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Published: December 7th 2006
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Hello from Ho Chi Minh
I love this city... I really think that this country is going to be my favorite too... Saigon is quite more modern then I expected... There are neon lights all over the place... And the food is just grand...
So my first real day here I started off with going to the Ben Thanh Market. It was quite cleaner than the ones that I have seen so far.... They have everything... But all I needed was a new pair of sandals because the ones that I bought in Pattaya broke when I was walking all over the place at Ankor Wat... I found them and after 5 mins of haggling I bought them for 100,000 dong($6.50us) I then took a clyco or peddled rickshaw to the war museum for a dollar... Personaly I think that I could of walked there much faster.... But I know can say that I did it... The museum was closed for lunch so I went to a nice park that was nearby... There are somany nice parks around Saigon... There at the park was a big group of teenagers celebrating Worlds Aids Day... They where singing songs and dancing and I
thought it was a nice time for an hour.... Then back to the War Museum... What a place.... The really place the blame on the Americans... Showing how GIs gave back there medals because they where ashamed of what they had done here.... They had Tanks and Planes and all kinds of military equipment.... They even had a tigercage that was disturbing.... There was a vietemese guy with a half an arm and blind in one eye which he had lost by a land mine ...he came up to me and stuck his arm out and I just had to shake it...Yes it felt wierd... Then he wanted me to help him out because he need money for some books.... i gave him about $5us and then told him I need to go.... Poor guy... But the Funny thing was latter when an older American guy was greeted by the blind guy nd the American told him that he was here in Saigon during the war... And the blind guy was starting the guilt trip.... I wish I heard the whole conversation but the American was quite offended... So I then went by foot to the reunification palase... It was
BORING.... the only excitement there was a group of Chinese people that would touch everything even though there where signs that said DON"T TOUCH or PLEASE DON"T WALK ON THE CARPET.... ignorant people...I then went back to my hotel and met up with the "LADS" in which I call them... and we went out for some dinner.... I later found Showgor my Japaniesefriend that I was meeting here from Cambodia... We all decided to take a tour to the Tunnels($4us)tour bus included where the Vietemese lived and fought during the war... This was my chance to shoot a gun....
The next day woke up and went for my morning coffee(the best coffee yet in asia)and we where off to the tunnels... But on the way there our tour guide said that he wanted to stop at a lacquer shop that people with disabilities worked...Like we had a choice.... The place was cool.... and the art was great.... the showed us how it was all made with egg shells... then we were directed to the store to buy some of the stuff.... I wasn't going to buy anything...Finnaly it was an hour drive to the tunnels... The guide was very good
and he explained alot about how the Vietemese people survived durring the war through the tunnels... I even tried to stick my self through one of the hole openings...LOL... I got my ass in but the rest of me just wouldn't fit... We als tried some of the food that the eat which was from some tree bark... it was tasteless....We then all went down into a tunnel that was made bigger for people to see what it was like down there... We all had a choice to do 20yards or 40yards or the long 100yard one... Well yet me tell you that they never made these tunnels big enough... We all got out at the 20yard mark...lol...and then came the moment of Firepower.... I got to shoot an M-16, M-60 and a AK-47.... it was so cool... the cost was about $1.35 a bullet.... I spent some money there... The AK-47 was shit because it kept jamming but the M-60 ho ho ho ho I loved that gun....On the way back to our drop off point the tour bus broke down and we had to walk about 12 blocks from there.... no problem.... Latter in the evening the Lads
and I went out to grab a bite to eat and say our good bye's because they need to move on... The next day Showgor and I rented some bikes to tour the city and see the sites... I tell you riding a bike in this city is suicidal but I had a good time with it without crashing and killing myself... We first went to get our train tickets to go to Nha tran... the cost was 155,000d or $10us... not bad for a 8hr train trip on 2nd class... I then headed to the Zoo and Botanical gardens.... The cost was 8000d or 50 cents The zoo was lame and although they had the regular animals that you would see at any other zoo they were all sleeping... The garden was not that great either... We then Maneuvered our way to the Post Office where the last of the American GIs left Saigon.... I then got a hair cut and shave for 30,000d... I saw the guy laugh when he saw the hair on my shoulders.... I Laughed too... Then went back to the hotel for a shower... we then found out that the typhoon that had gone
through the Philippines was heading now towards us...
The next day we headed to the train station for the trip to Nha Trang... The tickets we go was basic soft seats in the coach part of the train... When we saw them we went to see if we could get soft sleeper coach but We would not of got a refund with our other tickets... So we kept what we had and stuck it out.... All the local Vietiemese was on the train The guy next to me was just plan Ignorant.... he kept poking me in the stomach with his elbow.... After awhile of all this I said something and he knew that I wasn't playing games.... The best part of the trip was when the gave everyone the food trays .... Can you say BARPH.... It stunk up the whole train.... I gave my food to some kids that didn't get any and I left to the out side part for the rest of the trip... The whole trip took 7hrs... When i got into Nha Trang we were met with the usual BS.... When we found the taxi the guy took me to a place that I
did not want to go to and then there the lady was so persistent the look a the place so I did.... I spent one night there and wasn't going to stay there another....So thats all for now.... and you'll have to wait and hear about whats up here in Nha Trang... Take care all...
Michael
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Andy Denmark
non-member comment
Slim fit
Hi Canada! I can see u are enjoying ´nam - I am not envious at all, no.... Some of us are a bit surprised you couldn´t fit into the hole - but as I can see on the picture it is your muscular upper body that is the problem... Enjoy!