An early start from Danang airport gave me some time in the morning to think about what to do and eat Pho which is a pretty killer combination. I didn't really have a sense of what Ho Chi Minh City would be like before I got there and didn't even know what it should be called when talking about it. Saigon is the old name for the city and was renamed as Ho Chi Minh City after the American War which ended in a draw.
Landing in Saigon relatively early, I got on an Airport Bus which would take me to the centre and near enough to my hotel to be convenient. Or so I thought, as it happened the heat meant nothing was convenient so I traipse from the bus stop to the hotel.
Walking around the backpacker District, I headed into a tour agency (TNK Travel, which seemed to be Japanese) to try and organise a tour to the Cu Chi Tunnels for that afternoon and also a tour of some kind for the next day somewhere[1]. I managed to get on one that day so after a spot of lunch, I returned and joined the group. It started off quite weird and ended up quite weirdly but what about the middle?
Cu Chi Tunnels
Well, TNK run a lot of tours starting from outside their shop so at the allotted time, many people congregated and I listened out for relevant information. My tour was late to start so I went inside to avail myself of the joys of air-conditioning and waited. The guide introduced himself to the group and took everyone's name. He came to a white man with a beard and laughed
"I hope you're not a Muslim! Ha ha ha!".
What an odd introduction, and one that presumably works as an opener seeing as he was an experienced guide here. I wrote it off as a second language thing - because I felt generous at the time.
As, maybe, HCMC's most well-known "attraction" there are plenty of tour groups making their way to "the tunnels" which were used by the Vietnamese during the American War as a defensive position very close to Saigon (as was).
On the way there, there was quite a mixed crowd and, although I was seated near the front, I was affected by some people at the back. A group of about 6-8 English speaking guys and girls (later found out that they were all living in Australia, but some were British) were sitting at the back being a bit annoying. This involved being loud, asking for toilet and beer breaks every so often and playing music. It wasn't so bad for me as I had headphones so I tried to lock them out.
The tunnels were basically a military encampment that the Vietnamese used to hide within and plot from. The camps were heavily attacked by the US troops but once they needed to enter, it was a confusing environment and they could not finish the job. The reason was the cleverness of the Viet Cong that allowed them to bring the US troops in areas they did not understand. The tourist trap that these tunnels had become was an explanation of these tunnels and a chance to see the area and also go into the tunnels. It was a guided tour so it was explained but my group had quite a lot of twats in it, as mentioned on the bus, so it wasn't quite as informative as I would want. We were shown actual traps, rather than just the tourist kind which looked pretty nasty. Lots of spikes on trapdoors etc to catch people out which must have generated a lot of screaming, which would also work as a psychological terror for other attackers. There was also an opportunity to go through one of the tunnels which was a tight squeeze and not possible walking. Crouched through, it was quite an experience but there were plenty of people so it would not generate the fear.
The last part of the tour was an opportunity, not one that I personally took, to fire machine guns for a fee per bullet. There was a selection of guns but I had only heard of the AK-47 and the M16. They were loud and we all waited near the shop while those that wanted to shoot, shot. They were very loud.
On the way back, we had a few fewer people in the group and we did drop-offs on the way back to TNK for people that wanted to get off on the way. The journey back took ages and we got caught in a lot of traffic as we got closer to HCMC. We were a bit slow getting nearby as we stopped a few times for cigarettes and the toilet for the aforementioned group. I found it infuriating but I was obviously in the minority - it was all "cool kids" and me. They continued to be loud, overbearing yet seemingly popular with the tour guide who happily joined them at the back for a drink. It felt pathetic to me to watch adults craving alcohol as they did and jumping out in traffic to buy more beer, more cider etc. But then, here I was, the only one not having fun so the pathos was with me really. Anyway, the tour guide was easily persuaded to join them on a night out[2] The bus stopped where it started which was in the "backpacker district" which was writhing with people from all over the city. The roads were closed and full of people enjoying themselves in a sort of street party. It also had the edge of what I imagine, from the film version of The Beach, Bangkok in the nightlife district is like. There were plenty of Vietnamese but more than a smattering of foreigners and they all seemed to be travelling in groups, almost like stag or hen groups, looking for meat. Once I found somewhere to eat, I could see the attraction of Saigon with cheap alcohol and a feeling of anything goes. It wasn't necessarily the thing I look for but it was still sort of intoxicating in its own way. I may be being unfair, but it had a sense of US army "frat party" and reminded me a little, also, of Roppongi and Gas Panic! the first time I went.
