Saigon has far too much of a reputation. Previously known as the City of Sin, you will be surprised to find that it’s actually really nice. Renamed Ho Chi Minh City after the reunification of the northern and southern Vietnam in 1975, it seems to have cleaned up its act. It’s relatively clean, has some very nice buildings and some actual walkways on which motorbikes don’t ride. Its people are friendly and on balance the most English in the country is spoken here. It’s also where the most of the trendy people in the country hang out, and you can quite easily find yourselves in bars and restaurants as sleek and chic as any in the West. The giant, shiny HSBC building looms over the shoulder of the stunning City Hall, both of which speak volumes about the relative scale of wealth of this part of the country.
We will assume that you are staying in District 1 of Saigon, the city centre. This is where the hotels and best sights to see are. From Pham Ngu Lao in the backpackers area to Dong Khoi in the decidedly high-end area, everything in between is eye-catching.
Transport
The easiest way to get around a Vietnamese city is by moto-taxi. They hang around on street corners (bikes and all), congesting the pedestrian walkways and waiting to be asked to take someone somewhere. Make sure you either have an address or you can direct them to where you want to go, because otherwise you might find yourself in Hanoi. You can go on a cyclo if you like, but Saigonese cyclo drivers are often really old boys, so please don’t ask them to take you to the Mekong Delta or somewhere like that. Or you can walk, but it takes about half an hour to walk from one end of District 1 to the other end alone.
Ho Chi Minh City airport is not somewhere you want to hang around. There’s not much in the way of facilities there. So time yourself properly. You can get a taxi there, which is about 75,000VND, or, for the truly brave, you could even get a moto-taxi there, which costs about 35,000VND. Coming out from the airport is a roughly similar experience, but remember to haggle with the taxi drivers. They might try to charge you more, but remember it shouldn’t cost more than 80,000VND. Just smile and shake your head and keep the price low until they agree.
Things to do and see
War Remnants Museum (Museum of American War Crimes)
The best and most moving museum in Saigon, this is a photographic exhibit of the suffering of the Vietnamese throughout the Vietnam War (known as the American War in Vietnam, unsurprisingly), and of the aftermath. It is quite a shocking exhibit, particularly the photos of Agent Orange victims who were affected by the chemicals sprayed on Vietnam’s crops. Many deformities were caused in the victims themselves and their children.
Reunification Palace
The location of the Southern Vietnamese army headquarters, the Reunification Palace had the Northern Vietnamese Army tanks burst through the gates and take control of the building, thus reunifying the country.
Benh Thanh Market
Time to shop – Benh Thanh Market has just about everything under the sun, from food to household goods to clothes to shoes to art to... oh, you get the idea. You can definitely haggle here, particularly with clothes, less so with food. But it’s got a lovely atmosphere and it’s a great place to be.
Notre Dame Cathedral
One of the beautiful old colonial buildings of Indochina, the church is a small-scale replica of the more famous Paris version... in red brick. It’s rather nice.
Dong Khoi
The most elegant and chic road in Saigon! Along this road you’ll find the best and most expensive hotels, boutiques, cafes and restaurants. Even if you’re not staying in this end of District 1, it’s lovely to have a walk along here. Watch out; it’s a one-way street, and if a motorcyclist finds himself going the wrong way he’ll immediately come up onto the pavement!
Food
The cuisine of Vietnam is delicious, and has subtle differences depending on whereabouts in the country you are. Northern Vietnamese cuisine is often quite sweet, with sugar being added to dishes more liberally. In theory, Vietnam benefits from the French culinary influence with the addition of bread products to its typical dishes. In practice, Vietnamese bread is sweet, and finding decent Western bread is not easy. Here are a few typical dishes:
Banh Bao –
“Banh” is bread (from the French “pain”), but this can refer to many different consistencies of bread. In this case, banh means dumpling, and banh bao is a bready dumpling stuffed with meat, often with a small hard-boiled egg inside. You’ll see these being sold on the streets, coming out of huge steaming vats. They are extremely cheap (about 20p each), very tasty and a good thing to eat to sustain you as you stride through the Old Quarter.
