Hot & sticky in Ho Chi Minh City

We are in Ho Chi Minh City. We departed Hong Kong on Tuesday evening at about 9:30pm and arrived in Vietnam at 11:00pm. We got to experience the new international first class seat and internment system. It is really nice! The entertainment system is a huge improvement over the current system. I think we both suffered culture shock upon our arrival. Going from clean, couture Hong Kong to this mess is a shock to the system. After checking-in at the An An Hotel we were ready to test our beds. They worked.

We awoke Wednesday morning ready to tackle HCMC. The city is as tangled up as the phone wires that hang above every sidewalk (a photo will be posted to explain upon my return to US.) We did not have to look far to find the French influence. Breakfast was at a smart looking French bakery not far from our hotel. After a lovely Croque-monsieur it was off to the Ben Thanh Market. It was here that I found the perfect tailor to make me a suit. After discussing fabrics and styles we were escorted across the street to a small tailor shop not far from the market. Rebecka aka Flowerhead had sent me a picture of a classic looking simple suit. I showed the tailor the picture and specifications and left the rest in his capable hands. I pick the finished product up tomorrow at 5pm. After measurements were taken we headed towards Reunification Park. Unfortunately, the park was not open yet so we headed to a nice restaurant for refreshments and spring rolls. I forgot to mention this but it is ficken hot and muggy here. Even the Vietnamese say its hot and they are accustomed to this shit. After our light lunch we headed back to the park and to Reunification Palace. The palace once was the capital of South Vietnam. It was built in the 1960’s and the architecture portrays that. After 1 one hour tour it was off to the War Remnants Museum. It is a documentation of the Vietnam War told from the Vietnamese prospective. I must admit some of the pictures, portrayals and stories are hard to swallow others are purely communist propaganda. After the very heavy experience of the war museum it was off to the Rex Hotel for beer and what turned into an improtu bland dinner. I had been feeling queasy all day so I had a club sandwich. It was terribly bland, but probably right what I needed. After dinner, it was back to the tailor for a quick fitting of the jacket which was half done. We were back in our room by 9pm. Time to relax in an air conditioned environment.

Today we awoke with plans to visit the Cu Chi Tunnels. We boarded a large tour bus with about 30 other people and began the 1.5 hour journey to Cu Chi which sits just a short distance from the Cambodian border. The Cu Chi tunnels are a series of tunnels built by the Viet Cong during the war to hide from the Americans, The tour was very interesting. We got to see torture devices devised by the VC to use against the “aggressors.” On the bus ride back to HCMC we met a couple of guys from Farmington, MN. They were on a two month long journey through Asia. Sharing stories of all of our travels abroad helped the bud ride zip along. Back in HCMC we headed back to the tailor so Angi could have a tunic made. While she was discussing the design I got to try my finished pants on. Oddly, they fit like they were designed specifically for me. Dinner was at Quan An Ngon, a delicious Vietnamese restaurant. Angi accidently ordered crab. Getting the meat out of the crab shell is an obscene amount of work, but it was delicious. We ate the crab as an appetizer. I had beef and noodles and Angi had shrimps. The food was very good. After dinner we decided to head to the Caravell Hotel. The Caravell offers cooking classes. We must be in class tomorrow morning at 9:30am. I am really looking forward to learning some Vietnamese cooking technique. As we were leaving the hotel we ran into this group of four kids from New Zealand that we had met at the tailor yesterday. We all decided to have a drink at the top of the Sheraton. The bar sits on the 23rd floor and the Sheraton is one of the highest buildings around, so the view is quite good. We certainly enjoyed the company of our new kiwi friends. Another lovely day in Vietnam!