Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Strolling Saigon

To go the tourist route in Saigon doesn't cost much:
just 3 hours of your time,
600 calories by walking 6 kilometers (plus a couple more going round and round the Reunification Palace),
a bucket of sweat powered by the sweltering sun,
and a few thousand dong for the entrance fee at the Palace.

With all those dues paid,
I give you snapshots from my Saigon stroll.
[I am not going to lecture you about these places, but links are provided for your enrichment :-)]


Ben Thanh Market
Open from 6AM to 6PM daily.
Haggling is a must.


People's Committee Hall








 Notre Dame Basilica on the left and Central Post Office on the right


 Open daily 730AM-11AM and 1PM-4PM
Entrance fee is 30,000VND (60PHP)

Free guided tours are available every 15 minutes from 745AM to 11AM and 115PM to 4PM.
Tours last an hour and will explore four floors and a basement.

 Just some of the rooms in the palace

 Somewhere in the palace I spot boots of an elephant in different sizes :-)


Want to follow my footsteps?
Click map to enlarge


And, not to mention, a scene one can hardly miss.
Photo by H Bacordio

Other museums in the area:
War Remnants Museum
Ho Chi Minh City Museum
Fine Arts Museum


Veni, Vidi, (South) Vietnam:
Do You...?
What's in a (Business) Name? Vietnam
Bed Hopping
Adopting a Fellow Traveler
Strolling Saigon (you're here!)
From Concrete City to Sand Town
From Sand Town to the Highlands
Would You Call Us Lucky or Unlucky?
Wedding Crashers
Vietnom Nom Nom
Ding Dong, Dong's All Gone

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Adopting a Fellow Traveler


This is Ryo. Met him on the bus from Phnom Penh to Saigon. Clutched in his hands was a travel guide in Japanese. He was on his own, traveling from Cambodia to Vietnam then to Laos and Thailand. No definite plans but just those destinations in mind.

Asked if he had a place to stay in Saigon, he answered in the negative. A suggestion to check out the backpackers' area was thrown his way, he followed along. When we got to Y Nhi Guesthouse, where we had booked our rooms, it was already full. We casually mentioned he could room with us if he wanted to, thinking he'd decline since he had only met us. And that's how we adopted a fellow traveler for one night.

No fuss, Ryo tagged along to wherever it was we chose to eat. From a pho restaurant for dinner (where we jokingly told him to eat whatever was on his plate and him being very obedient, did so, including the chilies, which made him sweat dollops and turn crimson, and us apologizing for such advice), to tearing off pieces from a banh mi bought from the street to be shared with three other friends, and to eating bun xao along the alley early in the morning.

He had some money exchanged to dong while we were waiting for our dinner. When he came back he showed us the money, asking in his broken English if the amount is correct. Finding out he had been duped, one of our friends accompanied him back to wherever it is he was shortchanged, retrieved his dollars and exchanged it for the right amount from a more trustworthy money changer.

In the morning, we parted ways as we boarded the bus to Mui Ne and him with his map, ready to hit the streets of Saigon before flying off to Hue in the evening.

Funny how he easily trusted us and us, him.


Veni, Vidi, (South) Vietnam:
Do You...?
What's in a (Business) Name? Vietnam
Bed Hopping
Adopting a Fellow Traveler (you're here!)
Strolling Saigon
From Concrete City to Sand Town
From Sand Town to the Highlands
Would You Call Us Lucky or Unlucky?
Wedding Crashers
Vietnom Nom Nom
Ding Dong, Dong's All Gone

Monday, October 1, 2012

Bed Hopping

Three places. Three beds.
From Google Maps



Y Nhi Guesthouse
241/30 Pham Ngu Lao Street, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City
ynhihotel@gmail.com

 Early morning at Y Nhi, the gate has just been half opened 

The alleys and streets perpendicular to Pham Ngu Lao Street (Saigon's backpackers' area) are packed with hostels and guesthouses. For three nonconsecutive days, we called Y Nhi Guesthouse our home in alley 241.

