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Published: January 16th 2007
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Vietnam
Ho Chi Min himself. We arrived by bus from Phnom Penh with absolutely no hassles whatsoever crossing the Cambodia/Vietnam border. I was a bit worried because whatever black market entry VISA’s we had purchased in Phnom Penh were extremely dodgy, and for some reason I had a truly bad feeling about it. When we managed to enter Vietnam without any problem I breathed a sigh of relief and curled up again in our near-empty bus that wound its way further east to Saigon, or since it was liberated by the Cong, from the Americans: Ho Chi Min City.
First impressions of HCMC were much like first impressions of any big city you wake up and get tossed of a bus into: busy, noisy and confusing. We managed to find a hotel in a fairly touristy area, a part of town that seemed to have a pleasant mix of both Bangkok and Phnom Penh combined. Street side drink vendors with plastic chairs coupled with produce stands and meat peddlers made for a fascinating environment that seemed both crowded and curious to see me.
We made way exploring the city as fast as we could, first off sitting down for a huge bowl of ‘Pho
Saigon Streetlife
Neon, scooters, cheap beer, pho and so much more. that I had no idea how to order. Though I had pho back home (just once) before this trip, it didn’t impress me much and I knew I’d need to give this a big second chance given almost the entire country of Vietnam is fueled by the basic yet flavorful dish. Opting for the beef brisket and a side of spring rolls, I dug in and didn’t look back. I’d call it a success, and I think after being in Asia for nearly 5 months now I’ve developed a taste for raw chilies, bean sprouts, lettuce and other veggies I wouldn’t eat in large volumes at home.
We decided to celebrate our long awaited arrival in Saigon with a couple drinks, and given we had access to a small yet tidy balcony above the busy streets it only seemed appropriate to conduct a balcony party as the city grew dark. I made a very big mistake by allowing Ryan the task of buying party supplies, as he returned back to the hotel maybe 30 minutes later with a 5 liter bottle of what can only be described as leftover jet fuel from the Vietnam War. It was very unfortunate
Shave and a haircut...
Barely managing to escape without severe loss of blood, this would be the "before" picture. for me indeed that not only was the bottle of poison a bad choice to begin with, but it actually tasted exactly like Cashasa (the Brazilian liquor I drank nearly daily last February) which for many reasons I won’t get into, did not bode well. Either way I made a formal declaration that now at the impressive age of 25 I can be picky about my grain alcohols and called it quits after only 5 glasses. HCMC is a great place at night, it lights up and sparks familiar scenes from old Vietnam war movies with neon lights, scooters racing around and thankfully no gunshots.
Being a bit overwhelmed with activities in Saigon, plus not knowing how we wanted to approach our travel in southern Vietnam, brought us a day of planning, followed by an excellent day to one of HCMC’s more famous and illustrious water parks. I did not anticipate the copious amounts of fun I would have water sliding and swimming at the enormous park in the middle of HCMC. It’s been years since I participated in such an event. This place had probably 30 slides with single, double and triple tube rides, plastic toboggans down waterways
Old Tyme Daisy Cutter
Ryan standing beside his trusty and reliable BLU-82, nickamed in the U.S. of A as both a "Commando Vault" and later a "Daisy Cutter". This was in fact the largest conventional bomb for several decades and I was very surprised not see a photo of it on Jords blog. that called for both speed and skill during our races, and even a huge bowl slide that dumps the participant out the bottom after going around and around half a dozen times inside it. The best part of the experience was that apparently, January is a slow time for the park, and given we went on a Monday meant that our group compromised probably 20% of the entire crowd. Needless to say, lineups were nonexistent and we were extremely tuckered out after a few fast paced rounds around the grounds.
While stopping for one of our many beer breaks we managed to witness a very intriguing spectacle as well, it seems that a local celebrity decided that the empty watermark would be a great place to film a music video, and thus we spent nearly an hour watching this little Vietnamese girl (probably about 6) coated in baby fat dancing in this tiny pool while cranes with cameras swung back and forth and people yelled as she lip-synced to her pre-recorded and very confusing song over and over and over again until even we memorized the lyrics and were caught mimicking her at nearby attractions.
Day 3 in
Waterpark
Here they stand in the deserted park we claimed as our own. Saigon took us sightseeing as Ryan and I walked over to the War Remnants museum to see what was to be said (and leftover) from the Americans and their time spent in South Vietnam. The museum was truly informative as instead of reading about stuff that was hundreds of years ago (ie: Angkor) we got to see what basically amounted to a summary of the Americans, their machines, people, destruction and deeds in the war. The helicopters, fighters, tanks, artillery were all there to play with, though it was quite unpleasant (however necessary) to see the enormous display explaining in extreme detail the effects of Agent Orange and the killing of women and children.
From there we headed to the Reunification Palace, which holds a long and rich history being essentially a tangible focal point of the struggles experienced by the peoples of South Vietnam. Passing the parked Soviet made tanks on the lawn that crashed through the gates on April 30th 1975 to liberate Saigon set the stage for probably the coolest palace I’ve seen on the trip. Though now a very proud sight with large photos of comrade’s and meetings of old, it once housed what I
Baloon Vendor
Not sure how they fit into the street scene, and now after taking a closer look at the photo realize I quite regret not making a purchase. can only assume was the south Vietnamese intelligence as the basement held desks and secret radios in an enormous bunker that was free for me to explore. I would assume this area was more untouched then the upper levels where enormous and proud meeting rooms seemed almost like a White house though with a much different philosophy held within the walls.
We continued on to the large French Cathedral (Notre Dame) and after 9 months or so without seeing a large catholic church I took the plunge and toured the inside concluding that it didn’t measure up anywhere near the last Cathedral I saw in Santiago Chile. Racing back across HCMC on a motorcycle was another exciting pleasure as the enormous roundabouts that hold hundreds of motorbikes in the late afternoon creep their way along back to our hotel. Other highlights of Saigon include a haircut by yours truly, a trip to the local barber shop to relieve the burden created by my Tanzanian and then Indian barbers and the atrocious aftermath which can hardly be called a haircut they left me with. Excited about a shave and a haircut I left extremely disappointed, it seems now officially I can give the title of best place to get a shave to India, and haircut to Nicaragua where their dedicated efforts left me with a smooth chin and a sharp look for months. Though I realize I can’t be picky, and my 20,000 dong shave/cut ($1.33 USD) was worth its cost given I can’t see the back of my own head and thus can’t cut my own hair. I couldn’t help frowning as my man of choice ravaged my neck leaving tracks of razor burn and nothing even remotely resembling a close shave. Walking away my neck looked like the beautiful white snow after a fresh grooming job that went horribly wrong leaving smears of blood all over the place. The top being uneven and essentially different on both sides was left with a shrug and I got home enjoying my experience but as I mentioned before a tad disappointed. At least now Vietnam can enter the rank of countries where I’ve had haircuts even if it wasn’t one of my favorites.
That’s about it for now, tomorrow we head to the Mekong delta, I found it necessary to do another blog given I just burnt quite a few photos on CD and am about to send them home (or get lost in the Vietnamese postal system until the end of time and never to bee seen again).
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Jordan
non-member comment
You're a god damn liar.
Outside of my original Bolivian shave experience, Hanoi, and thus Vietnam, has to be the top spot for shaving and haircutting spot I have so far experienced. The young man was curteous, professional and quick, leaving me with a clean, manicured feel that is unmatched in other countries.