A cyclo ride, pets and the Saigon River

There's a first time for everything, as the old cliché goes. But much truth lies in those trite adages, especially when you embark on a cyclo in Saigon, which is a far, far cry of an experience from boarding a cyclo in Hue for instance. My suggestion, after having taken this ride in different cities, is to do Saigon first. The reason for this is that if you can survive Saigon, all cyclo rides will be cake walks thereafter. So, today, is a bright sunny day, perfect for sightseeing, and I've already learned to cross the street without fainting. 

 expert cyclo drivers will follow you till you relent

 
During my two days in the hotel room, Chuck had been wandering the streets of Saigon, was all over District 1, photographing every last molecule of the place and talking to strangers, which is perfectly normal. During his jaunts, he told me of a particularly insistent cyclo driver who wanted to take him everywhere. You never have to look for a cyclo, as they are there and always looking for you. They are much more aggressive than the tuk-tuk drivers of Bangkok, in that they will follow you, hound you, grab your arm, and if you don’t want them now, how about later? Don’t ever think that the word later gets you off the hook, because they will pin you down to a time. And as luck would have it, they also know from which hotel you hail. Or at least, they knew where we were staying, and I have to blame Chuck entirely for that. Chuck Not only did he become best buddies with the baker, but also the drivers got to know him, the restaurant owners, and the cabbies. It also doesn’t help that his camera has a lens that looks like a weapon.

This hotel has been around since 1925, and is on the corner of Dong Khoi Street and the Saigon River hugging Ton Duc Thang Street

One of those afternoons, Chuck returned from what he called the 'Pet Market'. With photos naturally. The dogs and cats were simply adorable; when it came to the snakes, I wasn't particularly taken with the idea of a pet snake, and then I saw the turtles. I began to wonder if the 'pet market' was a food market in disguise. Let me show you pages from a menu, one of the many, that I insisted we photograph, because of the unusual offerings.

The turtle is considered a lucky animal in Vietnam. This doesn't prevent people from eating it. The word for turtle is 'quy', and during our travels, we would find this name attached to restaurants and shops quite often. On the menu, it shows up as 'ba ba'. This appetite for turtles has nothing to do with the giant turtle that was recently spotted by scientists in Northern Vietnam, where in fact, scientists have been very concerned about conservation efforts. Have a look at the turtle sale going on here, right by the Saigon River. The women are crouching or sitting on small plastic stools and covered almost completely, as they do not want to tan. The turtles are at the bottom on the cage rack, with snakes in between. Speaking of snakes, this animal is considered to bring virility to those who eat it. There are specific restaurants in Saigon who serve only snake, and various ways of eating it. Some also partake of the snake's blood, squeezed directly from its neck, for its aphrodisiac qualities. No thanks, I'd rather be frigid. However, if this sort of thing excites you, please visit this web page where you'll also see a photo of the blood squeezing exercise, tips on how to get to Snake Alley, the cost of a typical snake meal, and other juicy tidbits. Actually, the snakes for sale by the Saigon River look like worms compared to the King cobras which you can eat for only $600/each.

This brings to mind the Snake Village we had visited in Northern Chiang Mai when we were in Thailand. It wasn't about eating actually, but rather watching the skill of the Thai in not getting mortally bitten by poisonous snakes. Quite a show!

Now you want to see the kind of pets I'd like to hold?

way too cute to eat

and I don't recall seeing anyone ever walking a dog!

Well so much for the pet market. Back to our two friends and their cyclo adventure. Or was it our adventure? Not an English word was exchanged, but we were getting a tour and being dropped back at the hotel. You will agree to a price, the length of the ride and ascertain they know where they are going. And of course, it means nothing. OK, OK, OK . These are the most famous Vietnamese words in the vocabulary.Each one of us had a camera, but in truth, I was too frozen in fright to take pictures, so there may be one or two that were mine, but most were Chuck who I caught laughing, along with my driver about my expressions. The ride started rather calmly on Hai Ba Trung Street, and got progressively more daring as we made our way round the circle and toward the Saigon River.

Ton Duc Thang Street is more like one of those beautiful wide boulevards that are the legacy of the French colonial days, and runs all alongside the river, and if you take the time not to panic, you'll see many renown spots, like the Majestic Hotel, pictured above. There is a great aerial view of the street here, but believe me, the traffic is never so sparse.

This monument is the center point of a circle around the large statue of Tran Ngyuen Han in District 1. It is at the end of Le Loi Boulevard, another major artery, which is reputed for the Ben Thanh Market, which I promised we would visit.


