Taking in the Highlights of Ho Chi Minh City (January 13 - 15)

A luxurious 3 hour bus journey from Can Tho to Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) was for me an overt indication that Vietnam was rapidly shedding off its third world image to become another East Asian tiger. In the sumptuous lobby of The Grand Silverland Hotel - colonial décor to preserve its historical image - we were welcomed warmly with a refreshing fruit juice over ice. Alicia and I couldn't stop beaming as an over the top polite and elegant young woman escorted us to a classy room on the 4th floor, and ensured we had everything we needed to be beyond comfortable. We deliberately splurged on a high end hotel since we expected HCMC to be on the rough side compared to our previous destinations. We'd been warned about the careening motorbikes ("Good luck crossing the streets!" someone warned), the intolerable pollution, the crowds, pushy vendors, the bustle, etc. So we felt an indulgence was fully justified, and very affordable too, I should point out.

Despite our apprehension about HCMC, everything worked out effortlessly for us. Arranging a full day city tour for the next day turned out to be a cinch with the excellent Vietnam Adventure Tours, which happened to be right beside our hotel on Ly Tu Trong Street. Then, for dinner, we wanted a decent culinary experience in this city famous for its haute cuisine. Everyone recommended Nha Hang Ngon Restaurant on Pasteur Street which they assured us was just a short walk from our hotel.
Filled with trepidation we headed out, eyeing the insanely jammed streets, mostly motorbikes (3 million in this city), but a fair number of cars too. Many of the riders wore colorful face masks for protection from the foul air. To our amazement there were pedestrian traffic lights that drivers actually heeded and we were able to cross streets - most of the time. The walk turned out to be quite entertaining with lots of tourists and well dressed locals milling around. We could tell from the designer clothes and leather handbags that a lot of wealthy locals lived here. This was District 1, the most central part of HCMC. We past the beautifully landscaped gardens of the Revolution Museum, and other attractive buildings before turning into Pasteur Street.

Nha Hang Ngon Restaurant

The restaurant, in a colonial building, looked impressive from the outside. There were many diners around outdoor tables and the grand entrance was decorated with big plants and strings of lights. We were delighted at the ambience of the large interior which had decorative touches like a pond in the middle. The place throbbed with diners and we were grateful to get seated right away without a reservation. I had a lot of fun studying all the various Vietnamese dishes on the menu. Obviously we went for tradition and ordered pho, a flavorful noodle stew with lots of vegetables, served with a plate of fresh greens - lemon basil, bean sprouts, mint, and lettuce. As I savored every delicious molecule I wondered why I hadn't succeeded in finding Vietnamese food of this quality back home. Like in India - I consistently had great meals during my month of traveling through Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Yet, in the West, I would say one out of ten Indian restaurants served acceptable food.

The next morning I gaped at the breakfast buffet. It was on a much grander scale than the enormous spread in Can Tho. I sat down with a cup of strong coffee and eyeballed every tantalizing table, wishing I had several stomachs. I settled for a poached egg, my guaranteed protein for the day, a croissant, and dragon fruit. When I saw the selection of yummy cheeses all willpower vanished. I sampled a few ripe French cheeses with wholegrain bread, had a bit more coffee, and felt ready to check out HCMC.

Our full day city tour included a guide, a pleasant young woman, who gave us the scoop on each site in English that was clearly rehearsed and polished for this purpose. A swanky air-conditioned van took us to these highlights of the city:

War Remnants Museum

1. The War Remnants Museum, where we were painfully reminded of the brutality of war and the atrocities of the US military. I was haunted by a photograph of a frail old man looking at a gun pointed at him, the panic on his face - it was gut wrenching. The reporter who had taken the photo wrote that he heard the gun shot when he turned to get into his vehicle.

2. A tourist café to sample their special Weasel Coffee, boldly rich and smooth, served in porcelain cups while we sat around a traditional wooden table in a very welcoming and colorful interior. This very sought after very expensive coffee is made from hand picked coffee beans that are eliminated by weasels in the highlands of Vietnam. We were supposed to eagerly make a purchase - and a few in our group did. Sitting next to me was a middle aged man from LA who had grown up in Vietnam, and his 20 year old American daughter, a student at UCLA. He entertained us with his observations of present day HCMC in contrast to what it used to be like before he emigrated.

3. The Binh Tay Market -  sold designer brand merchandise in bulk, and housed in a historic building in Chinatown. Experienced what it was like to drive through HCMC's insanely clogged streets. Strolling through the absurdly narrow aisles with piles and piles of stuff towering all around made for a pretty claustrophobic experience.

Thien Hau Pagoda

4. Thien Hau Pagoda - one of the more popular pagodas in the city. High walls adorned by intricate friezes surrounded the front courtyard. Inside the atrium there were huge censers billowing fragrant smoke. We admired and photographed the stunning friezes and bas reliefs before escaping back into our cool van.

