Saigon - Life on a River

Thien Hau Insense

Ho Chi Minh City, located on the banks of the Sai Gon River, was until the 17th century a small Khmer fishing village. Later, issues with Chinese refugees during the Nguyen Dynasty, saw a new rule, growth and a change of character.  In 1859, Saigon was seized by the French giving the city a feel of a French provincial town. Saigon was later to become the capital of the Republic of Vietnam. In 1975, it was renamed Ho Chi Minh City after the founder of the modern communist state.  Now the network of waterways is bustling and the city booming.

We flew into Saigon over a panorama of fields and wide, muddy rivers. It looked and certainly was, warmer and much more humid than KL. 

After settling into our hotel, The Grand Hotel on Dong Khoi Street - what a position! - we took an orientation tour, walking with our guide, Hip. 

Group numbers appeared to swell as we moved through the streets. Was this performance art?  We seemed to have acquired a troop of tourist police (to ensure our safety) such as crossing those frenetic streets and negotiating a gaggle of assorted and very attentive hawkers.  All attentive to ensure our $US were wisely spent....  

We needed a coffee to relieve our frazzled nerves and there it was, Gloria Jean's!  As recompense, we had a local dinner at the Indochine. Set in an old colonial building, not yet restored, although well preserved might be a better word, but it did have character. Disappointingly, local food is not particularly spicy.

General Post Office

Dong Khoi Street used to be known as Rue Catinat and is the centre of the old French Quarter. We took in the Notre Dame Cathedral (1883) with two bell towers, the General Post Office and Municipal Opera Theatre (1899). The Post Office is quite spectacular and my endeavours to photograph floor tiles sparked a bit of a "theme" for me, especially being a patchworker. 

We drove past the People's Committee Building (formerly the Hotel de Ville, 1908), the Rex Hotel, a haunt of journalists during the American War, the Continental Hotel, (a setting for Graham Greene's, The Quiet American) and the renovated highrise, Caravelle Hotel. 

Afterwards we lunched at an interesting pho, or noodle shop, decorated in the old style with lots of dark timber panelling, all quite intricately carved and old chinese furniture.  It brought back memories of those fabulous old cafes in Malaysia with their black furniture, small mable-topped tables and dark, mysterious interiors

Notre Dame Cathedral

Our explorations next took us to downtown Cholon (Chinatown) past a very busy and large local produce market, Cho Binh Tay, through Thien Hau, a Chinese temple of the Goddess Protector of Sailors, with very tolerant worshippers, I must say.  Being sailors, we made an offering in the hope of good fortune and safe passage. After the calm of the temple, it was not long before we plunged into the depths of the Ben Thanh market and its wall to wall stalls, and as a final stop, every shopper's delight, the Tax Trade Centre in Nguyen Hue. Back for a swim and a beer before a disappointing, albeit interesting dinner.  Frogs, eels, crocodile Belgian style and snails on the menu. Snake's head porridge. Mmmmm? Perhaps not tonight!!!