Touring HCMC

We had tickets for the hop on/hop off bus in Ho Chi Minh City, so after breakfast, walked to stop #1 at the post office to board the bus. It was a hot one today - 33 degrees around 10am so the breeze on the open top deck was welcomed! The route for this one is not very long, and we had already seen (on foot) a lot of the places we drove by, but it’s a good way to learn more and see the city. We first got off at the Bitexco tower as we had purchased tickets to go up to the SkyDeck on the 49th floor. Amazing views from up there and makes you realize just how far the city stretches out! There is a helicopter pad 3 floors up from the observation deck and then the building narrows out and is supposed to represent a lotus flower. It is considered number 5 in the top 20 iconic buildings of the world! There were some props for photo ops, so we had to take advantage of those!

We got back on the bus, had a quick lunch then spent a couple of hours wandering around the Vietnam War Remnants Museum. What a heartbreaking, eye opening and informative experience that was, and something I would recommend to anyone visiting Saigon. Some of the exhibits and photographs brought us to tears in seeing what a senseless war this really was, especially in observing how the Vietnamese people have overcome so much of the horror and are such kind and welcoming people today.

Next we walked to the Independence Palace, also known as the Reunification Palace, and formerly the Norodom Palace. Up until 1945, this was the home to the Governor Generals of French Indochina, and was taken over by the Japanese in March of that year. When the Japanese surrendered in September that same year, France returned to Vietnam and took over the Palace until 1954 when the Geneva Accord was signed and the Palace was handed over to the State of Vietnam. It was renamed the Independence Palace in 1955, was bombed in 1962 by the Republic of Vietnam’s Air Force, demolished and rebuilt as the building that stands today. In 1975, two tanks of the North Vietnamese Army bulldozed through the gates of the Palace, effectively putting an end to the Vietnam War. Today, the Palace is a popular tourist attraction with the two original tanks on display outside.

We returned to our hotel after a long day and headed for the rooftop pool to cool off! We went out for dinner at a place called Five Oysters, which is located on Bui Vien Street, which is advertised as a walking street but still had motorcycles zooming up and down! We had an excellent Vietnamese meal, and noticed a rooftop bar on the other side of the street so decided to go there after. We later found that we had stumbled on one of the busiest and liveliest streets for nightlife in this area. We had a couple of great drinks at the bar and enjoyed the amazing views, then went down and walked along this crazy street! There were people everywhere - in bars, restaurants or just walking and taking in the sights (a young guy breathing fire was just one example!) - it was a happening place, and after taking it all in, we got a cab back to our hotel for a well earned sleep!!Read more