5. Lunch at Kim Cafe for traditional Vietnamese fare. Another pretty decent pho, served with a bowl of greens. A refreshing coconut water was the perfect beverage in the heat. Everyone on the tour with us sat together around a large table. We had some entertaining conversations with an older Australian man and his Singaporean partner. A German couple amused us too. The woman, who had grown up in Vietnam, looked at her German husband in horror when he attempted to order a pasta dish. So she ordered a local dish for him which he seemed to enjoy very much.

Independence Palace

6. Independence Palace (also called the Reunification Palace), the presidential residence and working place before reunification. The best photo op for this stately building was from the gates. Reminded me of the White House. We visited the lavishly furnished interior done up to look like it used to before it was bombed by Ngo Dinh Diem's own air force in an assassination attempt. Lovely views of the landscaped grounds from the upper floors.

7. Nam quo Lacquer Workshop - a longish drive from Independence Palace, allowing us a restful half hour in our comfortable van.

Nam Quo Lacquer Workshop

First, a presentation on the process of creating lacquered crafts. Talked up the fact that all the artisans were handicapped in some way and received training on this skill in order to live productive lives. Guilted into supporting this place - America was likely responsible for many of the handicaps - we strolled through the workshop to select something to purchase. It was quite a huge place with shelves upon shelves of vases, jewelry boxes, bowls, trays, and wine holders all with beautiful designs. The designs were not original and so they were quite repetitive. Gustav Kimt's "The Kiss" appeared frequently. I managed to find a vase with an unusual design and made my purchase.

8. We ended the tour with a stop at Notre Dame Cathedral and the Central Post Office - the two most famous buildings in the city, built when Vietnam was under French rule. The tall spires of Notre Dame, while attractive, looked totally out of place in this Asian city.

Post Office

Notre Dame Cathedral

Across the street, we gawked at the coral colored colonial Post Office. I was surprised to learn that it was designed by Gustav Eiffel. There are carvings of famous philosophers and scientists on the exterior walls. Stepping inside I was reminded of New York's central train station. It was so gorgeous with intricately designed floor tiles, and green, gilded wrought iron pillars. On the back wall was a photograph of Ho Chi Minh. There were lots of tourists in this part of the city - the Dong Khoi area - which has many grand buildings and luxurious hotels.

We were immensely satisfied with this tour. There's nothing like air-conditioned comfort to drop you off right at the door, saving you the trouble of dodging speeding bikes and breathing in ghastly fumes.

Rex Hotel

In the evening after a shower and nap, we decided to splash out for dinner. A little research led us to the restaurant at the Park Hyatt Hotel in the exciting Dong Khoi area. The famous Rex Hotel was on our route so we popped into its glitzy lobby. So ... this was where the reporters got their daily press briefings during the Vietnam War. Back on the street we walked past American designer stores and chic boutiques in glamorous buildings. You could easily believe you were on Rodeo Drive. Five star hotels were clustered near the Opera House, behind which was the Park Hyatt.

Opera House

We knew we were in for a good time the moment we were seated on the attractive terrace and a linen napkin was draped on our laps by a waiter in formal attire. What bliss - a great view of the Opera House, balmy temperature, and the anticipation of cuisine extraordinaire. 

First we were served a small loaf of just baked whole grain bread with flavorful spreads to munch on while perusing the menu. We ordered beer rather than the absurdly overpriced wine. We did make the mistake of bending to the pressure of ordering mineral water, though. They brought us a bottle of Evian and charged us $15 for it! Ouch!
For starters we had a variety of Vietnamese spring rolls which came with a peanut dipping sauce topped with slivers of roasted peanuts. C'est magnifique! For mains I had a spicy vegetable curry cooked in coconut milk. It had interesting enough ingredients to make it distinctive from Thai or Khmer curries. This was our last dinner on our East Asia trip. A most memorable (and expensive even by Santa Barbara standards!) meal, and a wonderful experience of Vietnam's fine culinary offerings.

Ben Thanh Market

My last day in Asia, after another buffet feast, I wanted to wander around the neighborhood and explore the streets and parks in District 1. But an oppressive sun and polluted air put me off. So I headed for the massive clock tower just behind my hotel which belonged to the building that housed the Ben Thanh Market. The French built this shopping center in 1914 and named it Les Halles Centrales. This bustling place was infinitely entertaining and I was so thankful to be indoors. I spent the morning strolling through the aisles of tropical produce, then onto the Vietnamese souvenirs, and further on I came to stalls selling American "designer"merchandise - a version of the Factory Outlet stores in the US with the same brands - but in crowded stalls separated by narrow aisles. It was amusing to watch western tourists haggling with passionate vendors who were not going to be diddled!

At lunch time I checked out the menus of the various restaurants in the market which all served traditional fare - pho, stir-fried noodle dishes, tons of seafood, spring rolls. An onion crepe served with various spicy sauces and a generous bowl of greens (lemon thai basil, romaine lettuce leaves, mint) made a perfect lunch.

In the afternoon I braved the heat and browsed the boutique stores selling high end Vietnamese designer clothes on and around Ly Tu Trong Street. I bought a bathing suit at one of the many stores that specialized in swimwear. I spent my last hour in the city at Violet Spa. Here I had the most amazing Thai massage - a full body aromatherapy session which involved hot rocks and a lot of pressing of sore muscles. Well, I have to say, I can't think of a better way to have ended my time in Cambodia and Vietnam.

