Blood, sweat, and brink of tears: a historical tour of Saigon by foot

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Today, we decided to play it real tourist-y. With our Lonely Planet guidebook and a large bottle of water, we set out on foot to visit several recommended sites and historical venues. It was a long, hot, and emotional day, and in an effort to save you all from a detailed history lesson about what we saw and learned, we’ve tried to include interesting and relevant information in the captions below. The only place we did not take a single photograph was the War Remnants Museum, a photo gallery depicting the impact of the American War in Vietnam. It was an emotional experience. That’s all we’ll say for now, as we plan to write more about it another time.

Enjoy the photos,
Marc and Krysta

P.S. The locals call the city Saigon, not Ho Chi Minh City--hence the name change in our posting.

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Photos

A new meaning for "fresh"
Our first stop on the five-hour trek was Ben Thanh Market. This large, indoor market boasts everything from clothing, to giftware, to...you guessed it: fresh fish.

Lost in the crowd
Krysta weaving her way through the crowded isles at Ben Thanh Market.

Fine Arts Museum
We weren't allowed to take photos inside the Fine Arts Museum, so this exterior shot will have to do. The museum included more recent, abstract painting in rich jewel tones and much older pieces ranging from sketches to lacquerware techniques on wood. The predominant themes were war and family.

Street market
We made our way down this busy street market on the way to the Musuem of Ho Chi Minh City.

Wedding photos, Vietnamese style
This couple was posing for wedding photos outside of the Museum of Ho Chi Minh City. We saw two other couples having wedding photos taken there that day, but she was the only bride in traditional dress.

Marc's bros
We thought it would be funny to take Marc's photo with the mannequins at the Musuem of Ho Chi Minh City. The Musuem included a lot of communist party propaganda, as well as historical artifacts related to the war and the evolution of the country in general.

Living quarters
From the balcony at the Museum of Ho Chi Minh City.

Reunification Palace
Though it has a much longer history, the Reunification Palace was once home to the south Vietnamese government. On April 30, 1975, the north Vietnamese communist government stormed the gates, drove their tanks over the lawn, and seized control of the palace, thus ending the American War in Vietnam.

President's War Room
In the basement of the Reunification Palace, perfectly preserved, is the President's War Room, as well as other communication stations, and strategic planning rooms with floor-to-ceiling maps of south Vietnam.

Trees
View from the top of Reunification Palace.

Comments

[Carla]

miss you!
I love the posts you two!!! LOVE IT!! Krysta- you are such an awesome writer.... I have loved reading your posts and can't wait for all there is to come. Miss you. Car

[SerialThrilla]

Tom and Randy
Uhhhm... Tom and Randy throw and catch Fish in markets, nice big batch Romo, T.O dont be blue Wish I was there with you too Raffi, Raffi, hows the knee Will sign for 6 million, wait and see Peyton, Eli, good or bad? Hope you guys are doing rad Thrills