From the streets of Ho Chi Minh City to Ha Long Bay’s emerald waters and beyond, this our personal itinerary packed with sights, street food, and cultural highlights.
We recently spent a week in Vietnam. This was a mix of land and sea. This is a recap of our very interesting time there.
One Week in Vietnam: Our 7-Day Adventure
One of the perks to cruising into places is we can see things from the ship that we would never experience with a land only tour.
These junk boats were so very interesting. People lived on them, fished from them, and a lot of transportation takes place via junk boats. Isn’t it a marvel to see them transport grain, gravel, and other goods?
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Our ship arrived in an industrial port (Tan Cang Hiep Phuoc Port) outside of the CBD of Siagon. Unfortunately, the ship was a little too long to make the turnaround in the downtown port, so that left us with a long (hour plus) ride to and from the shuttle bus drop off point at the Ben Thanh Market.
We had a Saigon discovery tour that morning that took us to the Ho Chi Minh City Museum of History museum.
The day was hot (95º). Our bus was partially full as the Silversea tour buses usually are, but the air condition was barely adequate.
That was a sign of things to come.
The museum showcased ancient Vietnam. It was well spread out and very interesting. Our tour guide (a very funny, personable man who spoke fluent English) made a big deal about use crossing the street as a group when we got off the bus as he was concerned for our safety with the traffic.
Honestly? Crossing the street was no different than jay-walking in NYC.
The mummy of noblewoman Xóm Cải. That’s not creepy at all. I suppose it is no different than the pope’s on display at the Vatican.
After the museum tour we re-boarded the bus and it was HOT and airless.
The bus had broken down.
They allowed people to sit on another air conditioned tour bus while awaiting a replacement bus.
Hubby and I stood outside in the shade. While it was hot, it was no hotter than June back home. Good thing, otherwise I’d have missed the broken down bus down the busy street!
I have no idea where they were going as the next street was a major artery and VERY busy.
After about 10 minutes our guide decided we were walking to the next museum and Hubby and I bailed on the tour.
We caught a GRAB (Asian Uber) went to the market on our own.
He’s just sleeping on his bike ignoring all the market hustle and bustle!
The market was interesting – to say the least! Everything you could imagine being sold – from clothing to coffee to nuts, fruits, prepared foods and household goods – was being sold at this market. The aisles were narrow the floor tiles uneven and broken, and there were stalls everywhere
We purchased coffee, dried fruits, peppercorns, and candy at the market.
After we left the market Hubby found a restaurant a block away with good reviews, so we decided to go have lunch.
Where we live in Florida we have “palmetto bugs.” That is just a fancy name for flying cockroaches. It is why I insist upon a monthly exterminator service.
I do not think they have monthly exterminator service in the public areas in Vietnam.
As we approached the restaurant, I watched the biggest cockroach I ever saw exit the building and have a kick-fight with a woman walking down the street.
PASS!
I am sure there were bugs everywhere, but I just could not go in and eat in that restaurant after seeing that.
Hubby found a slightly lesser rated restaurant down a shady side street. There were a reasonable amount of tourists there, and the connecting three (associated) restaurants were packed.
I ordered a fresh summer roll and a beer. Hubby went crazy and ordered a soup, a stuffed pancake, and some fried spring rolls (which were terrible and remained uneaten). He finished off his meal with coconut ice cream.
I had a piece of his pancake, and it was excellent.
We had met and frequently spoken to a couple on our cruise ship, and they happened to be seated at the table next to us. They were the ones that recommended the coconut ice cream, and Hubby was very glad they did. It was served inside a cut coconut. It was coconut flavored ice cream with real cocnut flakes, and then he ate the fresh coconut inside.
The traffic in Saigon is a lot, but no crazier than – say Rome – except there were a ton of bikes. Unlike western cities where the motorbikes would have 1-2 riders, there were frequently three riders, and I even saw four riders more than once!
Adults must have helmets when riding a motorbike but children do not need them. I found that strange as an adult should be able to choose their level of risk, but I think children should be protected. I guess that is my western upbringing.
We had another tour the next day, Saigon Street Food Experience and I told Hubby I wasn’t going. I encouraged him to go because street food is right up his alley, and this tour was two markets and a restaurant.
