Day 12 - Saigon or Ho Chi Min City

The overnight sleeper was not as pleasant as the first one and it seemed to be an older train and was very noisy.  The bed linen is not changed after leaving Hanoi and ours had been used by previous occupants.  We did manage to get a clean undersheet from the train staff which we used to cover the mattress and pillow and I used my beach wrap between me and the top sheet - there was no duvet this time.  It was very cold at first and I had to get something to cover my head as the Air Con was blowing straight down on me.  We did sleep a bit but were up early as the train arrived at 6.30 am into Saigon.

We have now travelled the length of Vietnam from Hanoi in the north to Saigon in the south by train.  A total of 34 hours travelling and 1733 km or 1077 miles in distance.

Saigon has been officially known as Ho Chi Min City since reunification but the name Saigon still exists for many things, including the Railway Station, Airport and some of the colonial buildings.  Our guide refers to it as Saigon.

Our hotel room had been booked for the previous night so we were able to shower, have breakfast and relax before meeting up at noon for lunch and our city tour.

The tour started with a visit to the War Remnants Museum which gave an account of the Vietnamese War from the Viet Cong (North Vietnam Communists) side and showed some of the attrocities carried out by the United States against the Viet Cong including the use of Agent Orange which caused so many deaths and deformaties for at least 3 generations since it was used between 1961 and 1971.

We then visited some buildings in French style colonial architecture which are now preserved as historic monuments.

The Saigon Post Office, built between 1886 and 1891, is still functioning and has many counters, the busiest of which was the one to buy stamps for postcards or letters.  Inside there is a portrait of Ho Chi Min on the wall and we were told it is made up of stamps.   We couldnt get close enough to see this but if so it has been very well done.

 
Saigon Post Office

 
Writing tables inside Saigon Post Office
with portrait of Ho Chi Min on back wall.
Counters are at around the outside of the hall.

 
Original telephone booths

 
Statue outside Saigon Post Office

 
Small bird on hand of statue

Opposite the Post Office is Notre Dame Cathedral built from 1863 to 1880 but this is covered in scaffolding as it is being renovated and it is closed to the public.

 
Virgin Mary Statue in front of Notre Dame Cathedral


 
Side view of Notre Dame Cathedral without scaffolding
 

We then moved on to the Opera House, built between 1898 and 1900. It is only possible to enter the building if you have tickets to see a show so we were only able to see the exterior.

 
Saigon Opera House


The last building we went to see was Saigon City Hall, built between 1902 and 1908.  In 1975, following reunification of Vietnam a statue of Ho Chi Min was erected in a public area in front of the building.

 
Ho Chi Min Statue with City Hall in background

 
Saigon City Hall

 
Fountain with City Hall in the background

We went for a walk down a pedestrianised street towards the Saigon River.  We could not get to the river front because of the huge amount of traffic on the dual carriageway.  This place is worse than Hanoi for mopeds and other traffic.  We were told by our guide how to cross roads like this.  You must step into the traffic and walk slowly but consistently across the road.  The motorcycles will swerve around you and cars and buses will stop.  We did have to cross roads like this while on the sightseeing tours and lived to tell the tale.

 
The local football clubs merchandise shop

 

 
Glimpse of the Saigon River through the heavy traffic

 
Traffic on dual carriageway in Saigon

Lastly we went to Ben Thung Market, which is in one of the oldest structures in Saigon with thousands of stalls.  It was very hot and humid in there and all stallholders hassle you to buy from them.

 
Entrance 14 to the market.  We were told to take a photo here 
in case we forgot which gate we had to get back to.

We had dinner in a Mediterranean resturant this evening where we had a greek style meal of kebabs and potato wedges making a nice change from sticky rice and spring rolls.

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