The Mekong Delta
The next day, I headed early to the front of TNK Travel to start another tour, this time to the Mekong Delta. The Mekong river was one that I'd heard of but did not really know much about. The Mekong Delta is known as the agricultural backbone of the nation as the fertile land around the river is great for growing rice. I guess the reason I've heard the name a few times is probably due to references in TV and film around the Vietnam War (as it would be for those programmes). Anyway, it was an evocative name even if I didn't know what it was evoking from me.
This full day tour was far better for me as it was made up of various groups of people from around the world that were interested in the tour itself. It was not particularly notable for anything except the itinerary which involved initially stopping by the Mekong river for watching some traditional singing whilst having tea; a punt down a tributary; a riverboat trip to a small island where we had our "traditional lunch" of Vietnamese food; watching some coconut candies[3]
being freshly made. We then went to see a huge Buddha and Pagoda at My Tho.
Although I do not have a great deal to say, there was plenty to see and I rather enjoyed it - photos are better here than explanations.
We returned to the city on time in the early evening which enabled me to choose somewhere to eat and have a bit of a walk within the dull hum of the city. It was Christmas Eve and there was plenty to remind you of that fact both visually and aurally. There were lots and lots of people dressed in Christmas attire and, before this, I am not sure I knew what Christmas attire was. Christmas attire is to look like Santa Claus as he is now shown - red with fluffy white trim. That meant lots of people wearing jolly smiles and santa hats. It was quite fun to see, actually, and was not gender split.
I went back to the hotel relatively early[4]
in order to pack and also because I was limping after being struck by a moped travelling on the pavement. Ineeded to be ready for a tourist and travel day as I was returning to London via Hanoi the next day but I still wanted some output from the day.
Rains take you indoors
The next morning, I awoke to an ensuing downpour. I was going to be wet, and potentially cold, so I made my way to have a breakfast pho near Ben Thanh Market. My real target was the Independence Palace so I went through the market fairly swiftly but I knew I'd be back for some last-ditch souvenir[5] shopping. The Independence Palace looked rather like a hotel complex from the 1960's, especially with the open grounds in front of it which had some tanks. I enjoyed the innards of the building too as it felt important and luxurious yet stuck in the era that it was from.
After visiting the Independence Palace, what better way to understand the independence than by going to the War Remnants Museum (previously known by the slightly more inflammatory name of the "Museum of Chinese and American War Crimes" which I assume may not have helped bring certain tourists in), which wasn't too far away. I found the museum itself very good although a little harrowing. It shows with quite blunt language and imagery, some of the atrocities that occurred within Vietnam over the years of colonial powers with quite a bit on the chemical warfare perpetrated by the US forces. I have always wondered about how this is received by visitors from the countries shown (as I have seen when going to ex-British Empire places) in these kinds of museums. I wonder how many Americans, for example, think "are we the bad guys here?" at some point within the trip (like a Mitchell and Webb sketch). To be fair, I guess not many of the ones that visit[6]
Vietnam and presumably have some a nuanced view of the Vietnam war. There were some more bits outside about the harsh prison conditions too as well as a guillotine preserved to show the French system.
The visit left me feeling a little odd, in all honesty, as the images and thoughts were pretty dark and it was not a good thing to leave on but I had left enough time for a meandering walk back via the Catholic church and a pedestrianised area in front of the Town Hall. I returned via Ben Thanh Market to pick up some gifts and got some food very close to my hotel I order to have some time control.
