Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) CITYTOUR

SAIGON. CITY TOUR : STREETS , PRESIDENTIAL PALACE, POST OFFICE, NOTRE DAME CATEDRAL, OPERA HOUSE

The Presidential Palace, Saigon.

Giant Bonsai.

Inside the Presidential Palace.

Heli-pad on roof of Presidential Palace.

Rooftop Garden of Presidential Palace.

Saigon Post office.

Interior of Saigon Post office.

Booths for international trunk calls.

Short of cash, no problem atms available here.

The Revered Uncle Ho's portrait is prominently displayed everywhere.

HCMC Notre Dame Cathedral.

Mass is in English for the morning session, Vietnamese in the afternoon.

The famous Continental Saigon where the Press stayed during the war.

Two Lambos cruising streets of HCMC.

Sculpture of family with the Opera house in the background.

Ho Chi Minh's statue with Saigon city hall in the background.

Ho Chi Minh City

INTERESTING PLACE, 9 MILLION PEOPLE, 5 MILLION BIKES, TASTY FOOD, ENGLISH SPOKEN WIDELY BY VENDORS, CLEAN MODERN TOILETS, WARM CLIMATE, SAFE ENVIROMENT, GOOD SHOPPING AND WAR MUSEUM IS A MUST SEE.

Motorcycle repairshop conveniently located at junction.

You can still buy roll films in Saigon.

Beef rice noodle is very popular in Saigon and the rest of the country.

Inside Ben Tranh Market, very warm and crowded.

The fruits are definitely better that ours.

Flat rice noodle in soup, really delicious.

Salted fish, the gourami look very nice.

Eating out, fast food, take your choice.

All kinds of coffee, Robusta, Arabica, Weasel (civet cat), beans or powder.

Mud skippers, yes, it's good eating. 

Soft shell crabs, clams cuttlefish, scallop among others on sale.

Escargot.

The dried sea food is of the highest quality.

How could we resist the temptation to buy?

Outside the market.

Entrance to Ben Tranh Market.

Durians can be found here.

Cyclos waiting for fare.

The mangos are quite sweet.

Purses galore.

Reminds me of my long gone childhood.

Eyewear promoter.

Our local guide, Hoa says that eating chilli squid here is a sure cure for his constipation.  

Interesting plant in the compound of the water puppet theatre.

One for 2 dollars only, yes, it's real.

We didn't get to see the blind man cross the road.

The US forces dropped all kinds of bombs and explosives to kill 5 million Vietnamese people but nobody says its genocide.

Amazing, American warfare equipment captured or abandoned when they retreated and exited after the US army lost the
 Vietnam War.With all the military might the American firepower lost to the Viets' willpower and the humble AK47.

The workshop of the Saigon lacquer ware premises.

Sanding down the lacquer by hand is repeated 17 times as more layers are applied.

The tedious process of laying down eggshell is expertly done manually.

The finished lacquer ware products are exquisitely beautiful.