#  >  > Travellers Tales in Thailand and Asia >  >  > Vietnam, Nepal and Burma  Travel Forum >  >  Authentic Saigon

## Butterfly

I decided to do a visa run to Saigon, my last trip was in 2007 and I had good memories of Vietnam but remember not staying long enough in Saigon, which reminds me a lot of Paris with the architecture, the cafe and the food

I stayed in the hippie district, the Khao San Road of Saigon, quite funny actually and not so much a tourist ghetto as the local residents are very present and remind us of it every night when the locals get to meet their neighbors in the streets to eat, drink and play cards on small tables outside.

I stayed in an excellent guest house, Ann Ann Hotel, and got the Royal Suite for 1,500 THB, including breakfast and computer with free internet. It was an awesome deal.

I arrived the day of the Tet which is the Vietnamese New Year,

My camera is shit, so eventually I had to shoot the pics in BW to give a more realistic angle of that beautiful French city

First the Hotel Room, in color  :Smile: 



This was the Royal Suite on the top floor  :Smile: 



it includes Free Internet and a PC, what a fucking deal. Couldn't find anything better in that area. I tried another place, and it was miserable.

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## Butterfly

This is the view from the room,



the crossroad nearby, the traffic was mental



nobody seems to stop at the traffic light, they are much defiant than the Thais when driving

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## Butterfly

Some soi, very quiet as most residents have left the city to the country side to visit family



locals playing cards near a French bakery,

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## Butterfly

there was a flower exposition in the main street that day to celebrate the Tet, but I am not going to bother to post the pics as they might be a bit boring.

a small cafe on one of the main street, quite touristic



Sadly, the Russians have arrived about 3 years ago and started to build money laundering properties like this huge modern tower, completely empty in the middle of Saigon



Switching to BW,

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## superman

I was looking at going later in the year with my young family. Is it family orientated and how did you get there ? Thanks

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## Butterfly

> I was looking at going later in the year with my young family. Is it family orientated and how did you get there ? Thanks


it is actually, probably one one of the few cities in SE Asia where you can actually walk around, and there are proper sidewalk and parks

saw a lot of couples with young children, so quite safe

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## Butterfly

here is a series of pics in BW,

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## Butterfly

The flower festival on the main street,



some nearby street,



Le Grand Hotel

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## Butterfly

Place Garnier, with the Opera (now a gay bar, QBar)

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## Mid

interesting how the B&W instantly dates the pics

thanxs butters

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## DrB0b

Great stuff Butters. Love the black 'n' white. When you're done with the photos how's about telling us about the food - that's one of the few things I trust your opinion on  :Smile:

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## Takeovers

Very nice info on Saigon. We are planning to go there too, but it's years off.

Finally a reason to green you. :Smile:

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## Butterfly

> Love the black 'n' white. When you're done with the photos how's about telling us about the food - that's one of the few things I trust your opinion on


I took a few pics of that in color  :Razz: 

more coming later, some artistic stuff in a genre noire

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## Butterfly

> interesting how the B&W instantly dates the pics


it does, doesn't it ? it's like going back in time, very apropos with this place

I recommend reading Graham Greene to put yourself in context, he was a frequent visitor of the place in the 1950s  :Smile:

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## Butterfly

The Opera again but without too much of the fat tourists  :Smile: 

This is the place where there was the infamous terrorist bombing in the late 50s that engaged the Americans into the war



The Continental

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## Butterfly

a small break with a food report, in color  :Smile: 



nice



look at that

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## Butterfly

these were beef in leafs, with a small brochette of pork

with 3 beers, total was quite expensive actually, about 150 THB  :Smile: 

you can eat in the street for 50 THB, this is the place to go, it's on Ly Thon, next to Pasteur

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## Marmite the Dog

> It looks ok, cleaner than Thailand in fact.


It is cleaner, but you might have trouble adjusting. I found that I could hold normal conversations with people which was a bit unnerving.

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## Butterfly

now walking back to the Cathedral,



Notre De Dame de Saigon I suppose,



and then to the historic Post Office,

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## Butterfly

inside the Post Office, can't see but there is a nice picture of Ho Chi Min in the wall behind  :Smile:

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## Butterfly

then leaving the Post Office to walk to the Presidential Palace Park, but first one last shot of the Post Office on old film

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## sunsetter

great stuff, any erm 'nightlife'?  ::chitown::

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## Butterfly

walking near my favorite cafe, used to be expats only, not it's the local bourgeoisie and nouveau riche

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## FarangRed

Keep waiting for the pussy or do I have to post my own?

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## harrybarracuda

> Keep waiting for the pussy or do I have to post my own?


Yeah go on, I'm thinking of doing Saigon this year.

