Hello Vietnam. More to the point Hello Ho Chi Minh. Been waiting for a long time to explore this country and it lived up to all expectations and more. The chaos, 10 million people and 8 million scooters, and the people, all 10 million of them, was all overwhelming as well as awesome This is what SE Asia is all about.
First we start out with becoming a Dong-illionaire. That's right your looking at a cool 3 million Dong there ladies and gentlemen. Translated 300 Sing
See how happy a few million Dong can make the girls. Lets hope it lasts.
A small sample of the scooter action. It was CRAZY. We were on our way from the airport and Gio was sitting in front. I'm surprised he survived without having a heart attack. I seemed like there would be a crash at any moment the whole ride.
And they're getting ready for Christmas. I just can't get used to that over here. It's still summer, and it will always be summer.
So how far will that 3 mill go. Well 38,000 is around 3.80
Exactly because this is what you get,,,
Ummm Ummm. A big bowl of Pho. This is my first time eating the heavenly concoction and I am sold. This stuff rocks. I can't believe I never tried it in Van but now I'll be trying it everywhere.
And if you don't want the Pho then there is always Texas BBQ and steaks. Very tempting. Also love the Indian dude
So here are a few items best left off the menu. Some Hot dogs in a jar
Only 7 dollars
Some Collon things. Some sort of sweet things. I'm sorry but they are called Collon, a little to close to colon for me
And to wash it all down with some Pocari Sweat, what the hell? Sweat
At least they like the gecko in the country. Singapore considers them an insect, I don't get it. Isn't he cute.
A Same Same But Different drink. Probably the most expensive drink I had while in the 'Nam but it was actually pretty good.
So this is a power line. How they can figure anything out if something goes wrong is beyond me, and this wasn't the craziest one we saw.
A few live eels and a fish in a bowl on the street. Yeah baby it's the 'Nam
Is it a sidewalk or a parking lot. I'll let you decide.
A little tire art. Not really sure about this but I noticed little things like this all over the place, sometimes hanging on power poles, of course those were disguised by all the wires but if you looked hard enough you could see them
Notre Dame Cathedral
It was nice but a little bit of a let down after seeing the one in Paris. I guess I had high expectations with the name and all. Still very nice
Diggin the stained glass
Welcome to Reunification Palace. This was the home of the US backed president Ngo Dinh Diem lived until 1975 when Saigon-Ho Chi Minh- fell. The picture of the last helicopter was taken here with all the people trying in vain to climb aboard.
The beautiful Barbara letting me know that this might be big enough to live in. Yes she is wearing a skirt. You saw it here first folks.
Tank girl. This is apparently one of the tanks that crashed through the gates during the fall of Saigon
I know your trying to figure out what your looking at here but its a plane. Its hard to see because of the camouflage but it'sthere. This the plane that dropped two bombs on the palace which set the stage for the building to be over run.
I'll let this speak for itself
A little statue of the Ho man himself
Barbara wishing she could have asked a few questions herself here in the greeting room.
The conference table. I can only imagine the conversations that took place here, but that carpet is suweeet.
The official telephone room along with Michelle in the peep hole.
Radio room with Gio rockin the mic
And the radios. These are great because we are probably carrying more powerful communication devices in our front pockets today. You would need 10 mules to carry these things around.
Now follow me into the
halls of the Shining. Fully expect Jack Nicholson to pop out any time now
The office of the President complete with stuffed leopard. What kind of president would he be without it.
And the gambling room. Love that couch.
This is where the pic was taken of the last chopper out. The chopper is a replica, obviously, and the red circles designate where the two bombs fell from the jet shown before.
After a trip through the palace what more can you ask for than a little Birds Nest Drink with White Fungus. Ahh, No thanks. But hey its nutritious
Or maybe a little Cat Tounge, at least that's the way I read it
And some weasel coffee. Not just any weasel but Vietnam weasel coffee.
This is Cua Bac market. WOW this place was off the hook.
This place was mayhem. There were people pulling you into their stalls and doing the extreme hard sell. It was hard to say no to some of the stuff because it was so cheap.
Oh yeah and there were these sitting out as well. I know its a little gross but really they were just sitting out in a meat stall.
