After our wonderful visit to Dalat, our OAT itinerary takes us to southern Vietnam, where we’ll end our tour visiting the Mekong Delta and Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City. It was an easy flight from Dalat, just a little more than an hour.
During the war, Saigon was the capital of South Vietnam. When the communists took over, they re-named it as Ho Chi Minh City, which is still its official name. Today it’s a large bustling city with modern, luxurious areas, and others where people live a poor life. But Yo said that everyone here still calls it Saigon. So we got in the habit as well. We spent three nights in the Huong Sen Hotel Annex, a very nice hotel just a few blocks away from the National Opera Theater and the famous Continental Hotel. We were clearly in the nicer, more expensive part of town.
Our Highlights of Saigon City:
- The War Remnants Museum in Saigon focuses primarily on how the Vietnamese experienced the French and then American war, and then the aftermath of the war. The emphasis is on revealing evidence of war crimes, such as the My Lai massacre. A most difficult and moving section focuses on the aftereffects of Agent Orange that has caused disease and deformities even through a fourth generation.
- A stop for “Coconut Coffee” at Trung Nguyen Legendary Coffee shop. This was delicious, so we became fans of this iced coffee treat. Vietnam keeps teaching me more and more about coffee!
- Visit to the Continental Hotel: Just across from the Opera Theater, the Continental was historically important. All the important diplomats stayed here, in the center of Saigon, as did the journalists. Graham Greene lived and dined here for a time, and later wrote his novel “The Quiet American.”
- A O Show “Vietnamese Bamboo Circus” at the National Opera Theater. As advertised, this “combines a storytelling circus, unique live music, and creative use of bamboo to form an awe-inspiring performance art.” It was a great show in a beautiful venue. We thank Yo for so warmly recommending this event. NOTE: The photos below are not my photos. They are from the GetYourGuide website. We weren’t allowed to take photos during the performance.
- Drinks at the “Saigon Saigon Rooftop Bar” atop the Hotel Caravelle. After the “Bamboo Circus” show at the Opera Theater, we joined CC for a few drinks. We enjoyed Saigon’s beautiful night skyline and the good company.
- And then an unexpected shower: It was just a short walk to our hotel, but we were caught in a heavy downpour along the way. We tried to wait it out on a sidewalk under a storefront awning, but after fifteen minutes we gave up and flagged down a taxi. The driver seemed confused when we showed him our destination, and he kept pointing to the street ahead. Nevertheless, we climbed in and he drove us straight ahead, a little more than half a block, to our hotel. Oh well. We all need to feel stupid at some point in our lives.
On Daytrips beyond Saigon:
- To Mekong Delta Tour: After a long bus ride to the boat station, and then a motorized cruise to the province of Ben Tre, we visited a local farmer named Hung and his family. We learned about their life on the farm, and we tasted their grapefruit and rice crackers. From there we boarded a sampan, the traditional wooden, flat-bottomed boat to travel a canal through the delta. Then out of the boat and onto a three wheeled Lambro (the Delta Lamborghini) for a ride to a local coconut candy shop where we learned how they make a favorite treat, coconut candy. Follow that up with a lovely lunch at a local restaurant before we head back to Saigon.
- To Yo’s Mushroom Farm: Yo told us how Covid had ended tourism for quite some time. One way Yo and his family helped to make ends meet was by growing mushrooms at his country home. His wife would then sell mushrooms on line to neighbors and restaurants. Yo took us up to this area where we met Yo’s father and his wife’s sister. And we saw the “mushroom farm” that they had built.
- To the Cu Chi Tunnels: Another long bus ride took us to the village of Cu Chi, where we learned about the Cu Chi Tunnels. It’s one spot on a vast network of tunnels that spread for more than 160 miles. During the war, the Viet Cong dug thousands of miles of these tunnels to the northwest of Saigon. They lived in these tunnels and fled to them for safety when the bombs were falling. It was fascinating to see the ingenuity with which Viet Cong survived, protected themselves, and eventually achieved their goal: driving the Americans out of Vietnam.
- Dinner with Viet Cong: That afternoon we went to a local home where the hostess had set out a lovely meal for us. Her guests also included two members of the Viet Cong who fought against the Americans in what they call “The American War.” John Snyder, a Vietnam Veteran who later joined Vets Against the War, was on tour with us. It was very moving for us all to see John interacting with these two men, apologizing in his way for what America did to their country, and they in turn smiling and welcoming us Americans — all of us glad that the war is long gone. America now has a strong relationship with Vietnam, a relationship built upon the work of Senator John McCain, Secretary John Kerry, and President Obama.
Our “Inside Vietnam” Farewell Dinner: Another fine meal at another great Saigon restaurant gave us the chance to share our favorite parts of the tour and to thank our wonderful TEL, Mr. Yo for all his efforts on our behalf. We were happy that Yo brought his family to meet us, his wife, her sister, and their two sons. It was a sweet “Thank You,” and “Goodbye” after a wonderful experience.
- What’s next? While most of our fellow travelers now head back to America, “The Five” (Caroline/CC, Kevin, Brian, Sara & Evan) will fly from Ho Chi Minh City to meet our new guide, Mr. Ting in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Check out our next post to learn about our five days of adventure there.
Random photos of our group.
