Vietnam: Saigon

Erin and I awoke bright and early yesterday at 5:30 am, ate breakfast, and watched half a movie in our guesthouse common area while waiting for the bus to arrive. By 8:00 am, we were finally on our way to Vietnam. The bus was pretty full when we boarded, so Erin found a seat in the back, and I squeezed in the front next to a lovely English guy, Craig.

Except for the ever-so-thrilling "find the nearest bush" bathroom breaks, the journey out of Cambodia was a walk in the park compared to my journey into the country. The bus was nice(ish), the roads were paved, and all animals kept out of our path. We reached the Cambodia border town of Bavet around lunchtime, relaxing and imbibing in some soup before realizing that we were supposed to walk across the border. Immigration was a breeze, and soon we were boarding our bus in Moc Bai, Vietnam and heading to Saigon, aka Ho Chi Minh City.

Upon arriving in Saigon, Erin, Craig, Arlene (another friend we picked up on the bus ride) and I wandered around aimfully through the central backpackers' area, Pham Ngu Lao, before finally settling into a gigantic room with three beds, two showers, great views, and cable television, all for the satisfying price of $9 a night. We quickly showered and Erin, Craig, and I set off in search of Vietnamese Pho, only to be disappointed by less-than-average soup...now it is my goal to find the perfect pho while I am here, even if it means slurping it down twice a day!

After dinner, we met up with Arlene at a nearby pub, where we also were excited to run into our Swedish friends Anna-Karin and David. We played some pool before heading to a massive (and strangely empty) "honky tonk" bar, where we girls were served stuffed tomatoes in honor of "Woman's Day". Craig and I eventually said goodbye to the group and headed to another establishment, where we made friends with various locals. Finally, around 4:00 am, we headed back to the room...just in time for Craig to catch some live soccer on the telly and for me to fall asleep.

Today was a nice day of sightseeing around town. We slept in, had some lunch, and embarked on a walking tour of Saigon. We wandered through the central market for a bit, where I bought a beaded handbag (because every girl needs one of those while backpacking!). We eventually made it to the main attraction: The War Remnants Museum, a depressing group of buildings that houses Vietnam War relics, including artillery pieces and aircraft, prisoner cages, and thousands of photos depicting the atrocities the innocent people of Vietnam suffered. One photo in particular made me cry: two little boys gunned down on a country road by U.S. military men. Seeing that made me so ashamed of our country's actions during the war.

Just after sunset, I gave Erin and Craig a kick-butt workout in the park (Craig dipped out early due to a "stomachache") before we all showered and went out for an Italian dinner. After dinner, while sitting at a table outside, a little boy came up and began to massage my shoulders. He was soon chased away by the restaurant owner, but I ran after him and gave him some money as thanks for his job well done. A few hours later, he came by asking for food...I could not resist, so hand-in-hand we walked to a soup vendor and I bought him some dinner. He later came back for "Coca-Cola," to which I had to tell him to scram!

Tomorrow morning we are headed to Mui Ne Beach for some sun, sand, and hopefully, surf!