engined contraption husked the rice crop. As the sacks fill they were carried off on the bent backs of women whose bosoms are often already burdened with an infant. Time to embark again on the glistening brown waters of the Dong Nai. Its verdant banks of maize, bamboo and forest trees were accentuated by the banks of billowing tropical clouds overhead, now turning to a gentle peach color even as sheet lightning erupted in the other direction and mist settled into the distant valleys.
Smallholders wave from doorways above the river or turn from evening chores by the water's edge.
Without maps or signposts, trekking without a guide would be foolhardy. Saigon travel agents in Saigon may be able to arrange transport, treks and accommodation.