Catching Up on the Week

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The week has been busy, almost overwhelming.

Tuesday and Wednesday this week are extremely hot, wandering the streets without lots of water is not a good idea and after about three hours I am sunburn and dizzy.

On Wednesday morning I did give in to a Cyclo driver. This is my lesson in asking the price first and after a two hour tour, I am out 80 USD. Lesson learned always get the price worked out before you get on.

About the traffic. If you have crossed the street in New York or Paris, you can cross the street in Saigon. The rule is keep moving. That simple. The Viet people love their scooters and do not want a fat tourist to dent what they have worked so hard to pay for. The scooters are 50 to 150cc Honda and Yamaha with some older Vespas and a few Piaggio. If you have 250cc you are the man! If you have the one Ducati crotch rocket I saw you are a show off.

Now to biz. I am here for the bar scene. If this is your first trip, I suggest starting at Q Bar. This is an upscale and very cool night spot. Drinks are typical Chicago price at 95,000 Dong about $6USD. Staff is very friendly and when not busy, they will chat with you and answer any questions you might have about the city.

Wednesday night at Q is slow but Thursdays the courtyard of the Opera House is filled with tables and good crowd.

Guys pay attention. Q is filled with very interesting and mostly Vietnamese women who are warm and friendly. Some are Hookers and some want to be your GF while you are here. The Hookers will let you know about the short time rates and how to work out arrangements for a love hotel.

Many of the ladies are looking to subsidize their incomes and should you go for the GF, remember they still expect to be treated well and provided with spending money and whatever else they want. This is not limited to going shopping dinners and tonight my GF and I are headed out to dinner and a night club. Maybe Xu for the food. Okay, the next guy who gets my GF may have to up his game a little, but I am not spoiling it for anyone else.


Hotel rules are the same in either case and the women are restricted from spending the night with you. At least the 5 star hotel enforce this. However, the 2 and 3 star hotels often look the other way and if just paid attention I said "spend the night". The day time is different. The lady will still need to register at the desk and from the stack of I.D. cards I saw everyone seems to get it. And of course, tourist are still paying customers and the the customer is always right.

On a broader note, I traveled to a lot of countries and there are few places in the world that the people are as warm and friendly as the Vietnamese.

More on bars to come as well as the best food here and for very cheap.

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