Eating our way through Vietnam

This is the first of my Vietnam postings and stories - of course I'll start with food!

Others can explain the origins and influences from other cultures on the food of Vietnam (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnamese_cuisine) better than I, but what I can tell you is that it is an easy country for a "vegaquarian" (vegetable and seafood eater) to visit. We ate at little cafes on the sidewalk and nicer restaurants along the rivers of the Mekong Delta. Every morning we had breakfast at the hotel buffet; typically fresh dragon fruit, papaya, mango, along with soups, rice pancakes, noodles, and foam cakes. We drank beer (usually Saigon Red or Tiger) poured over ice, fresh coconut milk from a vendor on a motorbike, and made our own lemon and lime-aid with club soda, sugar, and fresh citrus fruits. I had every kind of tea I could find from seaweed to lotus flower. We watched flat bread as it was made on the street and ate it immediately afterward, warm and tasty. Squid and shrimp were a big part of many meals and we often made our own soups at our table with seafood, fresh greens, pumpkin flowers, and rice noodles. We also ate fish balls and made our own delicious spring rolls. The food was inexpensive, fresh, and plentiful - we always left our meals totally satisfied! Click here or on the title of this post to view pictures of some of our favorite treats, short videos of the making of various foods are viewable at: www.youtube.com/bquietmusic.