Friday, November 21, 2008
Ho Chi Minh City!
Raine and I decided to go on a trip to HCM as Tiger Airways was having a 4 cents promotion. Our ticket costed just $177 per person! Overall, we liked HCM better than Hanoi.
The view upon landing was already promising. The new airport, completed just last year,resembled Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport, albeit much less crowded and not much shops and eateries within.
The roads in HCM were wider than those in Hanoi. And, although there were more vehicles, especially motorcycles, there, somehow it was not as chaotic. Still, crossing the roads were hazardous operations and we always held hands in fear! Hahaha.
The food was cheap and great! I actually took pictures of ALL the food we ate and still drool whenever I see them. While in Hanoi, we got all the Chinese-like food, HCM has all the 'authentic' (ok, as a historian, I know this is a really subjective phrase, but for the lack of a better word!) food like rice paper spring rolls and pho (rice noodles). Vietnamese uses a lot of vegetables in their cuisine and I like it! Developed a liking for basil leaves, which they provide with every dish. We also tried banh xeo (pancake with pork and shrimp inside) and other stuff. On recommendation, we went to Santa Lucia, an Italian restaurant with lovely ambience and lovelier food. The restaurant reminded me of wanting a boudoir-style deco in black and purple for my room next time hmmm. For anyone interested in trying many Vietnamese food from all the regions at one go, Guan An Ngon is a good place to visit.
Most of HCM's tourist attractions did not interest us that much, unfortunately. I liked the colonial French buildings such as the City Hall, Notre Dame Cathedral (the statue of the Virgin Mary was alleged to shed tears of blood last year), Opera House and the Post Office. HCM is definitely much more cosmopolitan and still retains some of that colonial buildings and charm.
The Cao Dai Temple, which I have heard so much about in Prof Lockhart's lectures, was pretty interesting as well. However, the journey there was really long, about more than 1 and a half hour. And the ceremony was rather boring to watch. I guess I was really eager to see the syncretism part, which was the defining feature of the faith. But you could be forgiven for thinking that nothing beyond Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism were part of the syncretism. I could hardly observe the Christian element, although a plaque told us that Victor Hugo was supposed to the spiritual chief of missions of the faith! And the triangle sign with an eye inside on every window bore striking resemblance to the Freemason's symbol.
Chu Chi Tunnel reminded me of a place in Australia, where you go through open park showing how the early settlements lived. Chu Chi showed you the forests where the Vietcongs fought in, complete with wax statues of Vietcong soldiers. Eery when coupled with dark skies and drizzle. They have an exhibition showing the various ingenious traps that the Vietcongs fashioned out of simple things like armchairs and doors. You don't wanna mess with these people. But the highlight had got to be the infamous tunnels. We were told that we were allowed to try walking inside for 30 metres, 60 metres, and if you are strong enough, 100 metres. So in I went, to the scariest experience in HCM. The tunnel was illuminated by some well-placed lights, but it was still dark enough to make you think about being buried alive. And it has this smell that added to the effect. The air was also thin, making breathing difficult. I was stupid enough to walk frog-legged in the beginning, rapidly exhausting myself. We missed the 30 metre mark and did not realise it until we emerged at the 60 metre place. My arms were trembling and legs were feeling jelly. I breathed the fresh air in hard. Our guide told us that 2 men never survived in there, but for some reason, if it had been a woman and a man, they were able to survive. Now that's a mystery. Because I am pretty sure that I will die even if I am alone inside. The claustrophobia alone is enough to snatch that will to live in you. So I cannot do but admire the Vietcongs for their spirit and determination.
My biggest peeve was that many people in HCM seemed bent on treating us tourists as cash cows. People in HCM are generally friendlier than those in the North. Many a times, Raine and I got free instructions on the streets and we did not even ask for them! People are just willing to go the mile to help, like our friendly contact there, Jennifer Tranh. But taxi drivers and shop keepers are another bunch altogether!
Almost all of the taxi drivers would pretend not to owe you any change. This happened even though we took care to use the reputable Vinasun taxi. In fact, our worst experience was with Vinasun, with a lady driver. Upon stopping us near our hotel, she turned behind, her face transforming from a demure Viet lady to a witch-like face (Lorraine and I swore there was an aura of black magic inside the cab!), demanding 20,000 dong (our ride only costed 16,200 dong). Unlike our previous experience in Hanoi, we kept cool and asked her why. She told us in Vietnamese. And she kept trying to reach out to our wallets. I told her we don't undertstand Vietnamese. Raine saw a security guard nearby and wanted his help. The driver then appeared visibly frightened. But she still threw the 200 dong onto the floor when we gave her exact. So I just gave her 2000 dong more and we left, memorizing the taxi license plate number. We told our hotel receptionist about the issue and she then reported the case to the Vinasun company. Our cab back to the airport tried to fleece us USD 2 for the gantry payment out of the airport. Oh well.
The silk shops near Ben Thanh market should be avoided unless you are a die-hard spendthrift like myself. I still feel a bit sore paying about USD 34 (after hard bargaining) for a ready-made ao dai, gorgeous as it is. The shops inside Ben Thanh are not much better either, or we are not good bargainers. I guess the influx of tourists into HCM has altered the standard of living and mentality of the people somewhat. Anyway, if you are into the bag brand Ipanima (sold at Singapore's Mandarin Hotel for $300-$500!), you can probably find similar-looking bags at these silk shops for far cheaper price. I had though of purchasing some Ipanima bags for selling, but changed my mind. Anyway, some of the silk embroidered bags, purses and shawls are really lovely, which I guess cannot be found in Singapore, and that makes good souvenirs.