Bun Bo –
You will see signs for the fantastic bun bo in tiny street restaurants full of Vietnamese perched on tiny plastic chairs. If you see this, pull up a chair and ask for some bun bo. In the north of Vietnam (not to be confused with Bun Bo Hue, more commonly found in the middle of the country), bun bo is a mixture of noodles, bean sprouts, fish sauce, vegetables, crispy shallots and beef (bo), and quite possibly a few other things that escape us at the moment. It’s absurdly cheap and incredibly good.
Nem Ran –
Otherwise known as Spring Rolls (and will probably be written as such on the menu), you can either get them with shrimp or pork, and they consist of rice paper rolled up and stuffed with various leaves and vermicelli. It’s good stuff. You get little dips to make it even better.
Cha Ca –
Hanoi even has a street called Cha Ca for the best Cha Ca restaurants. Ca is fish, and Cha Ca is a way of cooking the fish, with various leaves and herbs, including turmeric, in a way that is absolutely delicious. Characteristically, Cha Ca restaurants only serve this dish for the whole restaurant!
Pho –
Pronounced “fur”, this is about as typically Vietnamese as you can get. Basically, it’s noodle soup, usually with beef though you can order it with other meats or just plain, and it’s frequently eaten for breakfast.
Cafe Sua Da –
Vietnamese coffee! Some say it is like tar, others enjoy the extreme thickness and sugariness. Cafe Sua Da – Coffee with Sugar – is actually thick, tar-like espresso coffee with condensed milk poured into the bottom and stirred in. This is the drink to have here, although if you’re a coffee snob you’re bound to dislike it. But this is what you should expect if you ask a Vietnamese person for a coffee.
Here are a few good restaurant suggestions for you!
Pho 2000 – Next to Ben Thanh Market, on the left as you face it
A great time to experience Vietnamese Pho (Noodle soup!). This is basically the Vietnamese equivalent of MacDonald’s (since Vietnam doesn’t yet have a MacDonald’s) – this is where the cool kids get their fast food. Don’t worry; it’s much, much healthier.
Ben Thanh Market (Day and Evening)
In the daytime, head into the food court. You’ll be surrounded by a selection of food stalls, all selling different things which are out on display. Just pick something you like the look of – it’s all very cheap and very good. Use your discretion with things like the seafood that may have been sitting there a while.
In the evening, the indoor market closes down and the outdoor market opens. This runs along the sides of the market and includes a whole line of restaurants, all of which are great to eat at. You can go with the ones with the food alive in tanks, or the less scary ones... up to you.
Bo Tung Xeo – 81 Ly Tu Trong Street
Vietnamese barbeque! There are several restaurants that do this excellent grill-it-yourself-to-your-liking fare, but this is probably the best value for money that we found.
Lemongrass – 4Nguyen Thiep, District 1, Tel. (08) 822 0496
This is an upmarket Viet-food place, in a beautiful setting with great service. Can be a bit pricey, but nice for a treat.
Nightlife
Q Bar – 7 Cong Truong Lam Son St
Fairly expensive and theoretically the place to be, and indeed there is some very good dance music and an ice-cool atmosphere, but be prepared for there to be prostitutes knocking around.
Le Pub – 175/22 Pham Ngu Lao
One of two Le Pubs, the other being in Hanoi, this is tucked down a little alley off Pham Ngu Lao which somehow gives it even more credibility. It is relatively expensive (though still very cheap by anywhere else’s standards) and it usually full of westerners, but it’s the only place where you can get a proper Cadbury’s hot chocolate, and the food and cocktails are good.
Allez Boo – 187 Pham Ngu Lao, District 1, Tel. (08) 837 2505
Right on the corner of Pham Ngu Lao, bang in the middle of the backpacker district, you’ll find this place. It does food as well as drink, it has a pool table, it’s open all day and nearly all night... what more do you want? It’s very loud, but at least the music is vaguely cool.
Apocalypse Now – 2C Thi Sach
Trust the Vietnamese to take the name of a film that shows their country being torn to pieces and give it to a nightclub. Whatever you think of the choice of the name, this is the most famous club in Saigon, although not the best. It’s got some very tacky music, much prostitution, fairly expensive drinks and the occasional incidence of the young Vietnamese getting a bit aggressive with the Westerners. You should probably go just for the experience.