Need some shoes? It's like the lady in the back has been swallowed by the shoe monster
Again I don't know. It's a rooster tethered to a tree on the street. What can I say.
So here is the real reason that we went to Ho Chi Minh. Never mind all the history and the shopping and all of that. We were here for a burger and this is the place to get it. So many people have told us about this place so here we are.
I think someone might be a little excited and for good reason.
These burgers ROCKED. They definately lived up to all the hype. I would go back to Ho Chi Minh for many reasons but whenever I go back I will always have a Black Cat Burger.
And after you have a Black Cat Burger youre brain goes a little off and you start having visions of yourself as a star in old WWII propaganda films
A serious accident Vietnam style
I think the burger made Barbara feel like she was 20 again. It must have some sort of fountain of youth properties.
A quick selfy
Didn't know what this building is but it looked great at night.
I definately know what that thing is though.
The coconut lady. She had another level in the back before I got this pic.
This lady was kind enought to let me take her pic. She was a portable Pho restaraunt. She even has a little seat for her customer.
And of course the family, all four including the one yet to be born, and grocieries. Amazing what they can pile onto a scooter. Its an art really. Obviously Michelle is curious. I like the fact that the little boy is ready to go
The Jade pagoda
Very different statue design than I have seen before. It seems a lot more Chinese influenced.
This is a holy horse that people pray to then crawl under and back for a blessing.
Not real sure why its called the jade pagoda. This is pretty much the most jade thing around the joint
This is also a turtle sanctuary.
A turtle family outing. The little one getting a ride
Happy happy
And this little fella hasn't a care in the world. I think he is the real protector of the pagoda

Welcome to the tunnels of Cu Chi. This is the entrance to the area where the tunnels are to be viewed and described. Not to be confused with
this. This is an entrance to the tunnels that the Viet Cong used to fight and hide in. There are over 100 miles of tunnels in this area and they go down over 10 meters into the ground. They lived, cooked, gave birth, and made munitions in these tunnels. . They had devised systems of cammoflage for air intake such as building fake ant hills that had hollows to allow fresh air in and they would have exaust holes up to 50 meters from where they would do their cooking. Also they would only cook one time a day, in the morning, so the smoke was cammouflaged by the mist and fogs of the morning. Also they ate mostly steamed tapioca root and drank tea. No wonder they were so pissed off.

Another entrance into some tunnels. They had these things ringed by landmines so if you didn't know your way in you were in some trouble.
Michelle and I went into the tunnels. Pretty tight quarters
And these were actually made larger for westerners to be able to go down into and also reinforced. Extremely claustrophobic and hotter than hell in there. I can't imagine it with a troop of soldiers moving from one location to another
And on the other end a little cobra hootch to pass the time. Would have bought some but it is illegal to have this stuff in Singapore.
I mean come on, its medicinal
Gios not scared. Good on ya brother
A timeless shot. Just hanging out.
Anyone need a fan. They had about 15 fans tied to that scooter along with 2 people. I figure if they could light those babies up they could probably get airborn
Coconut
Really you want me to cross. The thing is you just have to go and not stop. If you stop they will run you down. If you keep moving they just go around you. Controlled chaos, no flinching
Sexy couple
Out for Barbaras birthday which was great. We found some really good food, we got taught the proper way to eat Vietnamese spring rolls, had some good drinks, great company
Barbara was very happy
This is the view from the patio of the Rex hotel.
The Rex was one of the places the reportes stayed during the Vietnam Conflict. Also supposedly used by the CIA. On the inside its supposed to be supper disco 70's decor. We didn't go anywhere inside except the lobby, but we did get to see
the cover band on the roof. A little Hotel California rendition for you. Yeah baby the Nam.
Girls girls girls
Happy Gio with G&T firmly in his grasp.
The last go at the Black Cat for this trip. We hit this place everyday. Twice for lunch and once for breakfast and it scored 10 out of 10 each time. This is a soft shell crab sandwich and those peppers set me free. The McCains fries were a little to be desired but hey what do you expect. Black Cat I love you and will be back to continue our romance.
Did I mention it's christmas here. I still can't get used to that.
Bye for now