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Published: September 16th 2006
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The backpackers paradise- flooded. Monsoon
Oh good old Ho Chi Minh city- The land where you ask for a haircut and get a 90 minute massage- but I'm not complaining- and as far as confusing me it included a hairwashing. So after failing to communicate my intent- I went to the dollar salon- where my haircut cost- $1.33.
The Weather
Yesterday we had two monsoons- today just one- but it flooded the streets- to the point that the some opportunistic children went swimming- As of yet this is the most rain we've experienced on the trip- the rest of the time-fortunately has been sunny.
People in crosswalks
Traveling in Thailand conditions one well to question the intent and advice of strangers- especially those that strike up a conversation- We met a man- who Sam believes was named Minh and I think was named Hi- not entirely sure! But he asked us if we wanted to play pool- at 11 o'clock on a tuesday night- after we passed him on a crosswalk. So after some slight hesitation- we said 'why not-' some may argue that our judgment had been blurred by the Bia Hoi. This alcoholic homebrewed beverage (almost beer) which is
cheaper than water! Ok its a beer- but as described by Minh- it is what the alcoholics and poor people drink- (he forgot backpackers) A gallon of this beer costs under one dollar U.S.! 23 cents a litre equals its a good frat boys don't travel.
back to the pool
Billiards in Vietnam are played slightly differently- there are no pockets for the balls- and you play with three balls that each function each as cue balls- and its all about the spin. (I'd hate to take on Bill O'Reilly). After learning the ropes and another beer (Saigon Export- a local favorite) Sam cranked his neck from the stress of a day of- well food- bia hoi and coffee, maybe a movie- more food, and then a nap. At the site of this great discomfort Sam was displaying- our new friend Minh set up a few hours out of his next day to take us to a few local spots- including a massage parlor (for the record- the first and only intentional stop in- as for the hair salon- and any others- I claim deniable culpability.)
The next day
So the next day- we asked for
a wake up knock at 11- (which we didn't get) to meet Minh at 11:30. Our first stop- the chinese medicinal oil massage. This place according to both Minh and our masseuses doesn't get any foreigners-
Next stop was in another district of town- where we ate a local delicassy. Some sort of ultra steamed fish from the Mekong River wrapped in rice paper with fruit and various greens.
As a matter of crap
Then the lunch subject moved onto the matter of coffee(I've heard unconfirmed rumors of 9 lbs for someone's birthday)
In Vietnam there is a coffee called legend. (Not to be confused with the woodland nymph film starring Tom Cruise) No- this coffee is the most expensive in the area. It has been selected by weasels which apparently choose the best beans- they then eat it and fail to digest it- and I'm not sure what the collection step in this process is (if they have weasel farms where they force feed them beans- or if the defecations are hunted for in coffee rich areas) But the coffee is washed off and roasted and then bagged. We're currently packing a kilo of this
deluxe weaselprocessed coffee- from the local market we were led to by Minh.
Sorry tux and merrywether (my dags)
Our final requested stop with Minh was to catch another less expensive delicassy- dog. I had one bite- sam had a platefull- it is pretty fatty and tasted like bad game meat to me.
After all of this
The seasoned thai tourist and cynic in me honestly was expecting a schpiel- this gentleman had been way too nice- taken four plus hours out of his day (between his two jobs) to give us a private tour of the city- to show us his favorite stuff- and had taught us pool the night before- but to our delight- it was just genuine interest in showing us the subtleties as well as things that scream in saigon...
NEXT STOP
Phnom Penh Cambodia to Siam Reap to visit the temples of Angkor Wat.
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