ho chi minh city...

Early this morning we left the South China Sea and sailed up the Saigon River, arriving in Ho Chi Minh City at 0800. It is always exciting to arrive in a port, but this morning was extra special because a parent trip was planned for Vietnam, and some of the parents had come to meet their students and go on with them to Cambodia. We had our usual diplomatic briefing, picked up our passports and landing cards and were on our way. John and I were on a City Orientation tour with several others from the ship and it was very enjoyable, although the weather was very hot and it was best to stay out of direct sun. As we have found in the other Asian countries, the traffic is fascinating. We had been instructed that if we need to cross a street, it is best to start slowly and walk deliberately without ever stopping once you start. If you stop or go backward, you confuse the drivers who will avoid you if your behavior is predictable. Fortunately we did not need to walk across any streets today. In HCMC most of the drivers are on motorbikes. There are few traffic lights and it does all seem to work. Traffic is very crowded, but not very fast and people are always in control.

We first visited the Thien Hau Pagoda located in HCMC's Chinatown https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thien_Hau_Temple,_Ho_Chi_Minh_City. This temple is dedicated to Thien Hau, a goddess of the sea, known in China as Mazu. Thien Hau is said to ride the ocean on a mat and travel in the clouds wherever she wants, allowing her to help people in trouble on the high seas. Strangely there are worshippers gathered, lighting incense even as tourists wander through. The incense takes all forms including giant spirals of it that are mounted overhead and that will drop ashes on you if you aren't careful.

There are a variety of religions in Vietnam http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_Vietnam. Later in the trip we visited Notre Dame Cathedral http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saigon_Notre-Dame_Basilica, which we were told is modeled after the one in Paris, although I found it difficult to see the similarities.

Following the temple visit we had a wonderful Vietnamese lunch at Maxim's Restaurant. If you have never had lotus root, you should give it a try! I wonder if we can even get that in North America?

We also stopped at Reunification Palace http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reunification_Palace, the symbol of the South Vietnamese government until April 30, 1975 when communist tanks crashed through the gates to take over what had been the Presidential Palace. The living quarters and presentation rooms are ornate, but the basement has a network of tunnels and old telephone, teletype and radio equipment as well as map rooms that are interesting as well. Much of the war planning took place in the dreary offices in this basement.

Although there was one more stop to the History Museum that included a water puppet show, John and I were pretty zapped by the heat, and decided to wander off on our own to a little coffee shop where we had some iced Vietnamese coffee. We were refreshed after that break then came back on the bus with everyone else. A bit later we got together with our friends Maggie and George for a very nice supper at a restaurant alongside the ship. I have a trip to the Cu Chi Tunnels http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cu_Chi_Tunnels starting early in the morning, so I will sign off for now.