Ho Chi Minh City Tour

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Ho Chi Minh City Tour
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Vietnam-Cambodia Tour Itinerary

The next day, I was at first doubtful that we would reach Ho Chi Minh in merely 6 hours, since we exceeded the estimated time during entry, but we arrived in Ho Chi Minh promptly at 1pm, just in time for lunch.

We checked in again at Thanh guest house and immediately did the city tour. As usual, we walked. I preferred walking for several reasons. It saves money because it prevents us from being scammed by overpriced tuktuks, and more importantly, it prevents me from getting lost. Lol. I have a better grasp of where I am in relation to my guest house when we walk. Plus, we get to stop and browse interesting things we pass by.

A "super tank" at the War Remnants Museum

So anyhow, we walked all the way to the War Remnants Museum. Entrance was 15,000 VND if I remember correctly. I have to admit that I've never seen so many westerners gathered in one place. It was like stepping into another country!

The War Museum had tanks, jet fighters, a helicopter and even a bulldozer stationed outside. Inside, there were guns, and lots and lots of photos. I didn't know that the Americans released biochemical weapons in the war against Vietnam. Until now, the  genetic defects caused by the chemical (Agent Orange) can still be seen among the Vietamese people and their children. I hope the Philippines never experiences a war in my lifetime, or in anyone's lifetime, for that matter.

We passed by the Water Puppet Theater but since no one was manning the ticket booth, we just decided to come back at another time.

We also just passed by the Reunification Palace. I had read blogs that there wasn't anything to see there so we just skipped it.

The Notre Dame Cathedral

But we did stop by the Notre Dame Cathedral. The caretaker wouldn't let me inside the praying area of the church. He was signalling that it was off limits to tourists. I was trying to let him know that I was a Catholic and I wanted to pray. In the end, he understood.

Just across the Notre Dame Cathedral is the Post Office, but it was hidden among trees.

Saigon Opera House

On the way to Saigon Square, we also stopped to snap a photo of the Opera House.

Once the city tour was done, we were off to go shopping for The North Face backpacks. We found that the better quality ones were in Saigon Square and all those in Ben Thanh were made of flimsy materials. We each bought bags for around $20.

After an exhausting afternoon, we finally were able to buy Cu Chi tunnel tickets for the next day's activity.