Ho Chi Minh City

Today started out with a disappointing breakfast at our hotel. I think that’s about the 4th strike against them now. We have done well with our other hotel choices thus far but this one is a bit of a dump. Our experience here certainly hasn’t matched the online pictures and reviews.

We found a French bakery not too far from our hotel and topped off our minimal breakfast with some baked goods. Not the best croissants I’ve had but decent enough.

Ho Chi Minh City is much more cosmopolitan than Hanoi, and about 30 years ahead of it in terms of modernization. There is also more of a French influence here. As a pedestrian it is much easier to navigate the streets as the sidewalks and storefronts are generally what you would see in North America or Europe.

After our second breakfast, we headed to the War Remnants Museum which features a very detailed and graphic look at the Vietnam War. It was of course from a Vietnamese point of view, but it was very sobering and you don’t come out of there feeling very positive about the Americans (unlike now....... wait what?) I found myself wishing I had something visible on me identifying myself as Canadian. I’m sure the Aussie’s in there felt the same.

The weather today was a little more bearable as it was fairly windy at times, so walking wasn’t as great an issue. After the museum we made a longish trek to a craft beer joint (the Winking Seal - run by Aussies) and enjoyed some good beer and snacks. We asked our bartender how strict they are about the legal age in Vietnam, he said it’s generally ignored, so Keegan joined us with a small sampler sized beer. To add to that, at dinner tonight when we were finishing, the waiter brought us 4 shots of lemongrass flavoured vodka. No questions were asked about Keegan’s age.

By the time we left the Winking Seal (is spending a good chunk of an afternoon drinking beer with your not of age children considered a bad thing?) it was rush hour and my oh my, the volume of vehicles on the road was something to see. Not volume caused by a traffic jam but just the sheer amount of vehicles on the road. So far we have encountered many more controlled crosswalks here than Hanoi and in spite of the volume, have found it easier to cross.

Dinner tonight was at a place called Propaganda Vietnamese Bistro which has stellar modern Vietnamese cuisine and a tongue in cheek view of communist propaganda.

Tomorrow morning we are taking a scooter tour of the city, starting right smack in the middle of rush hour (we ride on the back with lovely young Vietnamese ladies driving). We had to provide our full names to them for insurance purposes. Not sure if that’s a good thing or not.

A couple things:
Like a lot of places in the world, World Cup fever has gripped this city. When games are on, in the late evening here, there are tv’s and projection screens set up everywhere, storefronts, alleys, sidewalks. We were walking back from dinner tonight while the Brazil/Mexico game was on and I had no trouble following the action as we walked along.

Earlier today we passed a shop that caught my eye. Seated on couches in the front area of the shop were probably a dozen young, beautiful Vietnamese woman wearing the same tight, low cut red dress. Further into the shop was a woman cutting a man’s hair. I figured Monday was probably cut and blow day (ba dum tsss)Read more