Ho Chi Minh City - The First Day

Leaving Hanoi was so hard since we want to drown more into the sights and enjoy the laidback feel of the town. As they say though... Good-Byes are always bitter-sweet ;)

Our flight (via Jetstar again) to HCMC was leaving early morning. One thing you should be aware of traveling JETSTAR was that it is really patronized by the locals, which means that you would encounter loud chattering of groups in a language you don't understand, men even women putting their feet up removing their footwears and just comfortably putting their feet atop any reachable ledge (try not to stare with big ?!? eyes), and a distinct but not so pungent smell (yes, body odor).

We arrived HCMC with our body really spent out tired but our spirit still energized to see what the city has in store for us. FIRST stop is the Hotel - we were billeted at one of the most popular backpacker hotel in town named Saigon Mini Hotel :)

We were famished already by this time and our legs were so wobbly it might break (hahaha kidding!) we asked the recep-girl and she recommended "highly" a nearby korean restaurant to us. Hay... all the salivating and excitement were zap out since the resto was a big disappointment - the wait staff were not friendly, not helpful, and the food were like wtf?! Don't go to this restaurant, please. I won't say more since it is not worth extra space in this blog.


Our itinerary idea for Day 1 was to visit the museums and historical spots. But due to the surprising rain, it was really hard to "walk the streets" and we had to take cabs everywhere. We were supposed to go to a War Museum of some sort but the cab driver brought us to the Independence Palace (hahaha! we realized this after exiting the palace hahaha!). Forgive me, I'm not a fan of museum+history+statues overload and usually this activity is located somewhere at the bottom of my to-do-list everytime I travel UNLESS there is really a good reason to visit.


It was still raining so we opted to stay indoors by going to the malls in HCMC. Generally, the malls here (Philippines) can easily rate 10/10 compared to the malls in Vietnam so in this aspect there is really 0 wow factor. We've seen though some local cuisine and local shops but there is nothing much to see and do inside the mall.




After "walking the malls" to say the least that we are tired would be another understatement... It was cold, we were damp from the continuing drizzle, and we didn't get to shop something ;( So we decided to have a good relaxed warm place for dinner - Cafe Terrace! Ooooh, this was really the highlight for the day for me. Good ambiance, poshy but comfy, good food, good dessert, good coffee (authentic!) plus best of all they hack & crack (and I don't know what else) and found a way to provide their guest with Facebook access! Weeeeeeee :D


I love vietnamese coffee. It has a distinct roasty smell that makes you lick your tongue before taking the first sip into the dark liquid. The process of preparing it also enhances its appeal and uniqueness. What better way to enjoy a rainy evening that having a nice cuppa! <3


Tomorrow: Mekong River Cruise

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