He came back grumbling because the woman leading the tour was sprinting from place to place. He finally told her to slow down. He could keep up, but there were people in their 70s and 80s on the tour and some had canes and walking sticks and could not keep up that fast pace.
We find that on a lot of tours – the guides are all in great shape because they walk all day, and the tourists are slower, sometimes much slower.
The third day was a half day in port and we were only going in with a tour. The ship had our passports and visas (so immigration could us all in at one time and stamp our passports) and we using a transit card with our passport and visa numbers on it. That card was to be turned in at the end of the week when we left Vietnam.
Without a tour (which had both stunk in Ho Chi Minh City) we were not chancing getting left behind. A communist country with no passport or visa on us? No thanks. Not a situation we wanted to be in. Instead, we got off the ship and went to the little pop-up shops in the port area. I purchased some Vietnamese embroidery art that was “peasant” scenes.
When we got home, I took them to a local framer. He’s an interesting guy in that he’s married to a Filipino and has a pineapple farm in the Philippines. He has many customers, including those from Southeast Asia.
As my art was sitting there to be framed, two ladies originally from Vietnam commented on the excellent quality of my purchase, asked him where they came from (he told them what he knew from me), and asked him to inquire if I was willing to sell. I was not, but that was very nice to hear.
Our next stop was the port of Chan May. This was a long day stop as the destination cities of Hue or Da Nang were 1 ½ to 2 hours away – one way!
We had booked a tour to go to a local person’s home and make candy and then have lunch. That tour was canceled as Hubby and I were the only two people to sign up for it.
We were told this two days prior, so with only a few days to plan, and many of the ship’s tours already fully booked – we came up with a plan B to take the shuttle into a nearby resort town, have lunch at a beachfront restaurant and shop.
That plan went awry.
I opened the curtains that morning to dense fog, large puddles, and rain.
Hubby and I decided to stay on board the ship until the rain passed and then we went out to the small shops and art dealer at the pier.
There, we bought a few souvenirs, some artwork, and salt coffee.
Vietnam has some strange coffee choices: coconut coffee (just what you’d think), egg coffee (an egg is dropped into hot coffee and you eat it (without stirring) like a dessert) and salt coffee.
The salt coffee sounded gross, but for two bucks I figured, why not try it?
It was delicious.
Sweet, thick and velvety I was shocked at how much I enjoyed that salt coffee.
Vietnamese coffee is fairly harsh and is usually made from instant coffee. To make it palatable they add sweetened condensed milk. As someone who does not add sweetener to my coffee I do not enjoy Vietnamese coffee. Salt coffee, was therefore, a very pleasant surprise.
After going back to the ship we watched the rain come down in buckets. And with it, cold air moved in and that was the end of our hot weather for this trip.
Ha Long Bay
Our final stop in Vietnam was Ha Long Bay.
We took a ride on a “junk boat” to see the formations and caves. This “junk boat” was not at all like the boat in Singapore, this one was easy to get on and off.
A few months after we were there, a boat capsized and 35 people died!
Many films have used the area for filming including Kong:Skull Island and Pan.
After the tour, Hubby took the shuttle into the nearby small city. He went to the mall and then wandered into the local wet market.
He said it was incredible.
The floors were soaked, workers wore goulashes, and there was bins of water filled with fish and shell fish everywhere.
He watched the shellers and then he saw two men come in with a pig on a 10 foot poll and deposit it for preparation.
My husband, who can smell nothing, said the smell of the wet market was abominable. He was very glad I wasn’t with him because I couldn’t have made it near the place (I have a very keen sense of smell) and he wouldn’t have been unable to investigate the area.
After his description and seeing the photos, I too was very glad I was not with him.
That stop wrapped up our time in Vietnam, and it was on to Hong Kong.
Our other stops on this long vacation:
● Short Stay in Thailand: Elephants, Food & Cultural Gems
● Our Two Days in Singapore: Itinerary & AttractionsBali, Indonesia | Two Days on the Island
● Adelaide to Perth: Our Australia Travel Stops
● Two Days in Melbourne, Australia: Our Itinerary
● Two Days in Tasmania: Short Stay Itinerary
● Exploring New Zealand North Island
● Auckland, New Zealand – Sightseeing and Our Itinerary
● For more travel posts on Ann’s Entitled Life, click here.
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