Sunday 30th March
We were up at 07.30, had breakfast at the 'Khmer Kitchen Restaurant', just round the corner from the hotel (the fried eggs there were particularly good, as they were in most places in Cambodia, for whatever reason). A mini-van picked us up from the hotel and drove us to the bus that was to take us to Ho Chi Minh City, or Saigon, depending on which side you come from (Saigon was renamed HCMC by the victorious Communist government after the end of the war in 1975, and those on the South Vietnamese side tend not to recognise it if they don't have to).
Maria and I were both excited about going to a new country but also sad at the thought of leaving Cambodia. Personally, although I had only been there for two weeks, it had made the greatest impression on me out of all the countries I had visited. It may not have the beaches of Thailand or the remote beauty of Laos, but, without doubt, the Cambodians are the nicest people I have ever come across, and for me that is the most attractive quality a country can have. The warmth of the people is made all the more astonishing by the fact that their recent history is so horrific, and this has left most people today with so little. We felt very much at home while we were in Cambodia, and I would really love to come back someday.
The journey to HCMC took about six hours, including stops for lunch and at the border crossing. The bus company were very good, making sure that the journey was as smooth and as hassle-free as possible. We arrived into the backpacker centre in the middle of Saigon at about 15.00 and walked for about fifteen minutes until we found 'Miss Loi's Guesthouse' and got a room for $12, a fan room that was fine for a night, until we moved into a room with A/C the next morning. We didn't fancy going on a search for somewhere else to stay, and the place came recommended from a few sources, so we decided to stay put.
After we got freshened up, we ventured out onto the streets of Saigon to check it out. The first thing that hits you on arrival here is the sheer number of motorbikes that buzz about town, making a huge racket and an even bigger hassle for pedestrians. You run a real gauntlet when crossing the road and it would take us a while to get us to this chaos.
We explored the main commercial area, stopping off at one of the many tour agents to pick up some information, visited the Ben Thanh Market, and generally wandered around to get our bearings. We were in the mood for watching a movie, and took advantage of the more modern entertainment by booking tickets to see 'I Am Legend' with Will Smith, the only film which hadn't been dubbed into Vietnamese.
We had a few hours to kill before the movie started, so we had a long dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant and the food was quite nice, but not amazing. I had been led to believe that the food in Vietnam was a real highlight, but I was hoping for better things (I'm quite the discerning international food critic at this stage!). Maria and I had a good chat over dinner before heading back to the cinema to watch the film. It was quite entertaining, athough Maria spent most of it with her hand over her face, as there were quite a few jumpy moments.
We sauntered back through the streets, trying not to get knocked down by the motorbikes. Once again, it felt good to have arrived in a new country and found our feet. I was also looking forward to some sleep and crashed out as soon as we got back to the hotel.
