Saigon

Saigon

Well there is a lot to say about Saigon. We arrived after a four hour bus ride on one of our favorite bus companies yet-Phoung Trang. It was a relatively luxurious ride and Mark was very pleased with the complimentary bottle of water and wet nap provided to each passenger. Refreshed and clean we arrived in Saigon and were faced with a jarring experience. Saigon Traffic. It is absolutely nuts-thousands and thousands of motorbikes all over the streets, winding around pedestrians, bikers, cars, buses, everything. Crossing the street here was quite an experience-you step out into the street as all the traffic rushes around you. The idea is that you move forward at a consistent pace so that all the drivers can swerve around you. We caught on pretty quick, though the first few times you do it, its a bit harrowing.

Saigon Traffic

In Saigon, there is always a lot of action in the streets. At night, many people set up small stands on the street where they serve a few select dishes or have drinks for sale. The funny thing about these stalls is their furniture selection. They have TINY chairs and tables. Sometimes they just have four legged stools that sit about six inches off the ground. We were immediately drawn to them and tried to capture the hilarity that was Mark (being 6'5") sitting on these tiny chairs made for children.

Some small street furnishings...

Some smaller street furnishings

Speaking of dining, the food here was fantastic. Saigon is where we learned that we LOVE Vietnamese food. We ate some incredible Banh Mi (Vietnamese Pork Sandwich) and of course Pho Bo (beef noodle soup), which is a breakfast dish here.

Banh Mi...yummm.

For dinner one evening we went to a restaurant that had make-your-own soup in which each of us had a large pot in front of us filled with the broth of your choice. A conveyor belt that wrapped around the whole restaurant presented you with raw meats, veggies, noodles, dumplings, etc that you conveniently picked up off the conveyor belt and dropped into your steaming pot of broth. A great idea and one of our most fun meals of the trip.

Conveyor belt soup

On the tourist front-we visited the Reunification Palace (the former residence of the leader of South Vietnam pre-1975) and the War Remnants Museum, which provides historical information about the Vietnam War (or as they call it here, the American War). The War Remnants Museum was fascinating. The front lawn of the museum displayed numerous US tanks, airplanes and helicopters that had been left behind at the end of the war. Inside there were some incredible photographs and stories about the war and some disturbing sections about the effects of Agent Orange and Napalm.

Mark, Sarah, Ho Chi Minh and I in the Reunification Palace


The front lawn of the War Remnants Museum (formerly known as the American War Atrocities Museum)

We walked a lot in Saigon, exploring the different neighborhoods, including Cholon (a predominantly Chinese area) and visiting some markets and temples. On our last day in Saigon we visited the Botanical Gardens and Zoo.

Sarah inside a greenhouse at the Botanical Gardens



One of the crazy sights you'll see on the street in Saigon. That's a lot of balloons.