Our Saigon Adventure

The Mother and Son are back home safe and sound.

I did not get much sleep on our flight from SGN - BNE, and the result was almost a week of feeling sluggish. I felt like the whole time of being in Vietnam and the flights completely debilitated me! I have been dozing off every chance I get. In contrary to what the Little One was, always bursting with energy and enthusiasm!

Anyways, Kaiden and I had such an amazing time in Vietnam! It is a lovely country to visit, with lots of things to do and places to go to. Like what I mentioned before, Ho Chi Minh City is just like Manila; though HCMC is more congested.

The throng of scooters can be quite dangerous at times if you're not alert. A British friend of The Husband who have lived in the Philippines said that he thought Filipino drivers can sometimes be maniacs on the road, but they are nothing compared to the lunatic riders of Vietnam. He added that Filipinos somehow respects the pedestrian, but not there. I also notice that the locals don't seem to care much about the traffic rules. You'll constantly see cars/scooters cruising opposite a one-way street and going through a red light.

Having said that, once you get past the bikes, you'll enjoy the city. The people are nice and accommodating (I guess once they are off the scooters. Hahaha!). Most of them can speak in English so you won't have a problem communicating. I am always being mistaken as a local; and they just laugh once I told them I am not Vietnamese.

Nearly all of the houses or establishments there are built in a perpendicular and narrow way. We have been to the suburbs and provinces; same thing.



Small hotels and restaurants are everywhere! You can have different kinds of cuisine every meal. Surprisingly, there were no McDonald's and Starbucks. They have KFC, Pizza Hut, The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, Gloria Jeans, Hard Rock.

And they have Jollibee there!

Cab fare is very cheap. Vietnam's currency is called Dong. US$1 = VND19,000. The flag down rate is VND10,000 = US.50 cents. Really cheap! Like in any other country, some taxi drivers will try to con you by going the long and winding way. Though some are honest and will help you out if you are lost. B recommended to use the taxi company named Mai Linh because they are known to have good drivers. Once you're in the city for a day or 2, you'll know your way around.

Ho Chi Minh City is a good place to explore. You can walk around anywhere, especially in District 1. The Husband lives and works in the same district. Most of the sites and good shopping places are there. You can pay in Dong, US Dollars or Visa Card.

I am not a fan of walking but we usually walked along the city after dinner on the way back to our hotel. It is not bad to do it at night as the temperature goes down. But it is a different kind of ball game during the day. The heat can be so bad that it gets to you easily. Kaiden and I would go out as B heads to work, we'll go home after lunch to have a rest then go out again when the sun calms down.

It is a delight to see Ho Chi Minh City at night. We once strolled through their Red Light District and women were lined up in every bar/restaurant, waiting for a client. Some ladies were scantily clad or dressed in their traditional Ao Dai. I wanted to take snaps of that alley but I got scary stares once I whipped my camera out.

10 days is absolutely short to truly enjoy Vietnam. I do hope the Little One and I will get to go back and tour the country with the Husband. It will be doubly fun to experience new things together as a family!


Gorgeously . . .