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Good morning, Vietnam!

by with No Comment HCMC / Saigon

Good morning, Vietnam!

Good morning, Vietnam was made by one of my favorite actors and released in 1987 which would have made me 15 years old at the time. Each time I visit I new Country, I look back at things that happened earlier to my life.  

I saw the movie at Londonderry Theatres, which was the neighborhood mall growing up. I wouldn’t have dreamed that I would someday visit Saigon. The funny part is that I thought MASH was also filmed in Vietnam, and thankfully, I was corrected before I wrote a blog on MASH instead of GMV.

I visited the Vietnam War Remnants Museum in Saigon, which was heartbreaking.

The torture the Vietnamese people endured was horrible to witness for me:

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Made in Vietnam! That is a good thing!!

by with No Comment HCMC / Saigon

I arrived in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam on January 14, 2025. I knew street food would be great, but I never imagined it would be better than Thailand. I wrote a blog on street food here.

I also knew that most apparel and shoes are made in Vietnam too! How is that for a shopping win-win!!

Admittedly, I am not a big shopper. I try to keep it simple when traveling, as I do not pay for bags. The problem becomes when items are so cheap that they are almost disposable (setting up a Crocs joke here).

District one in HCMC has Bein Than market along with many other pop-up stores that sell knock-off brands. I know, you get what you pay for, but this stuff was worth it even if some of it does not make it home.

I always said that I would never buy a pair of Crocs, but I do not recall saying that I would not buy TWO pairs of Crocs. 🤓 

I am going to take so much shit for this but honestly, I do not care as they were $10 bucks each. I also bought a couple of shoulder travel bags that were $10 each also making it a total of $40 for all four items. 

I also bought a Nike jacket made of the same wicking material as the authentic.  I knew it was a knockoff as the sizing is off on Asia products but again, it was $12 so what the hell:

You cannot even buy one of those items in North America for the total price of all five, screw it!

Here are some YouTube Videos of the famous Ben Thanh market:

The market outside Ben Thanh is better IMO and where I bought my items.  There are so many other knockoff items that we overpay for in North America.  These knockoffs items in some cases are made in the same factories and you cannot tell the difference and even go as far as to use the same tags:

I was wearing my $50 USD “Osprey Daylite” sling shoulder bag that has thousands of miles on it and did a side-by-side comparison. 

The original is definitely made better and that is the reason it is guaranteed for life with the “Almighty guarantee“. I do not know of many other brands that stand behind their products forever so that makes sense.  

The North Face, Patagonia, Nike and Crocs appeared to be authentic without a negative person’s overview.

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Ants marching – Ho Chi Mihn City!

by HCMC / Saigon

I have been to a few Countries in Asia (Taiwan, Thailand, Philippines, and now Vietnam), and the general mode of transportation is a scooter. I am blown away by the traffic flow each time and always explain it as ants marching.

Everyone gives way to the other all while getting to their destination, fast.

If you took the time to watch any of the videos, you would notice that almost everyone smiles and says hello to me.  That is the first thing I notice in a new Country, so I know how much I can use my charming personality to have more fun. 

Street Food! Vietnam #1!

by HCMC / SaigonTravel bucket list

One of the best things about traveling is street food and trying the local beer!

I don’t care if you are in your hometown, Province/State trying a new food truck or traveling internationally eating from a food cart pulled by a donkey. They are all amazing, so try them at least once.

Mexico street tacos are where it all started for me and, still try new ones to this day and also have my favorites in many cities. I have only been to three on the above list: Mexico City, Bangkok, and New Orleans, and can remember meals like it was yesterday!

Below is a list of destinations that make my mouth water. 😋😋

Mexico City has many vendors selling anything from: Tacos, burritos, Tamales, sweet corn, Quesadillas, and sweets. I have a favorite restaurant in so many Mexican cities that I visit when in each town.

Bangkok along with the rest of Thailand was so awesome too! You could get anything from frog legs, chicken feet, snake, cow tongue, brain, and tofu. 🤮 My go-to was always Pad Thai, coconut soup, Tom kha gai, Tom yum, Tom XYZ (forgot), and of course spicy noodles with chicken.

New Orleans Cajun food is spectacular! Jumbo red beans and rice, Jambalaya, Po’boys, and crawfish (you’re supposed to remove the vein and head—nope). I ate them all by mistake. 😆

This brings us to Vietnam, number 5 on the above list! 

The food street food has been spectacular, I have already found my favorites but try at least one new place every day so far keeping in mind most street food meals are a few dollars.

I found a coffee shop my first morning and I have been going back every day since and today is day five. The owner knows that I love the iced coffee and tea and refills them as needed for the same price, 87 cents! Yesterday, I sat there for three hours and listened to the hockey game and surfed the internet and my bill was under a dollar if you can imagine.

If you know Vietnam food, you know Pho is one of the best things since sliced bread!  It was the first thing I wanted when l arrived and found the absolute perfect spot.  Today, I chatted with the owners who educated me on other dishes and where to find them in our neighborhood.  Their Pho was 2 for 2 and tough not to go there every day, no promises.  Here is Huang and his family Pho master piece:

I did have two other decent variations but will not be cheating my Pho-king Family:

I did not try the below but took a picture of some dude’s lunch like an obsessed Pho’ierdo:

Last but certainly not least, I have had the best Bahn Mi sandwiches and spring rolls, but they were in my belly before I thought to take a picture.  I had a nice recovery today ordering more while visiting the Ben Nghe Street food court. 

 

This place does not mess around as you can see from the above YouTube and pictures I took!

 

I could have pasted more low-quality screenshots, but I think you get the idea, it was badass! 

I settled for three items a la carte: Fresh and deep-fried spring rolls, a couple of pork skewers, and a couple of local Tiger beers including a $1.50 ice-cold draft! 👌

 

Vietnamese food has overtaken Thai and Mexican as my favorite food other than Ukrainian which by default is #1!