Impressions of Ho Chi Minh City

Today we visited Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon. What a hustle-bustle place! I don’t really know where to start, so I’ll list some impressions.

Vietnam might be a Socialist Republic, but you would not know it from looking at the streets. Business is happening everywhere. There are small mom and pop shops, larger markets filled with individual shops and there are people selling sunglasses from a piece of plywood that is strapped to their back or their bicycle. The typical Vietnamese person is a small business man or woman and knows how to sell, sell, sell.

Another item that says Vietnam is not your typical Socialist Republic is the open practice of religion. Today was a moon day, so there were hundreds of Buddhists celebrating and praying with incense, music and offerings of flowers and food. We saw folks praying to Buddha without any fear of reprisals. The noise in the Jade Temple (the oldest in HCMC dating to 1698 I think) was loud as people played traditional instruments and drums and sang to Buddha.

The motor-scooter or motor-bike is the most common form of transportation. Thousands of motor-bikes scoot along the roads in all directions, seemingly not following any form of linear progression, yet they get to where they are going and with few accidents. Driving in Ho Chi Minh City is not for the faint of heart. You need to have a good horn, lots of brass, and a devil-may-care attitude as you are wending your way up or down a street.

Streets might have 4 designated lanes, but no one really follows them. If there is an opening where you can make faster progress on the street, you maneuver your way there and don’t worry about the next guy. I did not see any road rage. I did not see people arguing over who was right or wrong. I did see people drive through the traffic like sand flowing through an hourglass taking the path of least resistance to get to the other end.

The folks selling in the streets are thick as mosquitoes. As soon as you leave your car, there are folks lining up to sell you something. The common chant is “one dollar” and it seems that one dollar can buy fans, post cards, greeting cards, mirrors, t-shirts, toys, and the like. Five dollars will get you a pair of knock-off sunglasses or a “designer” watch. Knock-off purses with labels like Coach or Prada are everywhere with ridiculous prices too. We were told if you were going to buy bigger items it would be wise to have Vietnamese Dong at 18,000 to $1.00 in our pockets. The venders are persistent, not taking no thank you as an answer. The only way to stop the attack is to move forward through them hoping they won’t follow you. 

There is still a touch of French Indo-China on the streets. This is the old Post Office built at the turn of the last century. There is also Notre Dame, across the street.

The market reminded me of many 3^rd world markets throughout the world. Stands with dresses and shirts next to stands with jewelry next to stands with plastic goods next to purse stalls next to shoes. When you think you’ve seen everything one aisle has to offer, start down another one and see most of the same stuff all over again with a different set of faces selling the goods. As you walk down the aisles you are trying to see everything that is being sold, yet you don’t want to catch the eye of any particular vender—if you do that, you will be pestered and poked and prodded to look at their shirts or purses or shoes. Shopping is an amazing dance.

Two days ago we were in DaNang. DaNang is on the water and fishing rules the economy. In HCMCity, we are about 2 hours inland from the water. Farming is king here with rice paddies, rubber plantations and fruit trees. We did not see any round boats, we did see cattle and water buffalo.

Our guide was a young woman named Nhue (pronounced New) who did not give us the traditional “guide” material. She tried to get to know us. She asked us our names and used them throughout the day. She told us stories of life in her hill village. She answered our questions and she did give us facts and figures about what building we were seeing and why it was important; but she gave us the human side of the tour…the side that told us what the people were doing on a day to day basis. Nhue was very interesting and I learned a lot more about the people of Vietnam from her than I did from our more traditional guide in DaNang earlier in the week.

It's always fun to look at dancing babies, and this little girl was a show stopper. She had everyone's attention.

Then there are the birds...these little guys are for sale by the Buddhist temple. I think if you buy one and set it free, wyou will have good luck. I know the bird would have good luck too.

Next stop is Singapore. We will travel from developing country to developed country; from 18^th century to 21^st century in two short days. I have a feeling that Vietnam would like to become a Singapore. It has a long way to go. If you want to see ‘old’ Vietnam, go now, because it’s right on the edge of evaporating away.