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Published: March 4th 2006
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Hi everybody-
It’s been a while since you last heard from me but as you may remember Boris and I were busy relaxing on Mui Ne beach! It wasn’t before Saturday that we finally got our gear ready and headed to Vietnams biggest city- Saigon.
Well, what to say about Saigon- my grandma once said: If you can’t say anything good- don’t say anything!
That would mean I am finished! But not to disappoint you guys I will nevertheless write what the city of Saigon hold for Boris and me.
It wasn’t really as bad as one would suggest after reading granny’s statement-
We arrived around 0800pm after a 4 hours bus ride in the middle of the bag packer district, got a cheap hotel (we soon found out why…) and headed to get some food and check the area and the beer they serve at various bars.
When we where full with food n drinks we walked back to our hotel and tried to sleep.
It eventually worked when we where using noise blockers for the ears. Not only is Saigon’s street noise loud during the day- it’s also deafening throughout the night! -Great- Not…!
But anyway, when we got up next morning I was eager to get into town and see what it’s all about.
We followed the LonelyPlanets suggestions and saw a good bit of district 1- basically we would call it downtown. Quite a few times we were brave or stupid enough (or maybe both at the same time) to cross major streets- which in Europe wouldn’t be a big deal- but for those of you who know what South East Asia’s roads can be like, you know what I am talking about.
For all the others let me explain:
Fact- population of Saigon is an estimated 6.000.000 (Boris and I guessed it’s even double that) and every single Vietnamese wants to be mobile. That means we have about 6.000.000 scooters on the roads (again Boris and I guessed it’s triple that number 😉 ).
So if you have the urge to cross the street- be sure to walk very slowly (so the drivers can react to your movements) and turn your head as often and quickly in all possible directions to make sure all these maniacs really pass you by.
Once you actually reached the other side of the road
you still feel a little light headed due to the adrenaline rush… ORSM!
Now back to our city tour. I can not tell you what I really expected of Saigon but if you happen to visit it some time soon- don’t expect anything special. You find really old and shabby houses right next to new and modern buildings, which are surprisingly frequent in the city centre. But the mix you get is not breathtaking or anything special. The French left a bit of their architecture which makes for a change. We did visit 2 museums- one by mistake and the other one on purpose.
We actually wanted to see the war remnants museum but thanks to my superior -not- map reading skills we walked into the Ho Chin Minh City Museum.
And after a quick look around we walked out of it again- also very quickly.
We eventually found the right site and took our tour thru the pictures and weaponry that was on static display. I tell you something- we saw pictures of war crimes committed by American soldiers during the war that some people wouldn’t like to look at for very long. Very scary!
After
that we kept on walking and at some point it was time for the usual- food n drinks- and after some more loitering in the pubs we made our way back home.
Next day I wanted to go into Cholon- another district of Saigon. Its China town in Vietnamese- I was curious of what to see- expecting to see lots of Chinese stuff etc. Somehow I managed to get Boris up for this as well and so we went- if only we wouldn’t have started. It was a long walk along loud and dirty streets. And what we got in the end was not what I expected. Basically- same same no difference!
To get some excitement into the day we took a motor bike taxi back to our hotel- what an experience! Somehow they all manage to find that little space to avoid the inevitable crash, manage to turn early enough to pass in front of that oncoming big truck whilst driving on the wrong side of the road. And all that with one hand resting continuously on the horn- I think they over do the phrase “honk if you are horny” slightly!
Next day- Boris and my paths would part again. I would fly to Hué (to avoid a 1, 5 days bus ride) and Boris back to Germany. After a few more beer and a very, very, very large dinner we reviewed the last 2 ½ weeks and came to the conclusion: We’ve done everything right!!!
Its time to move on- have a good one!
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Alex Fisken
non-member comment
Hi
Hi Alex, Thank you for including me in your blog. It sounds like you have had and are having a tremendous time - and that is really great. I do not know when you are next in Dubai but I do look forward to going through all the details with you - perhaps out of earshot of Dad (;>). Take care of yourself. Kindest regards - Alex