Eastern Time plus 14 hours
We arrived in Phu My which is the port for Ho Chi Minh City/Saigon. HCM City is the largest city in Vietnam and is located near the Mekong Delta which is huge. The current name is HCM City, but the locals still call it Saigon.
We were picked up by our guide Linh (Lin) and our driver Hiep (Hip).
The port was over two hours from HCM City and we were happy we didn't have to drive back to the port at the end of the day. We were flying to Bangkok to meet Liz and Tim.We passed many rice fields and learned they have 8 words for rice with husks, without husks, rice shoots, rice seedlings etc all have their own words. Rice is a major part of their life and culture.
We visited Reunification Hall, the former Presidential Palace that was captured on April 30, 1975 which ended of the long struggle for Vietnam. We saw the large communications area in the basement and the escape tunnels that connect it to Notre Dame Cathedral as well as meeting rooms and the command center. We learned a lot more about the war. 
The Notre Dame cathedral was completed in 1883 and has twin spires standing 130 ft.
Once again we felt the word that best described our visit was scooters!!!!! There were thousands and thousands of scooters. Many were carrying huge loads. The helmet law was effective Dec 15, 2007 and they are really into their helmets. Many of the women have very decorative brims that they wear over their helmets to protect them from the sun. Some of the head gear is just plain weird. The children in the picture are wearing helmets, but that was unusual. The adults all wore them but almost none of the children.
We visited the War Remnants Museum, which studies war and aggressive forces against Vietnam and its aftermath. This was mostly photographs and very interesting, although depressing.
The Thein Hau Temple is in the center of Chinatown. It is an 18th century temple dedicated to the Sea Goddess and the Protector of Sailors. It has an interesting ceramic frieze lines the roof of the inner courtyard.
We had lunch in a French Restaurant. Vietnam still has French influence so there are many French restaurants. The lunch was great, although very expensive. We still can't quite figure out the value of the various currencies, even when we know the exchange rate. We know how much it would be in dollars, but not how much or what that dollar can buy.
We spent the afternoon buzzing around the city observing daily life, shopping (Ellen would have loved the shoes!),
Vietnamese Coffee 
and then off to the airport!
No comments:
Post a Comment