Ton Duc Thang Street is also replete with high rise buildings, cafes and restaurants, banks and other businesses.

If you are on foot here, you'll be able to watch the freighters and passenger ferries all busy at work. Here you can book a dinner cruise for later in the evening or perhaps plan an interesting one-day tour upriver by speedboat with several stops, including the Binh Quoi Tourist Village .

You will now witness the sequence of photographs capturing my introduction to oncoming traffic on Ton Duc Thang Street. This is not meant to discourage you in any way whatsoever. Rather, by doing this, it really enabled me to become fearless not only riding cyclos but crossing just about any street in Saigon or Hanoi.

 you can see the beginning of alarm on my face here

 my toothless driver signals peace, but I'm not sure he should

 this is the point at which he lost his mind....

 and I thought I was losing my mind as well

 we are finally on the right side of the street going in the right direction

 what kind of hand signal is this?

 

I am beginning to regain my composure as we have made it safely from oncoming traffic to the right lane, which runs along the sidewalk closest to the river. I believe it was at that point that I felt safe enough to take my camera out of my purse. I caught a couple of pictures of Chuck, but altogether, nothing else. He looks like Mr. Cool here with a thumb up, as if nothing major is happening. He actually also had the courage to get on a motorbike with one of his photography friends. So this must be child's play for him.

This looks like we are back on Leloi. Actually, these guys are sometimes a bit tricky. They wanted to drop us off in the middle of nowhere, claiming that on certain streets cyclos are not allowed. We refused to pay them, and with hand signals and a map, insisted they take us back to our hotel. However, have fun with your ride, and remember that whatever you end up paying them is pennies compared to relative costs of transport anywhere else.

This is coming around that circle again. I'm always full of admiration when I see a woman driving one of those bikes. They are positively fearless.

Saigon, the city that hardly sleeps

It was once the capital of South Vietnam, but since reunification, it has ceded to HaNoi, its sister city in the North. However, Saigon is sassier, sexier, faster, turbulent, sultry, and on a path to becoming one of the must-do destinations of Southeast Asia. I haven't seen enough of it, but the people of Ho Chi Minh City (most people in the South still call it Saigon) left an indelible impression on me.

These last few weeks, I have witnessed more reporting on Vietnam in the media than ever before. In July of 2009, we will celebrate 14 years of diplomatic relations with Vietnam. A fantastic journey was featured on Link TV recently called "The Reunification Express" which symbolically represents the end of the Vietnam war with America and the re-uniting of the North and Southern parts of the country.

On board the Reunification Express, you'll see a lot of farmland and friendly people

But it also signals that despite this union, the North and South maintain different habits and ideas. The train itself is the link between Vietnam's major cities, Hanoi and Saigon. We took that train, and I was on board again every minute of the broadcast. At times, I had tears in my eyes, because everything I saw on the screen was deja-vu.

photo: it takes 36 hours from north to south, so they have to feed you.

This entire week, a news broadcast which I have started to watch religiously called "World Focus" is featuring a 4-part series on Vietnam. This is a wonderful lesson for those who still think of Vietnam as a former enemy country, with people who hate us. It couldn't be further from the truth. Vietnam is too busy growing and moving forward, and 3/4 of its population was born after the war. They aspire to visit us, link with us, and speak our language.

I will never forget this woman I met at the Qing Café

In the meantime, I aspire to see Saigon. I miss Saigon. I miss the grandeur of the Continental Hotel, even though in its company are other 4 and 5 star hotels. But they are all too Western for me and reflect little of what I long for by way of Indochina. War correspondents will tell you that this hotel was one of a few that sheltered the media during the war coverage.

the balconies at the Hotel Continental

The others were the Rex Hotel which is within walking distance, and the Caravelle, where Chuck and I spent our last evening in Saigon on its terrace looking down on the lit streets, sipping on fruited cocktails and listening to live music. Finally, the Majestic Hotel, which we did not visit, hosted war reporters and spies during that infamous war.

An evening at the Caravelle rooftop

Every report and every video of Saigon will never miss to show what fun it is to cross the street. I say fun now, but my first attempt at getting across Hai Ba Trung was heart stopping. Here's a piece of advice: if you hesitate, you will never get to your destination. Therefore, do look at the oncoming vehicles (mostly cyclos, motorbikes and bicycles) and start walking. They will go around you, even though you feel death at your door. After a few tries, it becomes second nature..like brushing your teeth.

