SignPost: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

I initially planned to go to India for a week, but I meet two Canadians in Penang Island Malaysia who already been to India, they told me that it is not worth going to India for just a week. It is better to go for a month and see the whole country. So from then on I decided to leave the idea of going to India and go somewhere else. I had a plan to go to South Korea, but many backpackers told me about Vietnam and Cambodia. They told me it is better to visit both. Of course I did not have the time to do so, so I ended up choosing Vietnam because many people recommended it to me. Vietnam also needs a month as well, but it was not as far as India going from Malaysia. I decided to only visit one city in Vietnam and spend a week there so I can get a good understanding of the culture. Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh city are both fantastic cities to visit, but I was told that Ho Chi Minh City is extremely lively so going from Cameron Highlands (quiet town), I was ready to throw myself back in a densely populated city.

Ho Chi Minh City surprised me a lot. Initially I did not like it, but I later got the hang of it and I did not want to leave the beautiful atmosphere it presented. I had to get a visa for Vietnam. I applied for a 30 day visa online and I bought the ticket the night before I traveled. I did not like the service at the airport because I spent more than three hours just getting the visa stamp. I initially payed online but I had to pay again at the airport which was a surprise to me. I took the public bus to the city center which was not far. The bus took about 30 minutes to get to my stop. I was baffled by the traffic. I had never seen such traffic in my life. There were so many motorcycles especially after sundown. People don’t get out much during the hot hours, they get out when it cools off around 5pm. When I left the bus at my stop, I started walking on the side walk and all of the sudden a bunch of motorcycles got on the side walk and passed by me. I realized that all the motorcycle riders cut off vehicles and get on the side walk to make a right turn. At least 30 motorcycles passed by me. I was so shocked to see these motorcycles going at a high speed on the side walk, of course it was unsafe, but it was pretty cool to see this. This was my first experience in Ho Chi Minh City.

As soon as I got to the hostel, I put my backpack and went outside to check things out. The city was incredibly dense and the people lived a simple life. I really liked the city vibe.

The hostel I was in was located on the backpacker street called Pham Ngu Lao Street. The street had more backpackers than the local people. I recorded a video (see below) while I was sitting in front of the hostel and watching people as they pass by. The street was always busy and hectic, it was an incredible sight.

I visited the War Remnants Museum. What I saw there made me very sad. Wars don’t solve any problems. I was able to hear the Vietnamese story about the Vietnam War. In the US, we do not learn much about the Vietnam War. The reality is that many innocent people have died for no reason. The Vietnam War was a mistake in my opinion. But the bigger issue is that we still have not learned, still to this day many innocent people die due to wars and the hunger for power and control.

Luckily, sadness went away thanks to the tourism fair they had in Ho Chi Minh City. I was extremely lucky that the three day Tourism Fair was on the week that I was there. The tourism fair was incredible and there were so many people, traditional and touristy music was playing everywhere. They would bring group of performers or singers and they would perform in front of so many people. They had games that a person could enjoy, the tourism fair made my trip even better. Below is a video of a performance that I really liked even though I did not understand Vietnamese language.

One of the trips I did whilst in Ho Chi Minh City was going to the Mekong River. The river was home to so many people. There were people selling fruits on their boat and for some, the boat was their home. We went to a small Island surrounded by the river. The Island had so many tropical fruits and it was so quiet. The people of the Island were very nice and welcoming. I took a bicycle and strolled the Island. It was very easy to get lost since all the roads looked the same, but luckily I did not get lost and was able to have a lunch, a nap, and make it back to the boat. The people around the Mekong River lived from day to day. They would wake up very early and work hard to earn money. Many people who lived on the river were poor but they still looked happy.