The view upon landing was already promising. The new airport, completed just last year,resembled Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport, albeit much less crowded and not much shops and eateries within.
The roads in HCM were wider than those in Hanoi. And, although there were more vehicles, especially motorcycles, there, somehow it was not as chaotic. Still, crossing the roads were hazardous operations and we always held hands in fear! Hahaha.
The food was cheap and great! I actually took pictures of ALL the food we ate and still drool whenever I see them. While in Hanoi, we got all the Chinese-like food, HCM has all the 'authentic' (ok, as a historian, I know this is a really subjective phrase, but for the lack of a better word!) food like rice paper spring rolls and pho (rice noodles). Vietnamese uses a lot of vegetables in their cuisine and I like it! Developed a liking for basil leaves, which they provide with every dish. We also tried banh xeo (pancake with pork and shrimp inside) and other stuff. On recommendation, we went to Santa Lucia, an Italian restaurant with lovely ambience and lovelier food. The restaurant reminded me of wanting a boudoir-style deco in black and purple for my room next time hmmm. For anyone interested in trying many Vietnamese food from all the regions at one go, Guan An Ngon is a good place to visit.
Most of HCM's tourist attractions did not interest us that much, unfortunately. I liked the colonial French buildings such as the City Hall, Notre Dame Cathedral (the statue of the Virgin Mary was alleged to shed tears of blood last year), Opera House and the Post Office. HCM is definitely much more cosmopolitan and still retains some of that colonial buildings and charm.
The Cao Dai Temple, which I have heard so much about in Prof Lockhart's lectures, was pretty interesting as well. However, the journey there was really long, about more than 1 and a half hour. And the ceremony was rather boring to watch. I guess I was really eager to see the syncretism part, which was the defining feature of the faith. But you could be forgiven for thinking that nothing beyond Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism were part of the syncretism. I could hardly observe the Christian element, although a plaque told us that Victor Hugo was supposed to the spiritual chief of missions of the faith! And the triangle sign with an eye inside on every window bore striking resemblance to the Freemason's symbol.
Chu Chi Tunnel reminded me of a place in Australia, where you go through open park showing how the early settlements lived. Chu Chi showed you the forests where the Vietcongs fought in, complete with wax statues of Vietcong soldiers. Eery when coupled with dark skies and drizzle. They have an exhibition showing the various ingenious traps that the Vietcongs fashioned out of simple things like armchairs and doors. You don't wanna mess with these people. But the highlight had got to be the infamous tunnels. We were told that we were allowed to try walking inside for 30 metres, 60 metres, and if you are strong enough, 100 metres. So in I went, to the scariest experience in HCM. The tunnel was illuminated by some well-placed lights, but it was still dark enough to make you think about being buried alive. And it has this smell that added to the effect. The air was also thin, making breathing difficult. I was stupid enough to walk frog-legged in the beginning, rapidly exhausting myself. We missed the 30 metre mark and did not realise it until we emerged at the 60 metre place. My arms were trembling and legs were feeling jelly. I breathed the fresh air in hard. Our guide told us that 2 men never survived in there, but for some reason, if it had been a woman and a man, they were able to survive. Now that's a mystery. Because I am pretty sure that I will die even if I am alone inside. The claustrophobia alone is enough to snatch that will to live in you. So I cannot do but admire the Vietcongs for their spirit and determination.
My biggest peeve was that many people in HCM seemed bent on treating us tourists as cash cows. People in HCM are generally friendlier than those in the North. Many a times, Raine and I got free instructions on the streets and we did not even ask for them! People are just willing to go the mile to help, like our friendly contact there, Jennifer Tranh. But taxi drivers and shop keepers are another bunch altogether!
Almost all of the taxi drivers would pretend not to owe you any change. This happened even though we took care to use the reputable Vinasun taxi. In fact, our worst experience was with Vinasun, with a lady driver. Upon stopping us near our hotel, she turned behind, her face transforming from a demure Viet lady to a witch-like face (Lorraine and I swore there was an aura of black magic inside the cab!), demanding 20,000 dong (our ride only costed 16,200 dong). Unlike our previous experience in Hanoi, we kept cool and asked her why. She told us in Vietnamese. And she kept trying to reach out to our wallets. I told her we don't undertstand Vietnamese. Raine saw a security guard nearby and wanted his help. The driver then appeared visibly frightened. But she still threw the 200 dong onto the floor when we gave her exact. So I just gave her 2000 dong more and we left, memorizing the taxi license plate number. We told our hotel receptionist about the issue and she then reported the case to the Vinasun company. Our cab back to the airport tried to fleece us USD 2 for the gantry payment out of the airport. Oh well.
The silk shops near Ben Thanh market should be avoided unless you are a die-hard spendthrift like myself. I still feel a bit sore paying about USD 34 (after hard bargaining) for a ready-made ao dai, gorgeous as it is. The shops inside Ben Thanh are not much better either, or we are not good bargainers. I guess the influx of tourists into HCM has altered the standard of living and mentality of the people somewhat. Anyway, if you are into the bag brand Ipanima (sold at Singapore's Mandarin Hotel for $300-$500!), you can probably find similar-looking bags at these silk shops for far cheaper price. I had though of purchasing some Ipanima bags for selling, but changed my mind. Anyway, some of the silk embroidered bags, purses and shawls are really lovely, which I guess cannot be found in Singapore, and that makes good souvenirs.
Labels: Saya Affairs, Travel Diary
// posted by Jenn @ 4:38 PM 
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