Landing in HCMC was a bit of an adrenalin rush after Hoi An and a couple of sleepy, rainy days spent recuperating from some nasty bug in Nha Trang. This city is a hive of activity - I arrived at night by bus to a blaze of lights and noise. The main tourist area is full of restaurants, guesthouses, cafes, bars, shops - and everybody wants your business. There are vendors of all sorts and people just walking up and down the streets trying to take it all in. Traffic is chaotic, almost comical, and around the roundabouts it is nothing short of bizarre - just a jumble of cars and motorcycles going in every direction like go-carts, honking horns and inching into any bit of space available. This alone is fascinating enough to watch - somehow (miraculously) it all gets untangled and everybody gets where they're going without bumping into each other.
I stayed in HCMC as long as I felt like being there, and when I left I was ready to go. So much STUFF everywhere you looked, and in such abundance (!)...and everybody so busy managing it.
