Return to the fatherland

We took a 3 hour drive out of saigon to my dad's hometown, Ben Tre. We had to ferry the taxi twice over two different rivers to get there. We thought maybe the driver would wonder what he got himself into.
Once we got to Ben Tre, my dad picked up 2 gift baskets and headed toward his childhood home. It is typical for a house to pass from generation to generation. My grandfather's oldest brother is the current owner of the Le house. And his children and nieces and nephews own the houses next door and across the street. The houses were simple, nicer than I expected though. I thought we would be dealing with dirt floors. The houses are surrounded by coconut and durian trees and pineapple bushes. They had 2 dogs and a teeny tiny little kitten that kept jumping on the table as we shared a meal.
All the distant family members were excited to see me. They would put their hands on my shoulders, squeeze my arms and face as if to size me up. They did the same with Joe, shaking his hand and remarking on his height.
We dropped off the baskets and all the things we brought with us from home- Hershey's chocolates, Dove soap, Starburst candy. We shared a meal, met all the relatives, spent some time and then headed back to the city. It was probably the most interesting day of our trip.
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