Friday, 21 June I was up well and truly before the sun was having coffee. I know I have said I would do an early morning flight again....however it seems like its happening again. Fi and I were off to Saigon - ye ha!
No issues checking-in and after the short train ride to the airport we were through security etc and into the lounge for breakfast. The flight was full, which I suppose didn't surprise me given it was a public holiday in HK so a lot of people had the same idea as us, a long weekend in Saigon. On landing one person decided it was time they got up, collected their bag and was ready to disembark the plane - great idea if the plane was parked at the bay but alas no. Aah you have to love travelling in Asia. We had landed early, great, but a plane was still in our bay so had to hang out for awhile on the runway. A bit frustrating but nothing we could do about it.
Finally off the plane and lining up to go through customs, we walked together then got yelled at....so I stepped back into the line. Was worried Fi would be allowed in but I'd be on my way back to HK. All good in the end. Collected luggage then headed out to get a taxi - wow the heat and humidity, it hit me like a ton of bricks. Managed to get to the taxi line without getting attacked, which was great. I did however run over a man's shoe (whoops) then discovered he was heading to the Sheraton van - that's where we are staying...oh dear fingers crossed he doesn't recognise me at the hotel. Traffic was of course busy, what's new with Saigon. Cars, motorbikes, trucks etc all going a hundred miles an hour in every direction. My head was turning like I was at Wimbledon trying to capture everything.
Checking into the hotel was easy and we got upgraded :) Saw the man I'd run over in the lobby and nearly jumped out of my skin - please don't recognise me, please don't recognise me.
Dropped our bags and headed out in search of lunch, but this stage it was nearly midday but it felt much later given we had been up for quite a few hours. Found a Pho 24, sat outside watching the world go by eating the first of I'm sure many Pho's - aah the Vietnamese food, so good.
I taught Fi the art of crossing the road, fingers crossed she listens and doesn't run like my Father did in Hanoi!
After lunch we made our way to the Cathedral, which happened to be closed until mid afternoon, then the Post Office. I know it sounds crazy visiting a post office (unless of cause you have things to post) but this one was by the far the most amazing post office I have ever been into (I'm sure the photos don't do it any justice).
From here we walked to the Reunification Palace (Hoi Truong Thong Nhat), more practice crossing the road. It was SUPER hot so had a couple of stops along the way - made good use of time by taking photos. Had a good look around the Palace, Fi nearly vomit after seeing the photos of the dead children. I don't think I will be taking her to the War Remnants Museum. I remember that so vividly and it was over 18 months since I went. I enjoyed the bomb shelter with all the art deco things (phones, type writers, operating systems, large maps of Saigon and Vietnam).
Headed back towards the Cathedral, stopping on route at a cafe for the yummiest and probably the most fattening iced coffee (made with condensed milk). Boy it was good. The cafe was located at a busy T junction, we loved staring out the window. A couple of things that really amused me was seeing a few Motorbike florists, 1 hand on flowers, 1 hand on bike.
Had a look into the Cathedral, which was now open and surrounded by beggars, then a few a few art galleries before stopping in some decent a/c for a cold drink. The waitress was very lovely but unfortunately I found it very hard to understand her - I made the mistake of asking her a question about what the key things to do in Saigon are and was spoken to for 5 minutes....with no idea of what she said. Fi found it rather amusing.
Back to the hotel, I was going to go swimming and was all ready but the decent a/c and movie stopped me. Perhaps tomorrow. Instead showered and enjoyed relaxing. That night we headed to the Rex Hotel Garden Rooftop bar for a drink - great views on the streets below, I could have sat there for hours and hours watching people coming and going in all directions. The max we saw on a motorbike was 4 - just a different life.
For dinner we went to a place I had been before and a friend of Fi's recommended. Again sat outside but somehow managed to survive the heat. The food was very good, but we had a few struggles with the interpretation. Unfortunately they had run out of fresh spring rolls. Before leaving we walked around the restaurant and saw all the small kitchens (every section did a few dishes off the menu). Was fascinating watching them prepare the food.
Managed to walk back to the hotel with no issues, getting lost or spoken too. Walked by the People's Committee Building which looked great all lit up. Stopped in at a couple of shops before going to the bar at the top of the hotel. Great views but the drinks were out of control expensive!!! Given we were to be up early tomorrow, for our tour, and the drinks were more than 3 times what we had paid outside the hotel we took a couple photos and headed to bed. A great day in Saigon!
Saturday we were up early for our tour to the Chi Chu Tunnels. Had breakfast in the hotel then was collected by the tour company. We were to travel there by boat and back by bus. Loved being on the water again, there was SO much to see adn I know I took many photos. Saw where/how the rich and poor of Saigon live - very, very different. Stopped for petrol along the way, a new experience for me, then a drink/bathroom break. Our guide gave us some interesting info on Saigon and Vietnam , two that I remember -- there are 5 million motorbikes in Saigon (wholly heck that is a lot!) and all Vietnamese men have to have 2 years in the military.
On arrival, we saw a video to start with then walked around the area. Either though I have been before I was still surprised with the copies of some of the bobby traps that the Vietnamese made, very scary.
Had a quick break before heading back to the city. For some reason the people on the bus didn't want to switch places so we were returning back by boat (which totally suited me). This way there was no issue of getting stuck in traffic.
On arrival at the wharf walked towards our hotel and found somewhere for lunch. Had a quick stop back at the hotel to get rid of all the dirt etc from our legs, arms and faces then headed out again. Headed to the Cho Ben Thanh Market which was filled with food, clothes, suitcases, nik naks, coffee, bedding and the list goes on and on. The smell and heat (definitely no a/c) really hit us but after awhile we got use to it. Had a good look around, no purchases, then walked around the surrounding streets. Found a place to sit outside with a drink watching the world go by. Lots of photos take. After awhile it started to rain lightly so rain jackets and ponchos came out.
Headed back to the hotel, Fi got lots of practise crossing the road as we had to go through a major intersection - lots of fun. Chilled out in the room for a couple of hours then headed to the Caravelle Hotel to their roof top bar (Saigon Saigon Bar). Great views again, and still so much activity even though it was now dark.
For dinner we went to Lemon Grass, which had been recommended and had good right-ups. 3 flights of stairs later we arrived at our table. Definitely no gym needed today!!! Delicious dinner washed down with local Vietnamese beer.
Sunday we had a bit of a sleep in, breakfast then a couple of hours at the pool. Can't believe tomorrow we will be back at work :( So not ready!
After checking out we left the hotel for our last afternoon in Saigon, wandered into a couple of shops before stopping for lunch. On walking into this small restaurant we were greeted with a man fighting with two ladies - rather a horrible scene....for some reason we stayed (no idea why!), after a couple of minutes (which of course felt like hours) the man took off. We ordered a cold drink and decided to go elsewhere on the food. Nothing jumped out at us. Headed back to the first place we ate at on Friday for Pho. Made our way back to the hotel with a few stops, collected our bags and we were off to the airport. Our wonderful weekend away had come to an end.
Next trip is to Bangkok for Patrick's birthday, unless of course something else comes up before then!
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