Cambodia was followed by Vietnam, where we went to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Mui Ne. Ho Chi Minh involved strolls along tree-lined streets, visits to rather harrowing museums and delicious Pho and lattes in various spots.
The exhilaration of jaywalking
Noodles at Pho Hoa (pronounced "Fur" as in "ry")
Coffee and cupcakes at L'Usine
Temporary lunch and coffee bars on the sidewalk, with fresh mandarin juice, sliced mangoes and coffee with condensed milk readily available 
Reunification Palace - not quite clear who was reunified. Filled with ostentatious meeting rooms. The library included the following books, "Planning and operating motels" and "The game of doubles in tennis". OddSome extra info:
If you like swimming pools and padding around in soft gowns, then stay at the Park Hyatt
Skip hotel breakfast for coffee at L'Usine, Annam Market (think Bon Marche supermarket) or the pavement
Eat at Pho Hoa for lunch and Temple Club for dinner
If you're French, finish your evenings with the Creme Brulee at the Park Hyatt
The taxi drivers in Ho Chi Minh City are incredibly well dressed. They all wear ties.
ReplyDeleteI was amazed that the road from the air-port to the city was still dirt road. There was still a primarily cash economy where plastic money was an exception than the rule. University teaching was like high school, emphasizing on rote memory. Some professors were trained in France, others in Russia, many in some English-speaking countries. There was a lack of teaching materials in Vietnamese. The university libraries were rudimentary.
ReplyDeleteIn Vietnam the population is relatively young and the government is trying to eliminate the Vietnam War from their collective history. In contract, South Korean government keeps reminding their citizens the Korean War. Ho Chi Minh City is very different from Hanoi.
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