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## Butterfly

this is a traveling thread dude, not a whoring thread  :Smile:

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## FarangRed

I like traveling and whoring

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## Butterfly

walking down to the Palace, near the park



The Presidential Palace, now a museum, witness of the fall of Saigon, Vietnam finest hour



Palace of another era,

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## Butterfly

walking back to the hotel,



streets were empty that day, it's the Tet



a food stall,

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## Butterfly

The central market



traffic is light,

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## Butterfly

night falls,

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## Butterfly

drinking at the local hippie pub,



quite busy at nights, some will stay until sunrise as this is opened 24/7

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## Butterfly

heart of darkness,

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## Butterfly

it's too bad I can't upload the Hi Def version of those BW pics (1MB), they have a much better effect than the current low res version ones here

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## FarangRed

Still look good the B/W give some feeling

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## harrybarracuda

> this is a traveling thread dude, not a whoring thread


Excuse me, I do believe that while you are travelling you should fully immerse yourself into the local culture.

Plus flower festivals are a 5 minute photo opportunity.

 :bananaman:

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## grasshopper

Did you find the Hung Vynh on Phamn Ngu Lao, Butters? No pics of the alley/soi and the denizens of the night in your pics. Now, there would be the ultimate black and whites!

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## Butterfly

> Did you find the Hung Vynh on Phamn Ngu Lao, Butters? No pics of the alley/soi and the denizens of the night in your pics


not sure I did, might have been there though

I had a lot of pics of the night, but some didn't come out too well despite their interesting angle. A lot of people are living and sleeping in the street in Saigon which make an interesting take for BW pics.

As for girls, I took quite a few pics, a lot of pretty ones I took out for drinks etc... but can't show them  :Razz:

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## tango

When I Google 'Ann Ann' Hotel I get only the '_Queen_ _Ann'. May we have the web site for the guesthouse you stayed at? cheers_

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## tango

When I Google 'Ann Ann' Hotel I get only the '_Queen_ Ann'. May we have the web site for the guesthouse you stayed at?  Great pix BTW. I visited Saigon 15 years ago, initially for a few days. I was so captivated that I extended for seven so I could spend a day in each sector; I reluctantly left after three weeks. If I could get a room like yours at that hotel, I'd visit again for a month or more, and this time take the train north in a second month. Cheers

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## werner8178

You must google for "An An Hotel Ho Chi Minh City" and you find informations.

There is also a An AN II Hotel in the sam district.

Have fun.


 :France:

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## buycondojomtien

And what about the people ? Friendly or not so much as many people who traveled there told me ?

Sellers are quite pushy like in Cambodia also ?

Thanks for the photos.

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## Butterfly

after a night of darkness, it was time for some breakfast



the best breakfast place in Saigon,



a bit of bread, with eggs and pate



and some real coffee  :Smile:

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## Butterfly

a farang intrigued by the menu,

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## terry57

Great thread butters. cheers

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## kupopopo

> Sadly, the Russians have arrived about 3 years ago and started to build money laundering properties like this huge modern tower, completely empty in the middle of Saigon


FYI - The tower is called "Bitexco Financial Tower" and is built by Bitexco - a Vietnamese textile company. The tower is empty because it has just been finished in Dec 2010

By the way, your photos are great!

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## wefearourdespot

> The Presidential Palace, now a museum, witness of the fall of Saigon, Vietnam finest hour


I wouldn't call the beginning of enslavement "finest hour"

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## wefearourdespot

> Friendly or not so much as many people who traveled there told me ?


a bunch of scammers and thieves giving even Thais a good name.

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## Butterfly

> The tower is empty because it has just been finished in Dec 2010


what about Vitcom Center ? it has been built for quite a while and it's empty despite the big brand name shops there,

total waste of money in a third world country, shameful for a communist country

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## Butterfly

walking by in the streets,



and coming across our great leader, HoChiMin  :Smile:

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## Butterfly

here Ho Chi Min again in all his splendor at the Post Office,

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## Butterfly

some random pics,

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## Rural Surin

Nice images, Butters. Times gone by....some things never change and some do. Will always have a place in my soul for Saigon. Not your Saigon, but mine. Cheers! :Smile:

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## masher

For those thinking of going to  Ho Chi Minh City I wanted to see a bit of the 'suburbs' and went down to the Sai Gon river front taking the ferry across to the other side. My first shock was to appreciate that the hundreds of scooters and motors bike in the city have to go somewhere other than just the city. For 500 Dong or so I was on the shuttle ferry but my God it had hundreds of bikes filling the drive-on deck but no cars. Obviously I had to wait to get off the ferry with the two other walk-on passengers as a cavalry of blue smoking bikes charged off the ferry. This place was not meant and frequented for and by tourists. Very few hawkers approached me and no westerners were in sight. Being tall I always stand out in Asia but people are polite and gee, I was as well. I spent an hour 'observing' . I walked down a narrow path between houses to look around when a voice said 'Hello, where are you from'? No sales pitch so I chatted for a while. People choose to live this side because its cheap and is a safe community. People from other parts of Vietnam not necessarily welcome. I went back to the ferry and while on board a mechanic came to me and chatted to practice English. I I then walked further down alongside the river to the Hydrofoil ferry and took the 09.00 trip to Vung Tau, the beacside resort and oil town for then $10. Westerners were segregated onto the front of the enclosed craft so they had better views, commuters were at the back where they could snooze. The trip time is 90 mins, going down the twisting river and its various international shipping docks for every type of ship including cruise ships. For much of the trip the banks were effectively jungle. A worthwhile side trip

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## Marmite the Dog

> total waste of money in a third world country, shameful for a communist country


Par for the course in a Commie country.

