Ho Chi Minh / Saigon

Hi everyone,

We arrived in Ho Chi Minh/Saigon with low expectations. Most of the people we had encountered had not enjoyed the city. While waiting in line for a taxi, we ran into Gavin and Max, who had left Hoa’s before us for Nha Trang. We had been told to stay at Madame Cuc’s, but it was booked, and so we began a long and fruitless search for accommodation. Madame Cuc’s sent us to another place, but we were not impressed. After searching for at least an hour, we stayed in the place they had recommended. Our first instincts turned out to be correct. They were to incompetence as Japan is to cleanliness.

Accommodation aside, we were pleasantly surprised by the city. We were staying on the backpackers streets, and the night life was decent. It is certainly not a place to travel in order to party (though the beer is cheap), but it was much better than Hanoi. The food was also pretty good.

It is very difficult to use credit cards in Vietnam. We had not taken quite enough money out of the ATM, and did not want to incur more fees by withdrawing once again, so we went looking for a restaurant that accepts Visa. In the end, we were able to locate one, but the use of credit cards is far from ubiquitous.

On our first day we visited Reunification Palace. It is like a song put out ten years ago: not new enough to be considered modern or cool, nor old enough to be considered classic or chic. However, it is a symbol of the northern victory. I couldn’t help thinking that if Saigon (at the time) had had a stable, powerful government and military in the 1970s, Vietnam would be a first world country. We then visited a market, in which we made many purchases, owing to the friendly prices and decent selection.

On our second day, we visited the Cu Chi Tunnels. This system of tunnels is one of the main reasons that the north won the war. There are more than 250km worth of tunnels. I had much difficulty sliding into one which has been widened to accommodate tourists. The VC were not very large. Life in the tunnels must have been horrible. That said, when fighting for one’s country, it seems one can endure many hardships. It was hard to ignore the parallels between the “American War” (as it is described in Vietnam) and the wars currently being waged by the west. Sights of this nature can never be described as unbiased, but the language used here was almost amusing in its slant. For example, the Saigon government is described as the American puppet government and the words cruel invaders are used liberally. It is not hard to remember that Vietnam is a “communist” country.

We then visited the War Remnants Museum. That was quite an experience. The language there was even harsher. We learned about the victims of Agent Orange, and saw pictures of the horrible effects of this deforesting agent. We also saw the guns, bombs and grenades used in the war. The human race never ceases to design innovative and creative ways of doing harm to itself. Let us say that it was not a lighthearted visit, though it was very educational.

Thanks for reading!