Take off your shoes before entering the guesthouse

The first time we stayed at Y Nhi, there were five in our group and we were given a twin room (US$15) and a triple room (US$18). Second time, our group grew to six, we were given a triple and a double room and was charged US$6 per person. The third time was for four and we were assigned the triple room for US$6 per person. All rooms have AC and its own toilet and bath. Towels are provided.

The guesthouse has free WiFi. Two PCs with internet access are also available in the lobby. Bus tickets and tours can be arranged by the guesthouse. You can also have them arrange a taxi to take you to the airport for US$8 per taxi (can accommodate up to 4 persons). Y Nhi has no restaurant, but you won't go hungry in this area. There are many restaurants along Pham Ngu Lao Street and many food vendors pop up in the alley around 7AM. A convenience store can also be found on the corner of alley 241 and Pham Ngu Lao.

Double room at the topmost floor
Forgot to take a photo of the twin and triple rooms we stayed in.

Why did we keep coming back to Y Nhi? The lady owner, Loen, is very accommodating and motherly. She carefully wrote down the dates of when we were going out of town and when we were coming back for us to confirm that she got the room reservations and bus tickets and destinations right. She (or her husband when she is not available) would accompany us to the main street to make sure we got on the right bus or taxi. We were also allowed to leave some of our things while we were running around Southern Vietnam.



88 Nguyen Dinh Chieu, Ham Tien, Mui Ne, Phan Tiet
 info@muinebackpackers.com


Mui Ne Backpackers Resort has twin rooms, family rooms, beachside bungalows, and dorm rooms. The resort does not have a restaurant but, no worries, restaurants are just next door or across the street. WiFi is available in the rooms and in the lobby. There is one PC with internet access at the lobby for the use of the guests.

 The resort's lobby (left) and the beachfront (right)

Room reservations (except for dorm beds which are for walk-ins) require advance payment but after countless failed attempts in paying thru PayPal, Dan, the manager, was kind enough to hold one family room for us. The family room (US$30) is good for 4 persons. Since we were five in the group, we added US$5 for an extra mattress. The family room has a queen size bed and a bunk bed, TV, mini ref, large lockers, and a spacious toilet and bath. All the rooms in the resort have AC. Towels are also provided.

The family room

A daily tour around Mui Ne is offered by the resort for US$8 per person. The tour will take you to the fairy spring, fishing village, white sand dunes, lotus lake, and the red sand dunes. If you miss their schedule (2PM), you can avail of the tour offered by TM Brothers, just across the street. The tour offered by TM Brothers costs US$6 per person but will only cover the fishing village, white sand dunes, and red sand dunes. Bus tickets can be bought from them or from the resort.

 TM Brothers



22B Phan Nhu Thach, Da Lat
dalat24hhotel@gmail.com


The rooms in Dalat 24H are huge with queen size beds. The triple room costs US$15. It has its own toilet and bath, mini ref, a TV, and small terrace too. Watch out though, the locks don't look too secure (and the doorknob of the terrace door in our room is broken!). The rate supposedly includes free breakfast, but when we received our bill, after having our bread and eggs, it wasn't. There is no AC nor fan in the room for Da Lat is in the highlands and blessed with cool temperatures (average range of 15°C to 24°C) year round. The hotel has WiFi and PCs with internet access are also available in the lobby. As with most hotels in Vietnam, tours can be arranged and bus tickets can be bought from the hotel.

 Triple room



Veni, Vidi, (South) Vietnam:
Do You...?
What's in a (Business) Name? Vietnam
Bed Hopping (you're here!)
Adopting a Fellow Traveler
Strolling Saigon
From Concrete City to Sand Town
From Sand Town to the Highlands
Would You Call Us Lucky or Unlucky?
Wedding Crashers
Vietnom Nom Nom
Ding Dong, Dong's All Gone