Ho Chi Minh City

The good news is that my visa is good for one year due to an administrative error. But I can't leave and come back so I will have to think about this.

We are staying in the backpacker section of district 1 so we are centrally located. The neighborhood is okay with many services within walking distance. There are food streets, bar (girl) streets, massage (non-bar girl) streets. The traffic is relentless. Because of the broken wrist, I find I'm a little less bold with the traffic causing long delays in street crossing. My favored method is to find a local and walk along with them. Barbara and I typically hold hands during these crossings. Yesterday we were trapped on a traffic island for maybe 10 minutes until a group of ladies our age came along and shepherded us across. People are so nice.

Yesterday we did the Lonely Planet walking tour around district one. Highlights are the public market (spotless) at the beginning and a drink overlooking the city at the end of the walk. We saw market streets, antique streets, and so on.

We have been warned of robberies via motorcycle which adds a bit to the paranoia level. Apparently the motorcycle drives by, slices through your purse strap (or backpack strap) and drives on. We are told not to walk with phone in hand for the same reason--What? This reminds me a lot of Ethiopia where you must pay attention to your belongings.

We met a young German last night (who by the way gave us a left handed compliment by congratulating us on traveling "here" at our age) who told us these kinds of robberies were common in Cambodia now. Behavior spreads...reminds me of Philly in the 80s. 

The food here is very much like our South Philly Vietnamese. Yesterday I had a lotus root salad, for instance, which tasted much like the one at Nam Phuong. I'd say the Pho is generally a bit better, but so similar....

However, we are in the backpacker's district, which is filled to the brim with white folk....it is amazing that the restaurants are good...I would say if anything we are overpaying...but the food is as good as we're used to in the States.

There is a lot of hustling going on, but it is not debilitating. Each restaurant and massage parlor has a hawker out front (at least in backpacker district).