Day 12 - Ho Chi Minh City

Once again the morning came bright and early, but this time I was happy to greet it even at 7am (I'm more of a 9 or 10am kind of girl myself) since it was our last day and we wanted to squeeze in just one more walk along the beach. As usual there was no end of interesting things to see, from little cockle shells closing up tight as we approached, to children sitting in the water fully clothed, playing in the sand.

We also took the opportunity to buy a few more strands of pearls from the lovely woman who I think had decided to permanently set up shop outside our bungalow in the hopes that we might pass by and once again be tempted. Already she knows us so well. *grin*

After a quick brekkie, swim in the pool and final pack up, it was time to go and though it was sad to say goodbye to the Mui Ne Sailing Club (the best place I've ever stayed in by far), we were excited to be heading to a new destination - Ho Chi Minh City! In a luxury van no less - worth every bit of the $90US we had to pay (sadly I missed a lot of the ride, thanks once again to those horse tranquilisers masquerading as motion sickness tablets).

But I was wide awake for our arrival in Ho Chi Minh - an amazing place from the moment we drove in. Apparently Sunday is 'Wedding Day' here as we passed all manner of wedding parties with brides decked out in every color of the rainbow. Even more entertaining though was seeing very dressed up guests on their way to weddings on the back of motorcycles - some even carrying gifts and cakes! I wish I could have gotten a photo, it's amazing the balance and poise these people posess!

After checking in to the Spring Hotel, which is very nice, but really does live up to Frommer's description as "an unsettling Greco-Roman motif" (think huge marble pillars, sweeping staircases and giant plants everywhere). Still, the tackiness is kind of fun and the place is roomy and clean so it gets a big, big thumbs up in my book. The only problem of course, was the one bed in our room. Although large enough to immediately recall memories of the song "There were 10 in the bed and the little one said 'Roll over, roll over'...", sharing one bed between the three of us was not ideal (I took quite a few thumps in the back from Milla) and we're really hoping there'll be two beds when we come back from the Mekong.

So after droping everything off, we decided to hit the town. Ho Chi Minh immediately seems a lot faster than Hanoi, with more vehicles on the road (especially cars), more high rises, more Western-style shops, and more Westerners period. For me, it certainly doesn't have that same charm I found so enchanting in Hanoi, but there is a magic here, an excitement that seems to buzz all around you to constantly remind you that you're not in Kansas anymore.

The first major site to take in was the Ben Thanh Market, a must-see according to all the guidebooks. And it certainly was an amazing sight - hundreds of stalls selling all manner of wares stuffed into this tiny little street with hundreds, maybe thousands of people milling around. But perhaps we've been spoiled by the Old Quarter, because this market seemed like nothing more than a flea market for tourists (picture knock-off clothes, bags, jewellery, etc) with highly aggressive sellers who practically pull you into their shop and physically force their wares into your arms. All in all, not the most pleasant experience, but I'm glad we went and I did manage to find a bag I love (if you can't beat 'em, join 'em right?)