Vietnam 1: Saigon

Mon 6 Jan
Very odd having breakfast at Mad Monkey without the kids. Checked out and found the Blue Cruiser boat which departed smartly at 1pm. We were the only passengers! Sitting on the bow with a beer as we sped down the massive Mekong in sunshine was very civilised.                                                    

Departing Saigon 

Dredging for sand 

After the border crossing (got off the boat once at Cambodian border, then again at Vietnamese border) we turned into a wide canal to connect to the Hau Giang River. The banks were a hive of industry ; rice factories, timber shops, fishing nets etc.

Just across border in Vietnam: giant wooden barge and many sand dredging barges.

Barge, with new bridge under construction

We reached Chau Doc at 5pm and walked 1 km to the Dong Bao hotel, stopping en route to get local sims for our two travel phones (Jess brought out old mobiles and these have worked brilliantly with local sims PAYG in each country for a few dollars). The hotel was clean and quiet, with a hot shower and total cost £10 for the night! A spot of TripAdvisor research led us to a tasty supper in a simple but popular restaurant.

Chau Doc

Sun 7 Jan
I went for a jog along the busy streets (dodging traffic even on a Sunday), then we grabbed breakfast at a pleasant outdoor cafe: pho (pork and noodle soup), and our first experience of Vietnamese coffee. They have a little metal filter that takes 10 mins to drip into a glass with a layer of condensed milk. Delicious, powerful kick-start to the morning.

Pho and coffee

Our Futa Bus (sleeper seats size small, aircon & WiFi)  departed Chau Doc at 12.30 with only 5 passengers, but this filled up as we headed towards Saigon at a good pace - with a suitably loud horn.  We queued for half an hour to board a rusty ferry crossing the river at Pha Vam Cong, where they are building a new suspension bridge.

and finally arrived at 7pm at the bus terminal, but 12km from District 1 where our accommodation was located.  Long Hostel is down a well known backpacker alley; newly decorated spacious room, proper shower, bkfst and 2 free beers all for $20 a night. I selected an Indian restaurant off Googlemaps without realising it was on Bui Vien “party street’ – so we had a good curry accompanied by thumping disco beats from the street below!

Mon 8 Jan
I had pre-booked a tour out to the Cu Chi tunnels - but Jess had done these previously so opted to wander in the city. The 22km journey from Saigon by minibus took over two hours. This is a very popular attraction with big tour groups, and even has a shooting range where you can pay to fire AK47s! Unfortunately it transpired that it was our young guide’s first tour. However the small section of sample tunnels (enlarged for westerner s!) gives a glimpse of the extraordinary 250km of tunnels first built by the Cu Chi people in 1940 when fighting the war of independence against the French and then expanded for the Vi etnam war.  The sign declared the site as “A symbol of the revolutionary heroism of Vietnamese people”.

I had to crouch right down to walk through
 And this is enlarged for tourists (and has elec lights)

Jess had a lovely calm day visiting museums.  We rendezvous’d at Me Linh Square at 4pm, and wandered the streets, with impr essive architecture and an incredible number of scooters (tuk tuks were banned here a few years ago on safety grounds). You have to stay alert as a pedestrian because at busy junctions the scooters take to the pavements, and pedestrian crossing green lights only seem to apply to 75% of the drivers!

City Hall and statue Ho Chi Minh 

Making local pop video!

Tues 9 Jan
We went up-market and booked a tour with Vespa Adventures – which was excellent. In four hours we covered a lot of ground, with expert drivers on the comfortable original Vespas (there is a seat back for the pillion) and our knowledgeable young guide Thien who spoke superb English.

Bird Garden: men sit all morning with their song birds in cages

Quảng Dức: Vietnamese Mahayana Buddhist monk who burned himself to death on the street 11 June 1963,
 protesting against Saigon Government persecution of Buddhists. The gruesome image subsequently 
became one of the four most famous images driving the US peace campaign   

The Flower Market: note electricity cables!

Charcoal motor bike

Emperor Jade Pagoda: Jess’s wish on incense  coil

Deer antler slices in Chinese pharmacy

Châu Van Phat: Temple of Ten Thousand Buddhas (look at wall behind)

District 2 (where Thanh lives) 

Post office 

Reunification Palace: built in the ’60s  - and where the North Vietnamese
tank famously broke down the gates in 1975. 

We then met up with Thanh who drove us out to his spacious apartment in District 2, where we had a relaxed hour at the pool, played Lego with son Khai, and then a lovely supper with Thanh and his wife Lan Ahn.


Weds 10 Jan
After a delicious breakfast of bacon & eggs (me) and pho (Jess) – we visited their impressive butchers business (we took a taxi into town and spent a fascinating two hours at the War Remnants Museum. When this opened in 1975 it was called The Exhibition House for US and Puppet Regime Crime – which gives you an idea of the content and commentary. Gruesome mock-up of the prisons and torture methods utilised by the Saigon and US Governments, assorted aircraft and tanks, and inside three floors of displays – including a poignant selection of Vietnam war photography and an “agent orange” display. Although a little one-sided, it provides a gritty view of the Vietnam war.

Another swim (in a slightly too late attempt to get fit before kitesurfing!) and then we went out with Thanh and Lan Anh for a superb Vietnamese dinner, followed by a few cocktails at stylish new “Deck” on the bank of the Mekong. It has been brilliant to catch up with Thanh and meet Lan Ahn for the first time, and of course lovely Khai.

Lan Ahn, Khai & Thanh

The Lego Architect 

Thurs 11 Jan
Perhaps the cocktails weren’t so clever – as the alarm was set for 05.10 to get our train from Saigon to Phan Thiet, and then on to Mui Ne: beach resort and kitesurf capital of South East Asia….. But will it be windy??