I then picked up my stuff from the hotel as the bus (back) to the airport was due to leave from near my hotel but the terrible website and the lack of clear signing meant that I was confused as to where to wait. I asked a few people and found a spot to wait at which seemed right. Once the bus came, I flagged it down and got on – it was pretty empty so it was a comfortable journey. I have to say, I have noticed airport transport to be quite empty in a lot of cities actually. It was Christmas Day but the streets were as busy as seemingly most days – I don't think that explained it. The airport itself was very busy.
The Return
I was catching a flight to Hanoi rather than London although there was a direct flight to London at about the same time – and this was a conscious decision that was not about price. With the time difference, a direct flight to London from HCMC would arrive in London on the same day which would normally be ideal but travelling around on Christmas Day in London is rubbish. There is no public transport at all so I made my way to Hanoi and flew on a later flight from there so I could get back home in the morning.
Domestic departures have a different feel to International ones and it feels a little bit smoother so it worked out quite well for me with luggage and seats so thumbs up from me. The flight itself started off quite unremarkably but I was very fortunate to find myself seated next to a genuinely delightful single serving friend. After being served refreshments, my neighbour commented as I tried to work out what food I had just been served, that whatever it was, "it was quite good". This lead to quite a pleasant discussion and the reason that she knew that it was "quite good" is because she was actually a flight attendant for Vietnam Airlines flying to HCMC in order to get the flight she was working on. This[7]
was much better than listening to whatever nonsense I was listening to so it was a bit of a shame the flight was short. But she did at least give me some tips for the flight and also for Hanoi airport.
The tips for Hanoi Airport were sort of useful, but I did still get lost. Even so, once I got to Terminal 2, I was quite impressed at how bright and open it felt – reminding me of Jakarta and Hong Kong airports. I wasn't in Hanoi airport for very long as the wait wasn't onerous and I was soon boarding the 787 to London. It was pretty comfortable as it was also pretty empty on Christmas Day. As I settled in, and I had a whole row to myself from window to window, I thought "this must be a happy bonus for the flight attendants" which is not something that I had ever really thought about before. And with that, Saif had learned the concept of empathy – he would be forever a changed person.
CLICK FOR HO CHI MINH CITY PHOTO ALBUM
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1. The second tour ended up being the Mekong one below↩
2. As was I, dutifully, to be fair. The one who asked me did say something about not "someone like me" when he thought I couldn't hear.↩
3. I bought these as gifts to take back home and to the office and, although I liked the complex tasting notes of the sweets, nobody else did. A colleague told me to never bring anything back from holiday again.↩
4. I also ended up watching a film that had been recommended to me, which is a rare occurrence. It was an enjoyable French film called Intouchables which was wildly popular in France starring Omar Sy.↩
5. I generally try to leave any souvenir shopping to the last day, or at least the last destination, if I can help it to lessen my travelling load and also so I can get something relevant for the whole trip rather than a stop off. I don't buy many things and rarely anything for myself - that souvenir is usually what you are reading right now or photos.↩
6. When I used to work in Japan, one of the school managers was incredulous that the teacher she had worked with the previous day had not been aware that Japan had suffered two nuclear attacks. Even more so when the teacher was American.↩
7. It was a genuinely enjoyable chat which I really cannot say very often – but happened relatively often on this trip. I learned quite a bit about how the world of flight attendants (she did look like one, in a positive way, if you know what I mean) worked and she was pretty engaging which is a bit surprising for people that are on their way to work. Often, those that work on the service side of a job can have an element of the "morose clown" about them meaning that they need to present such a positive, smiley version of themselves in public that they cannot keep that level going outside of the periods when they need to. I remembered some of the most child-friendly teachers I worked with being mere husks of humanity outside of those child classes – with no positivity left within them having used all of it up for the lessons. As it turned out, she actually worked the London – Hanoi route every so often interspersed with flights to/from Osaka but was making her way to HCMC for her first time to Fukuoka. These were all places that I had been fairly recently so it was quite a nice thing to talk about. Fukuoka, especially, is pretty compact and enjoyable if you know where to go. Obviously, it would have been even better if I had had tips about Hanoi before I went rather than after but it was still good to hear about life there and being able to latch it onto my relatively fresh memories. The life of travelling workers can often be one of hotels rather than the cities they travel to and that seemed to be the case when I asked her about what she thought of London. Cue my spiel about all kinds of places in the city with my normal evangelical zeal – I even marked up a map for her with different sights/shops that she may like. I even got a compliment out of it which was "You're not like a normal British person are you?"