There was still so much to see in Vietnam. I enjoyed my time in HCMC very much, and can't wait to see all the famous places to the north of it.

Vietnam - the Mekong Delta

January 12, 2015

Definitely the most interesting border crossing I'd ever experienced. A van drops Alicia and me (and about a dozen European backpackers) off at the Cambodia border near the Gulf of Thailand. Some official looking person takes our passports. Then we walk across to the Vietnam side with our luggage, and after an anxious wait outside a smallish building, our passports are returned. Vietnam, here we come!

A startling change in scenery and culture assured us we were in a distinctly different country. The first locals we encountered at the border and bus stations were a lot feistier and more assertive than Cambodians. After five hours in a "local" bus filled with a cross section of Vietnamese locals, including a mute conductor (I'm not kidding!), through a landscape of shapely mountains and vast patches of luminescent green paddy fields, we arrived in Can Tho. This surprisingly modern city was our base to explore the Mekong Delta. Snazzy cars on proper asphalt roads, gleaming stores selling fine clothes, high rise buildings... and no tuk-tuks around to ferry us to our hotel from the bus terminal. It was a sleek, air-conditioned taxi that deposited us in style at our rather pleasant hotel. This was not the third world - or so they would have us believe! From our 7th floor room we could see a very built up city on the banks of a wide river, the Hau River, a branch of the Mekong.

Night Market

Strolling by the riverside in the evening we got a sense of Vietnam's high powered energy, a contrast to sedate Cambodia. A statue of Ho Chi Minh, the revered leader who unified the country, greeted us from a sculpted garden. Sauntering along the busy street, noisy with bikers, we browsed dinner menus, excited to see such a decent choice of restaurants. We checked out the creative displays of unusual fruit sold by street vendors, who added their exotic touches to the city. Further on, crowds were beginning to cluster around a very colorful night market. Having had a long day, the escalating bustle in this lively area was too much for us, so we ambled back toward the restaurant we'd decided on for dinner.

Entering Nam Bo Restaurant, the first thing I noticed was that it was filled with French tourists. There was a colonial ambience emphasized by traditional wooden furnishings and fine linen. Studying the vast menu was fascinating. It featured a range of exotic cuisine, including many snake dishes. We had fresh spring rolls for starters. They were artistically wrapped with long scallions jutting out at either end. The tasty stir fried veggies with tofu I had for mains was seasoned with lemongrass and chili. I didn't care much for a bland mushroom side dish that we also ordered. A light and refreshing Saigon beer was the perfect drink for this truly satisfying meal.

In the morning, after a breakfast feast - restraint being impossible due to an overwhelming buffet spread of every imaginable breakfast food on the planet - we went on a half day tour of the Mekong Delta. When I climbed into the small wooden boat, I had to work hard to hide my nervousness from the driver - a sweet man with a very tanned, wrinkled face. I looked at the huge Hau River (also known as the Bassac River). It had begun its journey as the Mekong River well over two thousand miles away in the Tibetan plateau and cut through a huge chunk of South East Asia before splitting from it and arriving at this point, a few miles from where it would empty. I felt absurdly vulnerable. In front of us there were bigger, newer boats that belonged to major tour companies. Oh, why hadn't we arranged to be on one of those boats? But our skillful driver, with his constant beam and attentiveness, put us at ease. He certainly knew what he was doing - did it everyday of his life for decades, probably on that exact same boat. He gave us traditional conical bamboo hats for protection from the fierce heat. Six kilometers down this great river, passing villages with dilapidated houses on stilts, we came to Cai Rang, a floating market.

Cai Rang Floating Market

Eager vendors on bobbing boats, laden with watermelons, pineapples, coconuts, and various other produce shouted out their offerings. It was all quite colorful and atmospheric. I'd heard of floating markets before, but to actually see it in action - everything happening on the water - was quite a unique experience. The river was so integral to how the locals lived here. It didn't look easy, and they looked anything but wealthy. Such hard work, daily, to subsist.

We sailed on, past another smaller floating market, and then into a quiet canal. We stopped at a village where we saw all the stages in noodle making. At Hoai's Rice Noodle Factory we went on a quick tour of the process from the soaking and husking of rice to making sheets which are dried and cut into strips. We bought some traditional snacks - tapioca cubes, and dried banana crepe like sheets from vendors near the dock. As we continued our boat ride through quieter and narrower canals, we munched on these very tasty snacks. Despite the intense heat I was relishing every moment in this different world - far away from noise and people and the city.

Lush vegetation flanked the canals. It was so peaceful with just birdsong and and the splash of oars breaking the silence. Every so often we saw a local, bamboo hat perched on their head, rowing their boat to some isolated destination. Our driver gave us each a carved pineapple on a stick, a tangible reminder that we were indeed thousands of miles away from home.

Three hours later, back on land in Can Tho, I stared back at the river. A beautiful modern cable-stayed steel and concrete bridge stretched across, and I thought, wow, how symbolic! The past and the present linked by that bridge.