Vietnam, mostly Saigon - anyone for a meet up?

[wojtek]

Hi guys

I will be travelling around South Vietnam (with a possible short trip to Angkor Wat) with my girlfriend, from 9th of December 2013 to some time in January.

Would anyone like to meet up for a coffee? I am buying. We like discovering places with locals rather than guidebooks, and I thought it'd be a good opportunity for meeting some of you in person 😀

Cheers!
Wojtek

 

[oftheherd]

I have a better deal; you buy the plane tickets for me and my wife and we'll buy the coffee. 😀 😀

I envy you the chance to spend some time there. Looking forward to seeing the photos when you get back. I think you will find most of the people there friendly.

 

[wojtek]

Haha 😀 Have you been? Please tell me your story!

 

[oftheherd]

Yes, I was there, but there is no story to tell that you would be interested in. I spent 4 years there from 1967 to 1972. I was an investigator for the US Army. We had no camera from the Army, so I used my Minolta 16 and a Welta Welti as my crime scene cameras.

It was a beautiful country, and the people were mostly very good. I had the advantage of speaking Vietnamese at the US Army's expense. That made my time there more enjoyable as I had a better understanding than most, how the people thought and felt. Most of my time was in more or less rural areas, but I did get 6 months in Saigon, and 6 months in DaNang.

I do still have some photos, mostly slides from there. I just recently found them and haven't made the time to look closely at them.

As with anywhere, there are going to be bad people, and a few that are contemptuous of Westerners and Americans especially. But I think you will find as I did, that most people are courteous and kind. Especially in the south. The north had different feelings for us due to the war.

 

[wojtek]

Amazing - thanks. I look forward to getting there... 🙂

 

[samtr87]

I was born there and lived there until I was four. Most recent trip back was in 2007.

A few things off the top of my head:

- try the street food and the fruits local to the area.
- don't drink from the tap
- district 1 of Saigon is very touristy, but the old French styled architecture is beautiful
- if you're used to clean streets, the dirtiness will be an eye opener
- it's a third world country so there will a lot of poverty in case you are not used to it
- along with poverty, there are people who will do what they need to for survival, including turning to crime, so be careful
- majority of the population do not speak English or very limited amounts of English
- if timing allows, you might want to stick around for Tet (the new year) since it's the biggest holiday in the country

It's an awesome place to visit and I hope you enjoy your trip.

 

[wojtek]

Thanks man!

It's my third of fourth trip to Asia altogether so I kind of know what to expect. Poverty and languages do not scare me 😀 However I am sure it will be a very different experience to what I had in Sri Lanka or Thailand. Can't wait 😀

 

[Rayt]

I was in Saigon last month and that city has been transformed since my previous visit 4 years ago especially District One. I prefer District Five for street photography and generally walking around. Fly up to DaNang and take a taxi to Hoi An. Hoi An is a must go destination. See my photos from the trip.

http://hklfc.com/forum/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=131238

 

[santela]

I was just there earlier this year, great place, great people. However u wanna watch ur phone and camera gear. My friend was walking down Pham Ngu Lao holding his iPhone in his hand and a biker just snatched it from him and took off before he could complete the f-word.

 

[Rayt]

In Vietnam the side walks are for motorcycle parking so pedestrians are forced to walk on the street which make tourists vulnerable to motorcycle purse snatchers. Always wear your camera bag across your chest not just hanging down from your shoulder. Other than that the country is quite safe.

 

[Panther]

Hi there, we did our Vietnam trip this year also.

I agree that Hoi An is a must see if you can arrange it. Try to go there at full moon, when all city lights are turned off and lampions are the only lights (http://www.hoian.co.uk/hoian_culture.php). If you need to relax enjoy the beach in Danang, but accomodation there is more priceful than in other spots.
Also consider visiting Ha Long Bay and stay on boat for a night.
In HCMC try local food at Ben Than market in the evening.
You can also arrange local trips when you stay in HCMC, we really enjoyed a mekong trip with boat, in my opinion definetly a must-do.
In case that you will also visit Hanoi you should get in contact with Hanoi kids, students will guide you in the city with no fee but want you to talk english with them as much as possible.

