3 DAYS IN HO CHI MINH CITY VIETNAM | UNDER U$65
Discover Vietnam through the lens of their capital of commerce: Ho Chi Minh City or as most locals would rather say, Saigon. A booming metropolis inside one of the last remaining Communists states in the world.
We arrived in the afternoon of our first day ready to walk around the streets of “District 2” surrounded by locals, neon lights, delicious smells and motorbikes everywhere. We decided to have dinner at the most authentic (and fullest) place we could find. Once we began to order we found out nobody spoke English.. We ate 2 traditional noodle dishes: Bun and Mien plus a national beer and it all costed $3.50USD total.
We rented a room through AirBnb (highly recommended for the local experience) our host was very helpful in recommending food and attractions all around the City she had some excellent insights about Vietnamese culture and lifestyle. On the morning of our 2nd day she cooked us a homemade bowl of Bun Rieu Cua (Crab Meat Noodles) which was so delicious!
We are very lucky to have a friend who lives in the area, originally from Hanoi. Khao gave us an amazing tour of the city starting with a school and shelter for underprivileged children that he helped found. Truong Pho Cap is an amazing charity that we have gotten involved in, for more info check out this video after spending the morning at the school we went to visit the Jade Emperor Pagoda in District 1 which was visited by President Barack Obama. A short cab to The Independence Palace from there we took a short walk to the Notre-Dame Cathedral and the Saigon Central Post Office from here we walked a couple minutes to eat lunch at Mon Hue a restaurant that specializes on Central Vietnamese (Hue, Hoi An) food, we tried some of the lesser known dishes like Jackfruit Salad, Vietnamese Dumplings and Grilled Pork Sausage, after a big meal we made our way to the War Remnants Museum.
This was an extremely sobering experience, especially towards the end when you see the current struggles of people affected by Agent Orange. The rain caught up to us after the Museum so we bought raincoats for 10,000VND ($0.43USD) and started to walk towards Saigon’s Underground Market (Perfect for the rain), right before entering we signed up for a half day tour of the Cu Chi Tunnels ($13USD each).
After quite a long day we are looking forward to relax and have dinner around our area so we said goodbye to Khao and took a taxi back to District 2, we stopped by the AirBnb to refresh and we headed outside to find the perfect meal. After a few minutes we saw a string of restaurants one more crowded than the next, (We always choose the most crowded one) we sit down and it is not a surprise that we are the only english speakers around so relying on hand signs and cow sounds we ordered Mi Goi Xao Bo and Vietnamese beef Hot pot along with some beer the total was 248,000 I clearly remember because we only had 240,000 I had to go to the atm for less than ($0.36USD)
We woke up a little bit late for our tour, We were dropped off a couple blocks away from the Tour agency and we had to run there until we realized that things are a little more relaxed in this country than we thought, we arrived at the agency 5 min late and we were told everything is okay and not to worry. The 2 hour bus ride to Cu Chi went by really fast since the tour guide was making conversation with all of us and telling us very interesting stories and facts about Vietnam, we made one stop at the Disabled War Victims Crafts Cooperative where one can buy art and crafts from people affected by Agent Orange to this day.
We don’t usually do tours but this is easily one of the most unique experiences in the world, the tunnels are 250km total and have 3 levels, they had everything from offices to kitchens and underground access to the river a true marvel of human adaptation and survival. Not an experience I would recommend to claustrophobic people. There is also a shooting range in the complex to complement the sounds of the jungle to create the eerie sounds of war.
The tour dropped us off right on Ben Thanh street food market (Which is next to Ben Thanh Market) to eat a large plate of pork and mushroom Banh Cuon and the biggest Oysters we’ve ever seen, after eating we wanted to walk around the famous Ben Thanh Market which is the biggest markets in Ho Chi Minh City we walked to Nguyen Hue Walking street where the famous Cafe Apartment is. Once the sun went down we headed back to District 2 to pack our bags.
Help Support Truong Pho Cap: patreon.com/truongphocap/posts
DRONE:
Citizens of Everywhere
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9ReLL9my0M
MUSIC:
"Huong Vietnam" by My Phuong Nguyen & Thierry David - https://soundcloud.com/thierry-david-1
“Fortunate Son” - Lyle Workman & The Forest Rangers
“Feathers and Sibu (feat. Joshua Cabrera)” by FGN - https://soundcloud.com/franky-gonzalez-16