They will never stop coming, so you'd better cross that street

What might be a bit scarier than negotiating street crossing is riding a cyclo. The men who drive them think it's very funny to launch their passengers into oncoming traffic, head on. I speak from experience. I have not tallied the accidents which may have happened with these cyclos, but it wouldn't surprise me to find some. Most cyclos only accommodate one person, even though we taxed a poor driver in the city of Hue, and were completely squeezed into his cart. We made it, but I think he must have been exhausted.

Tree lined Le Loi Avenue

Le Loi Avenue is grand for walking (avoid in extreme heat, because even though you may feel enthusiastic, you will be in a coma the next day,-again experience speaking here). From our hotel, it is quite a long walk, but our eyes tried to capture snapshots and slices of life all the way until we reached the Ben Tranh market.
This is the country's largest, has an outdoor section, and sells everything you need, and some things you've never heard of. Its endless aisles and sub-aisles are an amazing grid of activity, and we felt so welcomed by everyone despite communication handicaps. It's a joy to see people faces light up when you say you are from America.

photo: Vietnamese women are a crucial part of the workforce.

A concert on the steps of the Opera House in Nam Lon Square

The Opera House in Nam Lon Square is host to many events. They had a concert in the open air one Sunday, and on another weekend, they were holding a marathon. Next visit, I would love to go inside and see something cultural.

And if you want trendy, chic, and the very latest in fashions, amble down Don Khoi Street. You might want to plan a couple of hours, as it is impossible to resist going into every single shop you come across. I had my eye on a silk dress that was just regal in its design and simplicity. I purchased a couple of purses made of what seemed to be mother of pearl rectangles. A year later, I found the very same purses in Manhattan. A small world indeed. And among all the hooplah is the Paris Deli café, where Chuck and I met one of his corresponding buddies. He had been kind in recommending a hotel for us upon landing, and it was the right mixture of economy and authentic Vietnamese not spoiled too much by Western touches. Of course, there was internet; on the mezzanine floor of the hotel, we had free access as part of the room price.
I'll take you to the War Remembrance Museum (above photo) which is impossible to miss. And the Women's Museum which talks about Southern Vietnam's heroic women. We'll visit the pet market, and walk by the Headquarters of the People's Committee in Nguyen Hue Square, which was built by the French. We'll go to an authentic pho restaurant where a hero lived and sheltered the resistance. We will also meander around Saigon Plaza for a lesson in the modern mall and tourism attraction. And if you like books, as I do, the Fahasa chain of bookstores is there to serve you. We'll check a few restaurants and I will reveal to you the quality of health care, just in case you come down with food poisoning. Bring good hiking boots and ensure you are well equipped with bottled water. Diet coke is hard to come by and costs more than regular.

photo: statue of Ho Chi Minh in Nguyen Hue Square; in the background the Headquarters of the People's Committee

See you in Saigon.

Another Detour to the Ngoc Huong Pagoda

Our cyclo guides tried their best to give us a flavor of Hue, aside from the Forbidden Purple City. One of the interesting places was the Ngoc Huong Pagoda, and I couldn't tell you where it is, but if you're in Hue, flag a cyclo, and I bet they will know exactly where to take you. The pagoda is recessed from the street, and is surrounded by water, except for a paved alley which led to the main gate that was under lock and chain.

As we rose from our cyclos to make our way to the Pagoda, there was an old man wading in the water, and it wasn't quite clear what he was doing, but perhaps he may have been cleaning the water. He had his hand on a canoe, and the stream was filled with leaves. His other hand held a bucket or basket; he may have been scooping water out of the canoe.

I'd like to add a post scrip to this scenario. This visit was taking place at a time when Viet Nam was at the height of the bird flu scare. We had been avoiding chickens like the plague; and you can imagine my alarm when two men came running toward us with a chicken in their hands (it was not dead). 

I probably scared them with my shrieks of "get away from me with this bird" ; perhaps they had not heard the news. Anyway, it seemed an eternity before anyone came to open the gate. A very regal looking monk, dressed in orange garb, came to unlock the gate and silently disappeared. I guess he realized that we were "tourists". 

We followed our guide into the Pagoda; remember to leave your shoes outside. This was not the first pagoda I had been to; but it would be unfair to compare the temple in Bangkok's Grand Palace grounds, where we chanted to the Emerald Buddha as we sat on the floor. That was a royal treat!! OK, back to Hue. 

