Well, I finally made it to Saigon (technically Ho Chi Minh City). The sojourn here was quite the experience considering a 16 hour plane ride was something that I never thought I could accomplish, but I pulled through. To say that nothing in my life could’ve aptly prepared me for what I’d see in Saigon is an undeniably true statement. I thought the streets of Manhattan were a lot to handle, then I sat in a Vietnamese taxi for 20 minutes and was humbled very quickly.
As my first blog post, I will share the 5 things that took me most by surprise in my first 24 hours in Saigon.
1. The streets (as previously mentioned) are insane. The motorbikes own the streets and weave in and out of traffic. I was warned of this phenomenon, but I was not made privy to the fact that if the streets become too much, they take to the sidewalks. I almost got taken out while scarfing down a (delicious) smoothie.
2. Everyone wears pants. Now, bear with me, when packing for 85+ degree weather, I immediately packed mainly shorts with the stray pair of pants to accommodate maybe one chilly night. Walking down the streets, the only people in shorts are the tourists. Everyone else wears chinos, jeans, with the occasional pair of capris.
3. Money goes really far. I was told many times that my money would go a lot further in Vietnam than it ever could’ve in the states and, sure, I bought it. But, I didn’t really believe it until the equivalent of $1.50 USD got me a soda and a bowl of pho. Or, I could purchase a 5L bottle of water for $1.00 USD.
4. Key-dependent electricity system. In both the hotel I stayed at during my first evening, and the guesthouse I will be spending the duration of my stay in, they both utilize a system where you have to insert your key into a port on the wall in order for all the electricity in the room to work (A/C, outlets, lights, etc.). I was first annoyed because I thought I had a broken air conditioning unit, but then impressed that they utilized such seemingly easy technology to curb wasted electricity.
5. The pizza was pretty good. So, in a typical “me” fashion, I did not want to be too adventurous my first night in the city. As such, I went to a pizza place called “Enter the Darkness”. I know, the name put me off too. But, the pizza was surprisingly delicious. It was like a barbecue/bacon combo that I will probably frequent in the coming months.
Stay tuned for more (mis)adventures!
