Saigon

After 4 days in Cambodia, we have now moved into Vietnam for the bulk of our holiday.  Siem Reap is very much as we remember it – a large rural town, with a very laid back atmosphere.  It is certainly much wealthier than it was 6 years ago, but all the temple attractions are very similar, and have a real old world charm about them.  The food is still a highlight, and while the markets sell the same sort of merchandise, there is not the same sense of desperation from the sales people, so the money that the tourists bring to the region is obviously making them more comfortable, and while the cars and scooters are definitely newer, the roads are no less dusty, but more of them are now sealed.

For some reason, I was finger printed as I left the Siem Reap, but this is a communist country, and you can always count on any government to add in a certain level of delay, inefficiency, or just plain bloody mindedness into any customer facing process.  Other than that, the flight to Saigon was uneventful, and the 14 of us seemed to make up a very large portion of the people travelling on the ATR.

It’s been 20 years since we were in Vietnam, and in those days it was only just starting to open up to tourists.  On that trip, we started in Hanoi and travelled south to Ho Chi Minh city, and Saigon (apparently the locals call it Saigon and the airport code is SGN) was very much the modern Asian city.  This time starting in Saigon, the city is still very much the modern Asian city, with the usual sky scrapers, neon lights, but my god, the number of scooters is unbelievable.  Whereas 20 years ago, you had to negotiate crossing the road ahead of a bunch of scooters, now the numbers are much, much higher, and there is also the much larger number of cars, 4 wheel drives and buses that are also out there to get you.

This traffic isn't too bad, but it gives an indication of what it's like

The first afternoon was a quiet time, where we went for a walk around Saigon near the hotel, had lunch at a local restaurant, visited a local market, and then relaxed with a beer by the pool.  Saigon is incredibly humid, so going out in the heat is an energy sapping experience.  Fortunately, there was a down pour while we were having lunch, so that cleared the air of a lot of its humidity.  Sitting out on the street is nice for being close to the action, but it does mean you are fair game for the street hawkers that are selling their wares up and down the street. Yesterday’s haul included a number of wallets, watches, and t-shirts across the team.

Dinner was in a beautiful restaurant with our now doubled in size team – 23 customers, 2 guides and the boss. 

Today, because I’m nearly caught up, we had a short excursion to the War Remnants Museum.  Unfortunately, we only had 45 minutes there, when I could happily have spent a good couple of hours there.  Such is the life of touring in groups, and while there are many upsides, not having the freedom to do your own thing all the time is a bit of a down side.  Fortunately, there was plenty of resources available so that I can go and learn about some of the topics covered when we get back home.

The bit that we did see was very moving, as is always the case in these sorts of museums.  It was a photo exhibition created of photos taken by photographers who lost their lives in the Vietnam war.  The photographers were from both sides of the conflict, so gave both sides of the conflict.  Unlike the war movies, there was no glory in either side, and all the photos depicted hardship, suffering and death.  They're never easy to visit, but it's important to try and understand the historical context of these major conflicts and try and put yourself in the shoes of the people who were involved in any way in the conflict.

For lunch we were treated to one of Vietnam’s national dishes noodles in broth.  Anyone who knows me, knows that I don’t view soup as a food group, so noodles in broth was to me just soup by another name.  Anyway, I’ve had the lunch, and it was ok, but I don’t feel any great need to keep repeating it – plenty of other great food to be tried in Vietman.

After the museum, we visited the presidential Palace, and the Cathedral before heading back to the hotel

The Presidential Palace

Beside the Cathedral - but more interesting

6 members of the group had headed off to see the Cu Chi Tunnels, which Anne and I had seen 20 years ago.  We caught up with them again before we headed to the airport, and they had had a fantastic trip to the tunnels.  The group that didn’t go to the tunnels are pictured below.

We checked out of the hotel after lunch, then headed for the airport to fly to Da Lat in an airbus A321.

Tomorrow we will be joined by a couple of drivers, a bike mechanic, and possibly even a doctor – we’re being well looked after.  The cycling proper starts in the morning, with an 80k bike ride around Da Lat - it's hilly - a 12k hill to climb on our first day - fun.