Advertisement
Published: August 6th 2007
Edit Blog Post
Throughout the following morning our companions all departed toward the airport or to meet with other groups they were traveling onward from Vietnam with. Lorenza and I took a last walk around the market and then waited for our contact from the Hospitality Club to pick us up from our hotel.
If you have not heard of it, you should check out the Hospitality Club on the internet. If you love travelling and meeting other travellers it is a great organisation (and free). Take a look here ... Hospitality Club
So, prior to leaving home we made contact with some people in Saigon, via the club, and organised to spend a few days staying with them at the end of our tour. They are a very nice couple, he an ex-pat American and his wife, who was originally from Indonesia. We had a relaxing few days staying at their home, complete with driver, security guards, a maid and gardener.
We borrowed their bicycles and cycled our way back into the city, via the ferry across the Saigon River. This was a really interesting half day trip for us, we took our time on the bicycles and enjoyed mingling
with the locals a lot. We rode past ex-pat residential areas, then through local housing areas and market districts. A lot of the people we passed did a double take as we rode by in the traffic headed for the city.
Hey, would you leave my hairy legs alone
On the ferry I again experienced the curiosity of a lot of local people at the fact that I have hairy legs and arms. Some of them could not help playfully pulling the hairs on my legs and laughing at my response. The ferry was crowded with motorscooters, bicyclists and pedestrians, we definitely stood out in the crowd, being a good head taller than anyone else on the ferry. It was cheap and a quick way to get into the city.
We took the same route back to our hosts home, stopping on the way for some cold drinks at one of the many roadside stalls that seem to crop up wherever there is space for a few plastic chairs and an esky.
It was very hot over the few days we stayed with our hosts and we were glad to be able to make use of their swimming pool. Also, we really enjoyed talking with the Indonesian maid and her husband the gardener, they were very down to earth and open people. They told us about their children and grand children and were obviously very proud of their family. We gave them a small gift to send to their grand kids.
Our hosts were also friendly and easy going and made us feel very welcome. They open up their home to us and nothing was too much trouble.
This was an interesting insight into another side of life in Vietnam. On this side of the fence was a tri-level house, with staff, a pool, and all the luxuries of modern life. While, on the other side of the fence were tin shacks and people living in some old trucks and cars. Makes you realise which side your bread is buttered on!
Advertisement
Tot: 0.08s; Tpl: 0.009s; cc: 7; qc: 24; dbt: 0.0539s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1mb