Ho Chi Min City

My final stop in Vietnam was the capital, Ho Chi Min city (also known as HCMC or Saigon). Despite what I’d been told I actually really liked it and almost wish I’d planned to stay more than 2 nights there. Some people think it’s too chaotic and very polluted but I actually thought Hanoi in the North was far worse! I stayed in HCMC 1 night either side of a 2 day, 1 night homestay on the Mekong Delta.

I stayed in the backpacker area in District 1 so there was lots going on, especially at night. A visit to Ho Chi Min city wouldn’t be complete without going to the famous pub street! There was also some great restaurants with lots of food to try - I had some amazing Mexican tacos and margaritas!

I visited the famous pink church, the Opera House and also went to the Cu Chi Tunnels. It was an amazing experience to be able to see some of the original tunnels and to go through them. It was very hot down there!

The Mekong Delta was around a 3 hour drive from HCMC. I stayed with a local Vietnamese family in the village of Can Tho which is on the Mekong river. Across the 2 day trip we got to sample (and make!) lots of local foods. I did manage to avoid eating fried frog and snake though! We got taken on several boat rides along the river, Vietnamese hats were an obligatory accessory! We also visited the Vinh Trang Pagoda which had some incredible buildings and sculptures of Buddha’s. 

We got up early and went to the local floating market in Can Tho which was a fun experience. The little boats selling fruit and vegetables would attach themselves to bigger the boats, sell their products then move on! 

So that’s it for my time in Vietnam! 3 and a half weeks has absolutely flown by... Next stop Cambodia! My next post will be all about Phnom Penh, the capital city of Cambodia.