Good Morning Vietnam!!!
Trip Start
Aug 12, 2010
1
103
135
Trip End
Sep 23, 2011
Where I stayed
Seventy Hotel
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Our first stop is to Ho Chi Minh (HCMC or simply Saigon) for two nights. As soon as we stepped foot in Vietnam we were confronted with the loud, overbearing, stiffling chaos with the constant background noise of million motorbikes cranked up to full.....goodbye tuk-tuks!
Our itinerary for Saigon was the Reunification Palace and the Remnants Museum. Our first stop, the Palace, was where the communist tank crashed the gate on 30th April 1975; the day Saigon surrendered. The Palace is where the President lived and has been kept in a time-warp and looks just like it did on that day - completely boring! I was particularly not impressed and thought it was not a trip worthwhile and definitely should not be on the recommended list of things to do in HCMC; especially considering how overpriced it is. However, Thomas and his optimistic self enjoyed the tanks and took LOTS of (pointless) photos of the Palace interior - which I will delete when he is not looking.....
Despite the Palace's disappointment, the War Remnants Museum is a must-see for anyone visiting HCMC. Even those who are not remotely interested in the Vietnam War should still find this museum compelling. So for us two, ever increasing history lovers, this museum was right up our street (or nostril as Thomas has just quoted....weirdo). The museum had planes, tanks and every type of machine gun you could imagine. Whereas, I was a little more interested in the survivor stories of the concentration camps. The third floor was where we both stood silently for a long time looking at the images of the after effects of Agent Orange. For those who don't know Agent Orange it was the deadliest toxic herbicide spray (in the world!) that the US Army covered Vietnam with and to this day still causing cancers, deformities, blindness and deadly illnesses. Shocking.
For more information just type Agent Orange into 'Google' or visit the BBC: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/227467.stm
Another skill we quickly had to learn was the art of crossing the Vietnam roads. As this video link (below) shows being a pedestrian is just not easy. Vietnam is nothing we have ever encountered before. With more bikes than people, they own the roads, oh and walkways as they park on the sidewalks! Our simple instructions when crossing the roads: be brave, non-hesitant and simply just go for it - without stopping....definitely do not stop and try and turn back like Hollie did as you will get hit, like Hollie did!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CU1PR4d1wM
Much Love from Saigon,
Hollie and Thomas x x x x
