back from Vietnam , Saigon which is known as Ho Chi Minh City.
this is my first trip to Vietnam , my first time on Tiger Airways and my first time checking in at BUDGET terminal which is
SUPER budget !!!!! the experience at the budget terminal is
BAD !- 1st - when i reached there at 0530 , the system is down . i was so scared that the flight might be delayed or even cancelled as this happened to my friend before.
- 2nd - system is back but the check in counter is close , despite my flight is 1 hour away.
- 3rd - 2 staff FINALLY appeared at the check in counter, BUT TALKING to each other instead of doing their job
- 4th - the action being performed by the staff is SUPER slow ! i can't imagining this is SINGAPORE !
finally , after checking in and clearing at the custom , all is good .. ( just the airplane is abit small and cramp.. budget airway .. so no choice ! )
after 1 hour 45 mins, reached Ho Chi Minh City sound and safe ..
Saigon underneath
1st impression - traffic there is a killer !!!!! it is worst that any countries that i went before ( USA, Australia , China , Taiwan , Hong Kong, Malaysia, Thailand , Japan, Korea, Philippines , Mauritius )
have never cross a street where more than 20 people are required to hold hand in hand while crossing ! as the car and motorcycles won't stop unless u dash over. (but walk slowly) no traffic light is found in most of the street as it can only be found in BIG cross junction
traffic is so bad that i sat in the bus for almost 2 hours to head town for my first Vietnam local dish , BEEF noodle soup !
after the nice chicken and beef noodle, our journey started off with a short introduction around Saigon City, the biggest and bustling city with hustle and bustle of Vietnamese life, and next we are off to Mytho - Mekong Delta area .
Our first stop at Mekong , was at a coconut candy factory along the Mekong river delta where we watched the worker extracting the coconut milk and juice, making and cutting the candy. We were treated to samples of the candy as well coconut rice wine and snake wine.
coconut machine
the snake wine .. Eeeeee..
At Mekong river, small wooden vessels are used to navigate the mighty Mekong .. and it only cost USD 1.00 a boat to carry 4 adults across the river !
my mummy in the san pang
man caught in action... is that a crocodile ?
Walk over this and we can enjoy the fruits opposite .
the fruit seller .
at Vietnam , they eat fruits with this sauce . ( spicy and sour) . they also drink tea while eat fruits.
After trying some exotic fruits in one of the orchards , we proceed to have our LUNCH , and we sat on a horse - cart (*poor horse as there are 7 adults on board.. and the speed is real slow . can see the tear in it's eyes . sigh ... but .. tis is their life there.. ).
the poor horse.
During Lunch, these 2 interesting dish appeared . "Fried Elephant's Ear Fish".
"Fried Elephant's Ear Fish" served vertically in a “rack"
my dad and the weird fish .
rice paper . they called it dino egg .
the helpful Vietnamese
Having Lunch , we headed back to Saigon (2.5 hours journey) for checking into hotel and REST until our dinner on board the Cruise.
the captain of the boat . (restaurant)
the boat will drive along the river while we are eating ..
DAy 2 :
this is the day that i am looking forward to : CU CHI Tunnels , an incredible underground tunnel network constructed by Vietnamese resistance fighters during the struggle for independence.
towards the tunnel - (did u notice those white spot ? hmm.. they are gXXXX spot)
it's quite eerie there .
the sample of the tunnel
he went down to demonstrate
my mum went down to try
BUT .. she could not climb up.
FINALLY ..
the trap tat was being used in the war
the bomb that USA left it behind .. (spotted the white spot again? )
here come the scary part ... the pic below
NO MATTER how many times i tried to capture this tunnel , it is still BLUR! i don know why..
i did not shake or shiver , and i try taking other parts of the exhibition and it is fine .. except for this..
SCARY !!!!
anyway .. i went down to the tunnel to experience.. and this experience is GOOD.. but i nearly fainted as the oxygen in the tunnel is limited and the tunnel is so small that even i have difficulty in walking inside ..
and finally off we went to TAM BINH Orphanage .. my main purpose of this trip !!!
more pics of the kids coming up ...
please do play your part by giving a little more help to those needy people .. thanks...
My Love Will Get You Home - 溏心風暴 (Heart Of Greed) soundtrack [TVB series 2007] - Christine Glass
