When I first visited Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) ten years ago, I was overwhelmed by its noise, traffic, and people. The urban chaos of HCMC at that time put me off completely, and I never thought I would return for a reprise visit. But I did. During the Khmer New Year school break this year, I revisited Vietnam's largest city, which was a 7-hour bus ride from Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
On this reprise trip, I was actually taken aback by HCMC's transformation over the years. The city has surpassed my expectation and transformed itself into a modern, somewhat sophisticated, urban metropolis. If there was one word to sum up my experience in modern-day HCMC, it would be "lifestyle". It was quite pleasant to be around chic restaurants and cafes, trendy boutiques, and gratifying spas in the city. This was not to say that I splurged and indulged myself all the time in HCMC. I was still drawn to street foods and cheap eats, and thankfully, they were not completely abolished from the city. Still, it was hard not to notice the affluence around me. It was flaunted unabashedly, and to me the most prominent representation of this affluence would be the Bitexco Financial Tower which stood tall and proud like the Burj Khalifa of Dubai in the U.A.E. The night views from the 52nd floor of the Bitexco (windows could have been cleaner) weren't exactly out-of-this-world, but it was still nice to have a different perspective of the city from this structure. The other noticeable and most-welcome change was the exchange rate. We got 22,000 dong to a US$1 on this trip vs 16,000 dong ten years ago, and this made me happy.
I also visited the War Remnant Museum on this trip, and surprisingly enough, I got a lot out of the visit. Reading about the different types of horrendous tortures afflicted on prisoners of war and seeing the unedited photographs of victims and the destruction of landscapes disturbed me. It made me think about the uselessness of wars and the selfish and greedy motives of some sick, corrupt people. There are no winners in wars and battles. Period. The museum is a definite must-see if you're ever in HCMC - the best $0.68 I've spent in years (entrance fee: 15,000 dong per person).
Above left: seen at a Cambodian rest stop en-route to Vietnam - a table of offerings to gods and ancestors during Khmer New Year; Above right: a guard dog at Vietnam's customs and immigration border control
Food and beverage in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Above: late dinner at a hole-in-the-wall joint in District 1 (Pham Ngu Lao)
Above left: these mixed fruit smoothies were simply delightful; Above right: reconnecting with street desserts (flan and soymilk) in Vietnam (cheap and delicious)
Above: lunch at Hum Vegetarian (pink guava juice and red curry with rice noodles)
Above: dinner at Pho Hai Thien (pork rolls, beef flank pho, and guava juice)
Above left: cha gio (minced pork sausage) with rice noodles; above right: another dessert vendor on the street
Above right: cocktails on the 52nd floor of Bitexco Financial Tower
Above: dinner at Kim's restaurant - the usual Vietnamese fare of fresh rolls and banh xeo (Vietnamese crepe)
Above: banh mi (Vietnamese sandwich)
Above left: chocolate freeze from Highlands Coffee (a favorite drink in HCMC); above right: Saigon beer at Pizza 4Ps
Above left: half teriyaki chicken with nori and half eggplant margherita pizza at Pizza 4Ps; above right: coconut delight dessert
War Remnant Museum
Local scenes
Above: Saigon Post Office
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