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Published: November 30th 2007
The final stop on my SE Asian swing will be Vietnam. The busride was a long one and again there was a pretty anti-climatic border crossing. So...the traffic in Ho Chi Minh City is a little tough to comprehend. There are 6 million people and over 4 million moto bikes. In order to cross the street you literally have to walk straight into the traffic. We were told to find an opening and start walking SLOWLY. They say the motos will see you and avoid you if you keep up the slow pace and never ever step backwards. There were a few close calls, but we all managed. After a day of trying to cross I started hiring the moto bikes for rides instead of dealing crossing the street.
My tour officially ended in HCMC while some of the group would continue on along the Vietnam coast. After some debating, I decided to join to group members (Mark & Miika) on their trip to Mui Ne on the coast but not before spending 3 nights in town. The time in HCMC were spent doing day trips out of town. The whole group organized a day trip to the Chu Chi
Tunnels 60 km outside the city. This extensive tunnel system was used by the Vietnamese during the "American War" as it is known here. After seeing the tunnel system and the terrain I can see how the Viet Cong fighting style worked out well. We climbed down into some of the tunnels which were widened for Westerners and it makes me wonder how they conducted life underground. Even those who don't feel claustrophobic started feeling a little anxious down there. They also had a shooting range where we all fired off some shots. It cost $1/round and I chose to let go with the AK-47.
Over the next day or two I'd tag along with the new group and their leader. Their leader organized a tour of the Mekong Delta area 2 hours south of HCMC. We were shuttled around from candy factory to fishing village to fruit farm...nothing too exciting. It was interesting to see the huge Delta and how much lift it sustains. THe highlight of the night was dinner at a local favorite. They are known for serving up off the wall foods. Over the course of dinner I tried all the following foods...kangaroo, ostrich, crocodile,
field rat & crickets. All of it was surprisingly good in very small portions. In the morning Miika, Mark & I would catch a 7am bus to Mui Ne.
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