When I first planned and booked my trip to Saigon almost all the people I know asked me “why Vietnam”??My answer very simple “I want to go to a place in Asia that is very rich in history and not so commercialized “.One more thing was I became fascinated with Vietnam when I have watched Tony Bourdain’s “A Cook’s Tour” Vietnam episode in the Travel Channel in 2006.Then it became a goal to reach that war ravaged nation.
October 16 11:30 my flight and my arrival is 12:30 Saigon time, I was a bit uneasy then because this is a my first time here and I don’t know what to expect .My flight arrived at Tan Son Nhat Airport 25 minutes earlier than expected but it was ok there were no hassle in airport procedures as everything went smooth and fast .As I’ve exited the airport I easily saw the driver who’ll pick me up to my hotel. As we cruise the streets of Saigon what I really noticed are the red and yellow fibreglass trash bins all over the street sidewalks (around 5-7 metres interval). Its only 20 minutes ride to my airport so it was not that tiring and the road is peaceful at those wee hours of the morning. As I arrived at the hotel everything went smoothly and fine but what worries me that evening is that my whole day city tour and half day CuChi tunnel tour was not given to me at the airport. So I have to wake up a bit early at the morning around 5:30 am and be prepared for the day schedule which was the city tour. Gone up the ninth floor to take the sumptuous buffet breakfast inside my hotel. As I waited for my city tour guide to arrived I went downstairs go out and buy bottled water and other toiletries, and I’ve noticed that my hotel has a park in front of it and the famous Ben Thanh market is just 2 minutes walk away.
Then I headed to Ben Thanh out of curiosity and to kill time as well .I returned to my hotel room at around 7:30am and at my surprise 15 minutes later the front desk was calling and told me that the tour guide was waiting for me to pick me up,whoa!this people are honest .
My city day tour started with War Remnants Museum, inside the van I’ve met some fellow tourists from Malaysia,Singapore,Canada,USA,Indonesia and fellow Filipino travellers which eventually became my friends.The War Remnants Museum was one of my main focus in my Vietnam journey.The museum showcases war artifacts,hardware,pictures, souvenirs and even artworks.What excites me here are the tanks and aircrafts that the Americans left and what made my heart broke is the “agent orange section “ where there are some deformed fetuses and photos of the effects of this chemical to the lives of not only the Vietnamese but also the US war veterans.
Then we proceeded to Chinatown, first to one of the Chinese temple forgot the name, and then to Cho Bin Tay market a market which has a much lesser price tag than Ben Thanh.Almost all of the items here are being sold at whole price. After an hour stop we headed to Pham Ngu Lao (Backpackers’ area) to have some free light lunch of veggies and rice. As the “light lunch” did not suffice us, my newly found Filipino friends and I went to a food joint in the Pham Ngu Lao area where they serve various Vietnamese food, here we ordered a variation of Pho.That makes are tummy packed and our faces sweaty because of these wonderful broth. Off we went to the other interesting landmark the “Reunification Palace” also known as the Independence Palace. This palace is the seat of power of the South Vietnamese Government, until April 1975 when the North occupied the South. Here as my fellow tourists are paying the entrance ticket I immediately leave the pack as I saw two Soviet made T-55 tanks ,these tanks symbolizes the end of South Vietnam as they are the ones who charged the gates of the palace in 1975.
After we completed the tour of this historic site we headed to the Post Office and the French built Notre Dame Cathedral (CATHOLIC) where we enjoy some durian street ice cream reminiscent of my childhood days when I enjoyed “dirty ice cream” in the streets of Manila and in school as well. We also went to the Lacquer factory; this factory supports the victims of Agent Orange by giving them livelihood. Here you can see finest artworks made of lacquer intricately designed with eggshells and seashells.
My second day in Vietnam starts with my scheduled half day Cu-chi tunnel tour. At first I’m a bit worried because thinking that entering the tunnel maybe daunting. So we ride this huge tourist bus packed mostly by westerners. The bus ride lasted for less than 2 hours but it didn’t bore me because the tour guide brief as with the history of Vietnam and Cu-chi , and he also know how to speak fluent Spanish with the delight of our fellow tourists (especially the Spaniards).There’s a bit of a drizzle 0of rain as we coast to Cu-chi so when we arrived there the soil was a bit damp. The tour begins with a very amusing yet very anti-American 60ish documentary, then off to some tunnels,vents,B52 bomb holes, booby traps samples and damaged US tank .Next stop is the souvenir and firing section ,here you can fire American made M16 and Soviet made AK47 ,in this case I shared with fellow travellers in buying some AK47 bullets ,a bullet costs around US$1.3 but should be bought by 10’s.Then the fun part begins entering the tunnel ,as we approached the tunnel entrance our tour guide warned us that it is not for those who have heart ailments and claustrophobic. We proceeded inside the tunnel it was dark cramped (yet being enlarge to fit western tourists) and hot fortunately I’m ready and I brought a led light. The tunnel is 180 metres at the end of the journey is the kitchen and makeshift hospital, but around 160 metres the tunnel will be bottled neck, there are exits every 20 meters for those who wants to quit. We have to duck walk as well as bending our neck and shoulders .I followed to Taiwanese elders as we traversed this course so we need to slow down a bit but it’s ok and understandable, I ended up quitting at the first exit together with bigger westerners. We ended this tour by eating some tapioca dip in brown sugar with crushed peanuts and washed it down with local tea.
The succeeding days of my Saigon tour were spent by searching some famous food (showcased in Bourdain’s No reservations) and some souvenir shopping. Luckily at my last day in Vietnam I still managed to find another museum the Ho Chi Minh City Museum and the picturesque Saigon City hall as well as the Saigon River.
I spent exploring the city mostly by foot and sometimes by taxi, exploring the city was a bit intimidating at first where throng of people are in constant motion, a sea of motorbikes, how families and even merchandise fit in two wheels. Crossing the streets is a challenge, especially at night where thousands of motorbike lights scare you. So traffic here is inexplicable in surprising patterns and space.
In my eyes Saigon is beautiful,intoxicating,dream like and simple.Being here you I felt the mixture of some 60-70’s feel infused with modern elements.The life is simple not so much of that ultra modern commercial (branded concious)and materialistic vibe which is prevalent in the world today.If that is your thing Vietnam is not for you but if you’reb tired with the hussle and bussle of city life this nation suits your taste.I just hope that the influx of westerners will not compromise the character of Vietnam that I love where life has a simple leisure phase.
The historic Caravelle Hotel
Bourdain was here and so was I...
Fabulous lacquerwares
President Clinton ate here
Pham Ngu Lao late afternoon
some vintage cars 50's car
helmets galore
my window view
busy Pham Ngu Lao
Another hotel view
Colorful art
Saigon City Hall
The Post Office
Saigon Square(Greenhills of Vietnam)
Coffee,coffee,coffee....
M-47 Walker Bulldog(Cu-chi)
Cu-chi tunnel
Cyclos
Firing the AK-47
Hotel Majestic
Coconut water
Posh mall-The Saigon centre
Temple
Uncle Ho's legacy
Notre Dame Cathedral
Coiled smoke
Cho Binh Tay(Chinatown)
A-1 Skyraider
Museum's Agent Orange Section
M-48 Patton
Street of Pham Ngu lao
Ben Thanh Market
Who wants to be a millonaire??
