Keyword for Ho Chi Minh City: Humidity

    Phillip and I arrived without incident into Vietnam. Our flight from DFW Airport, layover in Hong Kong, and flight to Ho Chi Minh City were quite the test of our endurance. We both dozed a little, not much, on the flights and Phillip slept for about an hour in the lounge in Hong Kong Airport. Twenty-five hours after first boarding, we landed in Ho Chi Minh City.

Heading out from DFW Airport

    Our e-visa worked exactly as it was supposed to. We went into the regular immigration line immediately after deplaning and breezed thru, being processed even quicker than the Asian lady ahead of us in line. A note for future travelers: get your money changed into Vietnamese dong at the airport in Vietnam. Phillip stopped at the exchange desk at DFW Airport, but they only offered 3.5 million dong for US $220. At the HCMC airport, he exchanged $200 for 4.5 million dong, over 25% better value! We are still getting used to the Vietnamese currency, but I do like it. It is made of an almost plastic material. About ten years ago, the Vietnamese government went to this material because the paper bills did not last, disintegrating in the humidity.

600,000 VND = about $28

    Our hotel, Huong Sen Hotel, is well-located and the staff is friendly. The breakfast buffet is exceptional and is served on the rooftop terrace. An egg station so you can request fresh eggs cooked to order; warming trays with different fried rice and entree items, mostly pork; bacon; fresh fruit; pastries; and beverages such as coffee and juices. I tried the aloe vera yogurt - it was surprisingly good and I'll eat it again. A slightly grassy flavor and the chunks of aloe vera worked to provide a bit of chewiness, just like strawberries and peached work in yogurt. I didn't get any gelatinous feel in my mouth like I thought I would.
     After breakfast, Phillip and I walked around for about two hours. We weren't yet brave enough to cross any major streets, so we basically made a large block. The information in the guidebooks about traffic is absolutely correct.
     Promptly at 1:30 today, we met with Hua and Ling, our student guides. We spent a delightful afternoon with them. Their command of English was exceptional, especially Hua. She was the more studious one, taking summer classes and planning to graduate early from college. Both girls were second year college students, majoring in Economics.

The girls took us to the Reunification Palace, the former Presidential Palace which is a very well-preserved museum.

The rooms were time capsules of the 1960s, with furnishings, telephones, and telegraphs from that era. The girls explained the history, that this was where the fall of Saigon officially occurred in 1975 when the North Vietnamese tanks came thru the front gate. The grounds are well-maintained and contain actual tanks and planes from the era.

     After the Reunification Palace, we went to a coffee shop: a mango smoothies for Phillip and iced coffee with coconut milk for Hua and me. Ling had a tasty-looking yogurt beverage. Hua had a class in the evening, so she left and Ling took us to Ben Thahn Market. We didn't buy anything there, but the market is on the highlights list for Ho Chi Minh City. Ling said that the market has developed into a more tourist destination. She had actually never been there before. It reminded me of the Bangkok markets with vendor stalls piled to the ceiling and very narrow walkways.

      By this time, our shirts were drenched with sweat, so we enjoyed going to an air-conditioned restaurant for dinner with Ling. Pho and the noodle/pork dish I like for me. Although it was after dark when we walked back to our hotel after dinner, the humidity was still extremely high. Another tip for travelers: don't expect to wear your clothes for more than one day!
     We thoroughly enjoyed our first day in Vietnam, especially our interaction with Hua and Ling. Their enthusiasm for learning about us and their pride in their country was evident. They both came from small communities, Hua from the north and Ling from near Hoi An, so we talked farming with them. They described their university system (future military people and teachers get a free university education, everyone else has to pay). They referred to Ho Chi Minh City several times as Saigon, so we asked about it. Ling said that HCMC is more proper and her friends that are politically connected do try to correct her, but Saigon is still a common usage name for the city since that's what older people know it as. It was so rewarding to have them as our student guides and as the website said, the girls would not accept a tip and did recommend we donate to the charity described on Saigonhotpot website.
     We are happy that we chose to visit Vietnam and look forward to meeting another student guide tomorrow for more sight-seeing.