"Goooooood Morning, Vietnaaaaaaaam!"

This past weekend, Jen and I visited Ho Chi Minh City in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. For those of you not familiar with Ho Chi Minh City, you may remember it by its former name - Saigon. Saigon was the capital city of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. After 1975, it was renamed Ho Chi Minh City. It's the largest city in Vietnam and is divided up into 24 districts. District 1 is the economic core of the city and has much of the tourist destinations, as well as most of the nicer hotels and restaurants.

Before I get to the trip, I should describe how an American going to a country like Vietnam differs from going to, say, Canada. When Americans go to Canada, we are questioned by the customs agents and if they are satisfied we're not a danger to their country, we are issued a visa in the form of a stamp and we're on our merry way. Vietnam is a little different. They like to know a little more about the people coming into their country so visitors must apply in advance for a visa and surrender their passport for a few days. If everything checks out, you get your passport back with a unique looking visa:

We took off to Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) on a small budget airline out of Australia - Tiger Airways and headed to Tan Son Nhat International Airport in HCMC; a very modern and shiny airport. It's also very easy to navigate. We had already arranged transportation through our hotel and were told a driver would be waiting for us outside. We weren't sure about how much money we would need (an oversight on my part) so we went to an ATM to get money. I looked to a currency exchange place next to us to see how much we should get and it listed the dong (Vietnamese currency) at 18,500. Something about that left Jen and I apprehensive, because what if we got it wrong and pulled out too much VND and it emptied our bank account? We decided to wait and look up more info from the hotel. Once we met our driver and sped off from Tan Son Nhat, like our trip to KL, the adventure began immediately. I could describe the traffic, but the video we shot does a better job. This is a short intro with the highlights and the traffic we encountered to the hotel.


After surviving yet another journey and arriving at the Hotel Riverside overlooking the Saigon River, Jen and I set out to find a bite to eat as the sun set over HCMC. We still needed to hit an ATM, so we verified the exchange rate - $1 = VND18,500. It also helped to see the prices for things in the hotel listed in VND. The Cokes in the mini-bar were VND21,000 a piece, so we felt pretty good about withdrawing a few hundred thousand dong. We did a little research on places to eat and discovered that HCMC is a destination for foodies. There are more restaurants here than you could ever eat at in a lifetime. We decided on a place that was recommended to us and also listed as a tourist's favorite - Temple Club.

We got a map from the front desk and set out on our culinary journey. I like to think I'm pretty good with a map, but I underestimated the challenge of finding a restaurant in a place where little, if any, speak discernible English. After 45 minutes into what should have been a 10 minute walk, we were about to give up our quest when we finally discovered Temple Club hidden in an alcove next to a restaurant we passed 5 times. I'm glad we didn't give up because it the food was unbelievable! The restaurant was the former site of a Chinese temple and was adorned with art and architecture that gave it an early-1900s feel. I had Peking Duck in an orange sauce and Jen enjoyed a vegetable plate that we finished off with a nice slice of cheesecake. The food, plus a few rounds of Tiger Beer (my new favorite) cost VND700,000 or $39! So in addition to outstanding food, HCMC is very inexpensive.

We turned in early Friday night and got up early Saturday to roam the streets of HCMC and see the sights. As we walked out of the hotel and made our way toward the center of District 1, we realized there is an initiation that all must pass if you want to see the city. We had to learn how to cross the street. Traffic lights and lanes mean little and there is a pecking order to traffic - the larger object has the right of way. So, we watched for a break in traffic and stepped off the curb, inching our way and remembering one other rule - don't stop moving! The thousands of scooters anticipate your moves and either dash in front, or they maneuver around and behind you. After a 20 or so street crossings, it gets much easier. But this is what you face at nearly every intersection at all hours of the day or night.

So what did we see? Well, it was a whirlwind tour of the major architectural and historic buildings of HCMC. We started with the Saigon Opera House, built in 1897 and a symbol of the French influence when this was considered French Cochinchina. We could have gone to see a concert that night for VND200,000 (about $11) each, but there was still a lot to see. We tried to go in, but it was closed for cleaning in preparation for tonight's performance.

Our next stop was the People's Committee Hall, another example of 1800's French architecture, which is the city hall for HCMC. It was originally a hotel, Hotel de Ville, but later used for government. We hoped to see the inside, but the hall is not open to tourists. This part of town has another feature that is evidence of French influence - very wide boulevards. The streets around city hall are divided with greenspace in the middle and each side features a roadway 4-5 lanes wide. The park made a nice place to stop and take pictures, but the menacing traffic still made you feel like a wounded guppy being encircled by sharks.

Continuing with the French theme, HCMC has its own Notre Dame Basilica. I can only imagine this rendition is not the same size as the one in France, but it a beautiful church with well-maintained landscaping. We had hoped to go in, but Saturday is the only day they don't have services. This quickly became the theme of our trip... until we went next door.

Next to the Notre Dame Basilica is the Saigon Central Post Office, a huge Gothic structure that also reflects the French influence in the region. It has a large main room with service windows down either side where many tourists send postcards home to friends and family. At the far end of the room hangs a large portrait of "Uncle Ho" - Ho Chi Minh himself.The large Christmas tree in the middle of the Post Office was just one of many throughout the city, where the holiday season is a big deal.

After the Post Office, I made my obligatory stop at the Hard Rock Cafe. It was a nice break from the heat and a chance to enjoy a fabulous local beer - Saigon Special. We entered the underground cafe and noticed the shiny appearance of everything. I asked an employee how long they had been open and sat there astonished when she said, "2 days". The memorabilia was outstanding and a live band added to the merriment.

After refueling at the Hard Rock, Jen and I set off to see what I considered the main attraction of Ho Chi Minh City, Reunification Palace. Reunification Palace is the large government building that was the "White House" of South Vietnam before 1975. It's where the then-President lived and worked until the North Vietnamese Army crashed the front gate on April 30, 1975 and took over the palace, ending the Vietnam War. I had thought that this was the building where the last of the helicopters had taken off just hours before the tanks came through, but that was actually the U.S. Embassy a few blocks away. I had seen documentaries on NatGeo and the History Channel about the building, so I was very excited about being up close and personal. However, like the rest of our trip, we were not able to go inside. It turns out that it closed a mere 5 minutes before we got there for a function going on the rest of the day. Bummer! However, there is a great deal to see from the outside. The large boulevard of Le Duan Ave runs southwest from the Notre Dame Basilica and right to the infamous front gate of the Palace. On the north end of the grounds are tanks that look like the same ones that came through and there's also a fighter jet that could be the one used in a bombing on the Palace by North Vietnamese spies who had infiltrated the South Vietnamese Air Force in 1972. As we looked through the fence at the expansive grounds, I couldn't help but wonder what it must have been like 35 years ago.

After the Reunification Palace, we visited another museum and headed back for dinner. We found a great place to eat, did some shopping, and got to bed early again since we had a 9am flight back to Singapore. Overall, Vietnam is an exciting place today, despite its tumultuous history. It's very alive and I cannot emphasize how great the food is. In the 2 days we were there, we never saw one ambulance or police car - which is unusual for such a large city, regardless of where it is. Most of all, the people were great and very friendly.