Ho Chi Minh City/Saigon

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The city center is situated on the banks of the Saigon River, 60 kilometers (37 mi) from the South China Sea and 1,760 kilometers (1,094 mi) south of Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam.

The metropolitan area, which consists of the Hồ Chí Minh City metropolitan area, Thủ Dầu Một, Dĩ An, Biên Hòa and surrounding towns, is populated by more than 9 million people, making it the most populous metropolitan area in Vietnam and the countries of the former French Indochina.

So me and Natalie arrived late morning in Saigon - we hadn't booked a hotel so we wandered down to the main backpacker area where we got accosted by a random french/vietnamese lady desperate to get us to stay at her freinds hotel. We went and had a look and turned it down - cue here following us and shouting at us for the next 10 minutes. We wandered down a little alley off the main road and found a nice little guest house... and went for an explore. Saigon is crazy busy. 8 million people and 3 MILLION motorbikes. It just doesn't stop.

Piccies: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=201497&id=509419793&l=97e89e6090

We were staying in the main backpacker area - near loads of bars, Boom boom bars (with prozzies sat outside), shops, places selling knock off dvds for 30p, everything was open so late - I felt really safe here.

Thinsg I will remember about Saigon:

* Loi - a lovely lady selling knock off books who took a shine to us - we saw her most nights and she'd come and sit for a chat..
* The kids up at 3am selling cigarettes out of boxes outside the bars
* cockroaches and BIG rats
*Buying popcorn from an elderly lady on a street corner...she beckoned for me to lean forward as if she wanted to tell me something and instead put her hand down my top and gave my boob a big squeeze then started giggling and gave me the thumbs up!! I couldn't be angry at her - she was 80, had no teeth and reminded me of my gran when sh is in a cheeky mood...
* The bikes - eveeeeeeeeeeeeeerywhere
* The lady who did my laundry breaking 2 of my bras - GRRRR. HOw to you manage to bend the underwire love?!?! And they don't do my size out here (Well 'only in maternity' I was told the other day)
* The war remnants museum. Truely horrific and graphic images. AMazing how cruel and evil human beings can be.
* Drinking bukets with Natalie in the street, watching the world go by...
* Squid man!! Nothing I feel like more in an evening than some dried squid. Mmm.
* Huge thunder storm causing a nice old power to the restuarant I was in - was fuuuun!!


Natalie left me (booo) to go to Bangkok so I had a day to myself - had a good old wander around town. Really liked Saigon, but my nerves felt shot to pieces near the end - so many bikes - too little pavement!!

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Photos

Loi
Our fave book seller

Love this dog..
She lived in the internet cafe. I fell in love..

Kids selling cigarrettes
Happy hour!!!

bikes bikes bikes
especially love the dude loaded up with tyres..

Cute
Old lady asleep in the heat by her stall...