Anyway you will surely catch great impressions there, vietnamese people are the most kindful persons we ever met.

Enjoy your trip and watch out for billions of motos!

 

[wojtek]

So useful, thanks! Good you're mentioning Hanoi Kids, we want to do something similar in Saigon, I am sure it's possible. Nothing is as good as discovering places with locals...

As about accommodation in Saigon, do you have any recommendations for cheap hotels? We're not really Hilton-like people, all we need is safety and clean beds... Any tips appreciated!

 

[Panther]

So useful, thanks! Good you're mentioning Hanoi Kids, we want to do something similar in Saigon, I am sure it's possible. Nothing is as good as discovering places with locals...

As about accommodation in Saigon, do you have any recommendations for cheap hotels? We're not really Hilton-like people, all we need is safety and clean beds... Any tips appreciated!

I am glad I could be helpful.

We stayed only a few nights in HCMC in a 4 star hotel, was okay and well located and safe. They have some more hotels in the city between 2 and 4 stars
http://tanhailonghotel.com.vn/
Some vietnamese people from Germany we met by incidence at dinner stayed in one of the other tan hai long hotels and were pleased there. They payed about 20 Euros per night.

Regards, Panther.

 

[wojtek]

Thanks, Panther, awesome!

 

[oftheherd]

...

- try the street food and the fruits local to the area.
- don't drink from the tap

...

I certainly have enjoyed (usually cooked) street food everywhere I was in the far east. The best thing is that it was cooked fresh every day. No trying to keep things in a 'fridge' until the millenium. I don't know if that has changed or not. I certainly wouldn't recommend drinking from water taps. Your system isn't likely to have immunity for that.
I was able to do that after some time in country, when there was nothing else to drink, but I tried to avoid it when possible, drinking tea, coffee, or soda. If you should visit a home, ask for tea. It should have been boiled, and they may not have soda. In a restaurant, tea, coffee, or soda.

If they still make sandwiches with the grill baked french bread on the street, that may be worth a try.

In Vietnam the side walks are for motorcycle parking so pedestrians are forced to walk on the street which make tourists vulnerable to motorcycle purse snatchers. Always wear your camera bag across your chest not just hanging down from your shoulder. Other than that the country is quite safe.

Very good advice. I had a watch stolen off my arm and nothing to do but observe as it sped down the street in the hands of a vietnamese man who turned back to laugh at me.

...

Anyway you will surely catch great impressions there, vietnamese people are the most kindful persons we ever met.

...

That was how I found most to be. Especially amazing considering the times I was there.

 

[wojtek]

The water thing is what I'd do by default in Asia anyway, and I always did. This didn't stop me from being ill but hell, this is a part of the package 😀

Good advice on the camera safety, thanks!

 

[Bensingindo]

Your post came up too early for me to meet you. When I first read this thread on home page, I thought we got chance to meet as I was / am in Vietnam, the day before I was in HCMC, yesterday till tomorrow I am in Danang, late tomorrow afternoon will back to HCMC, then Friday noon back to Singapore to finish this business trip.

All advises through this threat for Saigon trip are valuable.

Hope to meet in December if I need to be in Saigon by end of this year.

 

[wojtek]

😀 Let's do that! I will be keen to meet someone while there. Always more fun discovering places this way!

 

[klara]

Hi, I will be travelling SEA for three months with my boyfriend. We'll arrive in Saigon Nov 29, stay around 10 (or more) days and then travel up north. Would love to meet you wojtek or any other people?

 

[wojtek]

Hey guys. Sorry I missed some of these previous posts - I am not getting email notifications from the forum for some reason. Anyway, my trip to Vietnam has been postponed but now I know that I will be there between 26th of April - 21st of May.

I will arrive to Ho Chi Minh on my own to be later joined by my girlfriend Anna, and I will have a few days alone over there. Once again, if anyone is up for a meetup, I'd be more than keen to do that! 😀

In the meantime, please keep feeding me with your stories and recommendations 🙂

Cheers
Wojtek