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Lucy's Travels
Sunday 26th February - Left Bankok in the afternoon and arrived in Ho Chi Minh around 4pm to enter a mad, bustling, noisy city. Our first impressions of the City were how different and behind the times it was compared to Thailand. There are about two high rise new buildings, no pavements, civilians still wear the little pointed hats and traffic is just chaos. We checked into a cheap but luxurious hotel and attempted to have a look around, however, crossing the road was becoming a mission because bikes and cars can ignore traffic lights and drive whichever side of the road they feel like and forget zebra crossings - they just don't exist! After a stressful hour we gave up and thought we would try again in the morning.
Monday 27th February - Up early to join a city tour of Ho Chi Minh. Since road signs and road names don't really exist either, we thought the best way to catch our bearings was to get someone to show us where we are! It was a really busy day first stopping at the Reunification Hall, the Notre Dame Cathedral, the General Post Office (it was French!), the Emperor Jade Pago, City Hall and the War Museum. The war museum was really interesting but had some gruesome pictures on show, especially the fetuses deformed by the killer 'agent orange'. In the Afternoon we went to Giac Lam Pagoda (temple), Thien Hau Temple and China Town. We spent the evening enjoying a western meal for three pounds!
Tuesday 28th February - Spent the day walking to the Binh Tay Market and resisted buying anything! We then walked down to the Saigon River and took in the views of Nha Rong Wharf. We found a cool restaurant called; 'Kims' and had two plates of Noodles, two beers, a cocktail and a stir fired beef all for the reasonable price of two pound thirty.
Wednesday 1st March - Walked into town to catch a bus to the Co Chi Tunnels only an hour away from Saigon. First we were able to watch a very bias, anti-American video about the war and then walked into the forest to find the tunnels. We were first shown a hiding place, which the Vietcong would hide themselves from 'the enemy'. The hole was about 40cm by 30cm one not for westerners! We were then shown the immortal weapons that the local people would hide, waiting for Americans to fall into. We were then led to the tunnels themselves. Three levels exist, the first 10m below ground level and to climb through you have to crouch. The second level is further down and to get through you have to go on your hands and knees. The third level is the smallest and furthest from the ground above, to climb through you have to go on your belly. We went down to the first and it was so dark and hot no one in the whole group wanted to go any further. Also, with the amount of people at the tunnels some go in one end some the other, which forces others back out again! We were pushed out twice and by this point we were too hot and bothered to go back in again. It wasn't scary when you remember that people used to live in holes like this for up to ten hours at a time.
Thursday 2nd March - Had a lazy day hanging by the pool and walking around the local area - cant really call it town there isn't really anything here! There is a busier strip with backpackers, restaurants and bars, which is good fun and a lot more western great for a good meal and a drink.
Friday 3rd March - Started the day with a trip to the Mekong Delta. The bus ride was about two hours and with a legal and registered four million bikes on the road (and about another two million on the road illegally) and a city with eight million residents it's pretty difficult to get anywhere outside of the city in under and hour. However, we arrived on the Mekong River and went from one island to another in the murky, dirty water sampling coconut candy and honey tea. Along the Mekong Delta we had to swap boats because the river becomes very narrow. We had a near death experience when a boat hit ours, where I was sitting and was nearly decapitated by the front of the boat. Luckily I ducked in time but my seat was completely broken and where my head was the metal pole beside me was bent from the force of the other boat. Our boat was fine but we left the sinking one!!! We had some exotic fruits and some more green tea (I really need English tea and a bacon sandwich!!!) and then sailed along the river in a rowing boat trying not to make any sudden movements!
Saturday 4th March - Having a chill-out day today by looking around the local market and going for a swim. Tonight we are heading down to the Saigon River for a dinner cruise and are attempting to beat our two pound thirty dinner record! Travel back to Bankok on 5th and hope to catch the train to Chang Mai on 6th.
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