… This was in reference to my relatively chatty nature (again, I think this would be barely believable for many that know me)on this flight but also from her experiences of being a flight attendant on a London route. Obviously, attendants share their route information in an informal manner so she had also not necessarily heard great things about the people on those routes. Anyway, she did also say that I had changed her conception of British people so I was pretty pleased – now that is someone that works in the service industry to leave someone feeling pleased! I also ended up with a new friend, to reference back to a previous footnote.↩
CLICK FOR HO CHI MINH CITY PHOTO ALBUM
-----
1. The second tour ended up being the Mekong one below↩
2. As was I, dutifully, to be fair. The one who asked me did say something about not "someone like me" when he thought I couldn't hear.↩
3. I bought these as gifts to take back home and to the office and, although I liked the complex tasting notes of the sweets, nobody else did. A colleague told me to never bring anything back from holiday again.↩
4. I also ended up watching a film that had been recommended to me, which is a rare occurrence. It was an enjoyable French film called Intouchables which was wildly popular in France starring Omar Sy.↩
5. I generally try to leave any souvenir shopping to the last day, or at least the last destination, if I can help it to lessen my travelling load and also so I can get something relevant for the whole trip rather than a stop off. I don't buy many things and rarely anything for myself - that souvenir is usually what you are reading right now or photos.↩
6. When I used to work in Japan, one of the school managers was incredulous that the teacher she had worked with the previous day had not been aware that Japan had suffered two nuclear attacks. Even more so when the teacher was American.↩
7. It was a genuinely enjoyable chat which I really cannot say very often – but happened relatively often on this trip. I learned quite a bit about how the world of flight attendants (she did look like one, in a positive way, if you know what I mean) worked and she was pretty engaging which is a bit surprising for people that are on their way to work. Often, those that work on the service side of a job can have an element of the "morose clown" about them meaning that they need to present such a positive, smiley version of themselves in public that they cannot keep that level going outside of the periods when they need to. I remembered some of the most child-friendly teachers I worked with being mere husks of humanity outside of those child classes – with no positivity left within them having used all of it up for the lessons. As it turned out, she actually worked the London – Hanoi route every so often interspersed with flights to/from Osaka but was making her way to HCMC for her first time to Fukuoka. These were all places that I had been fairly recently so it was quite a nice thing to talk about. Fukuoka, especially, is pretty compact and enjoyable if you know where to go. Obviously, it would have been even better if I had had tips about Hanoi before I went rather than after but it was still good to hear about life there and being able to latch it onto my relatively fresh memories. The life of travelling workers can often be one of hotels rather than the cities they travel to and that seemed to be the case when I asked her about what she thought of London. Cue my spiel about all kinds of places in the city with my normal evangelical zeal – I even marked up a map for her with different sights/shops that she may like. I even got a compliment out of it which was "You're not like a normal British person are you?"… This was in reference to my relatively chatty nature (again, I think this would be barely believable for many that know me)on this flight but also from her experiences of being a flight attendant on a London route. Obviously, attendants share their route information in an informal manner so she had also not necessarily heard great things about the people on those routes. Anyway, she did also say that I had changed her conception of British people so I was pretty pleased – now that is someone that works in the service industry to leave someone feeling pleased! I also ended up with a new friend, to reference back to a previous footnote.↩
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