A likeness of Buddha sits atop the altar in the center of the Pagoda

The altar onto which the likeness of Buddha rests is in the center. It is elevated, so that the lower levels can be used for offerings which are commonplace when the faithful come for prayers or spiritual guidance. Flowers and fruit are the most usual items to be offered. Before you can pray, or meditate, you must light 2 joss sticks; joss sticks are humongous incense sticks, and they are easily found in markets all over Viet Nam. We brought back a batch of them from the market we visited in Bac Ha . The guide proceeded to light the incense and I watched him, as he put his hands together, and up to his forehead, and bowed 3 times. 

Then it was my turn, and I did the same. I learned during my trip, and by picking up a book on the Viet Namese people while there, that as a rule, Viet Namese people are not religious, but are extremely spiritual. They practice a form of ancestor worship, and go to great lengths to make sure that their ancestor's spirits are taken care of. Cemeteries in Viet Nam are extremely ubiquitous and colorful. 

Typical cemetery shot from the train going from Hue to Nah Trang

We did go around the chamber, and I saw portraits of monks that had died; one of them actually quite famous is pictured here; he had set himself on fire in protest. In front of each framed picture was an abundance of flowers, oranges, and other fruit. Following this cleansing exercise, we quietly walked outside, and headed for the gate. En route, I could see men at work, fixing a roof, and a burian tree with fruit that had apparently rotted. Durian actually don't look this bad. To see how pretty they really are, click on this link to go to theMy Tho Fruit Market .

You really don't want to eat this fruit

AYoung Girl in Hue

There are undoubtedly thousands of children like her in Viet Nam. Too poor to be sent to school, so parents most likely urge them to beg for money. You don't really see many beggars in the large cities; but you will see children peddling just about anything from postcards, to chewing gum, to books, to roses and they will haggle with you with the seriousness and impetuosity of a child.

The scene on the other side of the Truong Tien Bridge where the Imperial City lies

For some reason, her face struck me with its quiet beauty and innocence. We had just arrived from the other side of the Perfume River, and had not yet gone on our adventure with the cyclo drivers. We knew that we were not anywhere near the entrance to the Forbidden City, but it is my nature to make the best of any situation. 

a street divider with impeccably trimmed lawn with flowers

We passed a large gate; it's hard to keep track of how many of these there are. Then a great expanse of green grass, and some beautifully manicured lawn with bright red flowers in its center. Those are the things that hint that this city had a glorious and esthetically beautiful past. But then, modern signs of poverty intertwine with this beauty. On the side of the road was a half covered basket of something that looked like beans, or huge peanuts. 



We started walking, and I saw a girl selling fruit and other snacks near the road. To my great delight, I found out she was selling guavas on a stick. As I approached to get two of them, a man suddenly appeared behind me, and tried his hand at brokering a deal with the price. Under no uncertain terms, I told him to get lost, and that my business was with the girl.



One of the interesting things they do with guava here is dip it in chili which is so hot, I personally couldn't handle it. So I ordered them plain, and we went to sit down to enjoy our fruit on two marble benches. No sooner had we sat down, that I saw two girls making their way toward us. At moments like these, you do realize that speaking the same language is really not necessary. The gesturing, the eyes, the body language,-all of these things come into play. I had brought some New York souvenirs with me, and offered her one of them. She showed no interest. I motioned her to sit next to me, and she did. She then rubbed her belly to indicate hunger. She had no interest in the guava,- she wanted money. She rubbed her thumb and forefinger together several times, which is indicative of $$, or in her case, dong.


Even though I knew she would not understand me, I was telling her that she ought to be in school.  I was torn between giving in to her demands, and taking her home with me (which of course, would have been totally illegal). I found an American coin and gave it to her...at which point, our cyclo drivers were making their pitch to us for a ride. One of them showed me a notebook he had been carrying around, which was a "portfolio" of his work. Testimonials of folks he had taken around the city, coupled with "thank you's", most of them in English. We took leave of the girls, and each one of us sat comfortably in a cyclo, and I had my camera in hand. Thankfully, the pictures were not disappointing.  Below is another example of the disparity between what was and what is.

there's always laundry hanging somewhere

As we were being taken away from the Imperial grounds, I wanted a snapshot of everyday life which I found on one of the side streets with some shops. As you can notice, there are no choking crowds as there might have been on a similar street in Ha Noi, or Sai Gon. All of two motorcycles are parked, and two men are engaged in conversation. 
It would take about an hour for us to return to the perimeter of the Forbidden City, and even if you've never been there, the grounds tell you immediately that you have arrived. It's impossible not to know.

A side view of the main gate, called the Ngo Mon Gate