The holiday has started well, although by the end of last night I was struggling to stay awake. Mark and I did a brief night tour of Ho Chi Minh City and visited a few bars to get a vibe for the city.
Initial impressions - crossing the road is an exercise in faith rather than skill or prediction. You have to trust that the hundreds of scooter and taxi drivers will avoid you. The smell of Ho Chi Minh is quite repulsive in places. Lots of people hawking goods and street children selling tobacco, tourist trinkets and the like.
We had a very interesting and seemingly suicidal scooter journey last night which ended in a predictable debate with the drivers regarding an appropriate price for the journey. I was just happy to pay up and get rid of the scooter driver as he stank like a cesspit.
The biggest challenge so far has been getting used to the local currency, the Vietnamese Dong. I'm either paying far too much or far too little, although judging by the demeanour of the local population, the former seems more likely.
 |
| The Majestic Hotel |
The Majestic Hotel is nice enough. Large room with a bed that provided me with one of the best nights sleep I have had in a long time. However, when we visited the rooftop bar of the
Rex Hotel earlier today, that hotel seems to be noticeably better, but at a similar price to the Majestic Hotel. This is the view of the
Saigon River from the Majestic Hotel's M Bar. It gets much better as the light fades.
Tonight, after freshening up, we are venturing out for a big dinner, probably followed by more beers. We also hope to have a planning session tomorrow morning to determine how we will spend the next 9 days.
No comments:
Post a Comment