Pre 2009 : Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam) - part 2

Vung Tau
From Saigon it was then a 100+km journey by bus to Vung Tau, one of the coastal cities in the southern area of Vietnam. Can't quite remember how much was the bus fare and the only thing I remember that it took around 3 hours to reach there. I left Saigon slightly in the evening and only reached Vung Tau around night time and how disappointed I was with the place. Okay maybe it was the monsoon season and maybe I was a bit cranky because I was sleepy, but there really was nothing to do. There was nothing nice to eat, nothing spectacular about the beach, no bikini babes, nothing. Maybe I expected a little too much from this place.

On the good side, not a lot of tourists stopped by here and it was kind of relaxing place to be. An escape from the madness of Ho Chi Minh. You can literally roll yourself on the road without having to worry about being run over by some crazy lorry driver like you would in the capital. This would be the ideal place for your retirement home where you grow old with your Vietnamese mail to order bride and have 12 kids and have a perfectly boring life.

Here are some pics from around Vung Tau :

No bikini babes or sunbathing hotties

Con artist #1 and #2

Con artist #2

Con artist #1 again

Itwasthisempty.

The beach hotel.

The Saigon River Cruise @ Mekong Delta
After 2 nights in Vung Tau, it was back to Saigon again.

After arriving back in Saigon, the first thing I did the following morning was to go on the river cruise on Saigon River. Included in the cruise is a visit to a small fishing village along the river.

From the pier you will cruise along the murky river for around 20 mins and eventually they will take you into a small fishing village (can't really remember the name) along the banks of the river where you get off and walk through a barrage of coffee shops and souvenir stalls. As Vietnam is also famous for its coffee, I sat down in one of the coffee shops and ordered an iced coffee. Not disappointed at all.

As I sat down, a group of Vietnamese children and teenagers (the teenage girls were pretty, and no I don't condone pedophilia) started to perform by singing and dancing and tried to rip me off by selling me some overpriced small souvenirs. After the show ended, I didn't buy anything but gave a few cents to the kids (which I think included some Malaysian cents as well). Hey don't judge me. Its better than nothing right?

Notice how its always the 'peace' sign.

After you walk through the coffee shops and souvenir stalls and endless begging, eventually at the end of the road, you'll stumble upon a small river whereby the locals will take you by a paddling boat that will take you through a shallow mangrove forest and back to the entrance of the village. From here on you will board the normal boat back to the pier.

The small river that they will take you on is so shallow that you actually get down from the boat and walk towards the mouth of the river. Its only up to your ankles. Nevertheless, having paid for the entry, I deserve to sit on the boat and be paddled by some frail old woman/man through the shallow river. Luckily I was considered not so fat at that time. Just imagine how would it be if the old lady had to paddle through the river on a tiny boat with an extra 'large size' family with kids that only know how to spell Bigmacs. Towards the end of the river (around 10 minutes), it eventually gets deeper and will finally join back the Saigon River. From here you will board the same boat you came from and depart back to the pier.

Cu Chi Tunnels
Then it was off to one of the main attractions in the whole of Vietnam, the Cu Chi Tunnels. The tunnels was one of the main underground networks used by the Vietcong during the war as a military base of operations and hiding spots during the war. The tunnels were also used for communication and supply routes, as well as living quarters for the guerilla army. The vast network of tunnels were approx. 121km long. (Thanks Wikipedia for the info).

Some of the tunnels have actually been widened to accommodate tourists and are quite safe to go in. The guides around the area can also speak understandable English and would be quite helpful in explaining the history behind the tunnels. It really was a claustrophobic experience wandering around in the tunnels and makes you wonder how these soldiers actually lived and had children down here for a few years during the duration of the war. This is a must go place to visit if you're in Saigon.

'Tadaaa'

Muka 'sohai'

The City of Saigon
Being under the rule of the French for quite some time, Christianity played a major influence in most of the structures around Saigon. The city is also built in quite a way that you could almost assume that if Napoleon had made love to Columbus, Saigon would be the bastard child. The city has assimilated itself in both the French and American cultures through its lifestyles and structures. It is simply an amazing city to experience.

Due to the insurgence of expatriates in Vietnam, you can always expect a good night life here in Saigon. A lot of clubs, bars, agogo bars cater for foreigners as well as locals. Drinks are cheap, cover charges are cheap. This makes all the bars and clubs filled mostly with foreigners and less locals. By asking around I finally found out that there are some clubs and bars that the locals usually go to as they try to avoid places with a lot of foreigners. Girls can be taken back with the price around 300k Dong which is equivalent to around RM100 (I asked a girl on the street, and no I did not take up the deal in case you were wondering). Known as the 'butterflies of the night' by the locals, please beware that there are cases whereby the girl leaves with your wallet or gets some people to beat you up and steal your stuff once you've entered the hotel. One thing I also noticed was that these butterflies would also work in the daytime, soliciting services from men in broad daylight as well.

Some other pictures taken around the city :

The only mosque in Saigon if I'm not mistaken

For the final night our group had dinner once again on the Saigon River. Except for this time, it was in style. We had dinner on a cruise boat with a house band playing some good music. The food was just normal and had nothing really appealing about it.

The cruise took around approximately 2 hours to finish. Finally, the end of my Saigon trip had ended. The following morning I would be on a flight back home and back to reality.

How would I sum up Saigon? Beneath all the craziness and madness of the city, there is this fine layer of serenity and appeal  that would always make you want to return again, just for the coffee. It is a city that breathes excitement everywhere you go, so be sure to jump in head first with questions asked later.