Anyways, here is my Vietnamese adventure summary:
(Saigon aka. Ho Chi Minh city)
Food = Amazing!! ,
Traffic = Crazyyyyy as hell + super Super stressful (definitely not a place for the light-hearted!!!),
People = Helpful & Friendly,
Shopping = Nothing much besides home decor. Heard from the locals, more to buy in Hanoi.
The ever stressful traffic hit us once we entered the city.. this (pic above) is just a piece of it. The city is just flooded by hoards of motorcycles, scooters, cars etc.. and I must say traffic laws doesn't really apply here. Constant honking everywhere - very, VERY frustrating!!! According to the locals, Vietnamese drivers can't drive without honking. That's the way they get around - Honking non-stop. 0_0
We stayed at this place, Kim Huong Hotel, located at Le Thanh Ton road, right opposite the Benh Tanh market, pretty convenient to get around the city. Price per night was at 30 USD (RM100+) and much to our surprise, it was ACTUALLY pretty decent. Honestly speaking, we were expecting some dodgy backpacker inn. *lol* It was air-conditioned, with cable tv, water heater, mini fridge. Bed was bit stiff though but it was actually very cleaned and breakfast was even provided.
* Partner in crime + clean room *
* Clean bathroom *
So without wasting any time after checking in, we left the room in search for food. Lunch was at Pho 24, a chain Vietnamese restaurant, about 5 mins walk from the hotel.
* Yau cha kwai?? *
* Pho Ga (Chicken Noodle Broth) *
* Com Tam Bi Cha ( Broken rice with shredded pork & pork pie) *
* Cha Gio (deep fried spring roll) *
* My green friend - Heineken (1-2 USD only) *
Full from lunch, we decided to check out the city. Saigon Market place was right around the corner but much to our dismay, it turned out to be a tourist trap. Nothing much to see there besides super fake branded goods and low quality clothings. I reckon the street food along the pathways of Saigon were wayyy much interesting compared to the stuff sold at Saigon Market. For hygiene sake, I only allowed myself to feast on the delicacies with my eyes and decided not to put my tummy in jeopardy. Food looks interesting though..
Places to visit in HCM: -
* Reunification Palace *
* Park opp. Reunification Palace + coffeehouse (didn't manage to hang out at this place though) *
* Saigon Notre-Dame Basilica *
* Saigon Central Post Office *
* Cam-whoring along the streets right opp. Diamond Plaza (nothing much to see except for few labels, Ferragamo, Burberry & Furla) *
We came across this coffee house, Trung Nguyen, which seems to be quite popular among the locals and the Vietnamese drip coffee was just fantabulous.. love it!!! And this is actually coming from someone who's totally not a coffee-drinker. Serious!! I used to get palpitations and headaches each time i drink coffee. So I tend to stay off coffee until ..this trip. *laughs* Initially I was quite hestitant to try out this delectable thingy, so I ordered an ice-blended chocolate coffee instead. However, it looks soOOo tempting, with the special drip thingy and the strong aroma.. and took a very tiny sip and another and another. And I got hooked on it, hence, local coffee for breakfast throughout my whole trip. * lol* Let me try to describe the taste, you get slapped by coffee bitterness initially and thereafter, sweetness takes over. A bittersweet experience!!!
* Trung Nguyen Coffee house *
* The good stuff - Vietnamese drip coffee *
* My ice-blended choc coffee *
* Complimentary iced tea *
After chilling for a tad bit, we headed to the latest korean shopping mall in town, Kumho Asiana Plaza, located next to the Intercontinental Hotel just a few blocks away from Diamond Plaza. Bit disappointed with the mall 'coz there's nothing much to see besides Hard Rock, Aldo and a UK retail store (forgot the name..oops!!). Boo!!
* Kumho Asiana Plaza *
Last stop before heading back to the hotel to get freshen up for dinner, Benh Thanh market, right opposite our hotel. Another tourist trap, I reckon. Haggling is a definite MUST if you plan to shop here because the prices are wayy overboard. Home decor lovers will be spoilt for choice here though the locals would suggest going to Binh Thanh market, similar to this but prices of products are more appropriate.
* Benh Thanh Market *
Food here looks yummy.. and suddenly, we were hungry again. Aha!! So we came across this stall and decided to give it a go.
* Stall of choice *
* Banh Canh Tom (Rice spaghetti with shrimp) *
* Their version of belacan - super hot!! Watch out!! *
The noodles were actually quite yummy and we certainly placed too much of their chilli into our broth. Super duper hot!! But certainly delicious!! Prices however were a tad expensive, and we realized it was actually the same price as in Pho 24, vietnamese chain restaurant we had lunch at earlier. Only difference, its a market stall, minus air-conditioned etc. Hmm.. so Benh Thanh is a definite tourist trap!!
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