There are two types of people in this world: those who see street food as a one way ticket to toilet town, and those – let’s say, more adventurous souls – who see it as the guiding principle of their entire travel experience. Indeed, there are even those who would go so far as to choose a destination based not upon the beauty of the beaches or what there is to see and do, but on the novelty of what they can put in their mouths when they get there.
As I noted in my previous post Saigon: Motorbike Capital of the World, crossing the road in Vietnam at first seems impossible. How to step willingly into an incessant wave of oncoming traffic and not succumb to the flood, is something that not only seems to defy all accepted laws of physics, but which, by general consensus, is also pretty near suicidal. It is something that cannot simply be seen to be believed; it must, by its own adrenalized nature, be experienced in all its near-death glory.
If you’ve only got one day in Saigon in which to savour the city and don’t want to find yourself collapsed in a ball of over-sightseed stress by the end of the day, you’re going to have to make some fairly tough decisions about what to do and where to go in order to get the most out of your 24 hours. Luckily, despite the city’s vast and growing size and its potential to overwhelm, visitors are presented with a relatively navigable list of things to do in Ho Chi Minh City even if time is short.
Another trip, another country. First time in Vietnam. Arriving in Saigon with little clue as to what to expect … only that there would be motorbikes. But exactly how many motorbikes there would be in Saigon I never imagined. On the journey from airport to hostel there was barely room for anything else. Taxis seemed entirely overwhelmed by the thousands of helmeted road warriors zipping by, and as for buses, or the lack thereof, first impressions pointed towards public transport probably not being the most convenient way to get around town.