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## porno frank

Real cool scenic pics of saigon.

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## jimmymck

> Originally Posted by buycondojomtien
> 
> Friendly or not so much as many people who traveled there told me ?
> 
> 
> a bunch of scammers and thieves giving even Thais a good name.


 
Could not agree more, i travelled North to South could not wait to get out of there. F*cking shite hole. 

Food was crap apart from some of the spring rolls, can't get to excited about abit of french bread with some pate in it really. Constant hassle from every angle it seemed at times all Looking at you with glum faces not understanding why you don't want to buy a bookmark for the 1,000 time that hour.

The bit that did my swede in was this, i was with the missus and she is Thai, about 20 times a day people would talk to her in Vietnamese which is fair enough as these Asians all look pretty much the same, but when she said "I'm not Vietnamese i am Thai" they would stand there and have a look of amazement on their face and say "WOW"!!!! "you look so Vietnamese"...then looking at me as if to say "amazing isn't how an Asian looks like another Asian..??"

No shit Shirlock...

 Its like a white bloke talking English to another white bloke and he say's i am not English i am German...we don't stand there shouting "WOW" and speechless with this outcome..

All they are doing is teeing you up to fleece you trying to sell you shit.

 ::spin:: 

Nice photo's though..

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## buycondojomtien

Hahaha, not encouraging to travel there...

Anyway, in South east Asia it seems that only Thai and Lao are nice people, and i wonder why the other ones all are axx (except the muslim, we know why :-) )

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## Butterfly

if you are doing business there, I can see how it could be difficult

but the local girls were lovely, very nice, but that was Saigon, as you move to the North, it becomes more Chinese, and therefore shitty

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## travelinasia

My favourite place in vietnam is the Vinpearl resort in Nha Trang .. The "Disneyland" of Southeast Asia .. great place for a family vacation!

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## Up2U

> Originally Posted by wefearourdespot
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
>  Originally Posted by buycondojomtien
> ...


The Viets are a completely different ethnic group to the Lao/Thai/Cambodian lot. There are, as you should know, different ethnic groups in these three countries as well. Some Chinese Han-based, others from the older Thai tribes that were driven out of China by the Han.

The Viets were occupiers of the northern part of Vietnam, having been another tribe or clan driven out of China, The Cham occupied the South, but various aggressive kings rose and fell, each pushing the Viets further south and giving their conquered foes the namy 'Nguyen', as meaning that they belonged to the royal family (belonged in the sense of being serfs).

In the mountains are still several of the original tribes, living in a more traditional way, but way behind the progress of the lowland areas.

Get to know them, speak a little of the language and the people of the south are friendly. The northerners are a pain, however.

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## Up2U

> For those thinking of going to Ho Chi Minh City I wanted to see a bit of the 'suburbs' and went down to the Sai Gon river front taking the ferry across to the other side. My first shock was to appreciate that the hundreds of scooters and motors bike in the city have to go somewhere other than just the city. For 500 Dong or so I was on the shuttle ferry but my God it had hundreds of bikes filling the drive-on deck but no cars. Obviously I had to wait to get off the ferry with the two other walk-on passengers as a cavalry of blue smoking bikes charged off the ferry. This place was not meant and frequented for and by tourists. Very few hawkers approached me and no westerners were in sight. Being tall I always stand out in Asia but people are polite and gee, I was as well. I spent an hour 'observing' . I walked down a narrow path between houses to look around when a voice said 'Hello, where are you from'? No sales pitch so I chatted for a while. People choose to live this side because its cheap and is a safe community. People from other parts of Vietnam not necessarily welcome. I went back to the ferry and while on board a mechanic came to me and chatted to practice English. I I then walked further down alongside the river to the Hydrofoil ferry and took the 09.00 trip to Vung Tau, the beacside resort and oil town for then $10. Westerners were segregated onto the front of the enclosed craft so they had better views, commuters were at the back where they could snooze. The trip time is 90 mins, going down the twisting river and its various international shipping docks for every type of ship including cruise ships. For much of the trip the banks were effectively jungle. A worthwhile side trip


The Westerners are in Districts 2 and 7, mainly. You have bridges across the rivers to reach these, as against the ferry that goes directly across the Sai Gon River. District 2 is an area of two halves, divided by National Highway 1. The northern side is where all the embassy people and rich f**kers live, the southern side is where I and a few thousand Viets live. We have local shops, resto's and banks, the other side has expensive shops, restaurants, bars and international schools.

But there are 40,000 expats in Sai Gon, working in various capacities. And most also use the motorbike (scooter) as the main form of transport. Luckily I have a company car and driver and I would advise any would-be engineer or banker thinking of VN as a working base to do the same. I see an accident just about every day involving scooters - this morning we went past a couple of tangled bikes, a woman holding a baby with a mouth full of blood. The family travels together, babies not old enough to sit being held by their mothers. Sometimes both parents and three kids on a scooter. Really is dangerous to be in control of a vehicle -scooters are at least ten to every 100 metres of road.

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## Up2U

> I was looking at going later in the year with my young family. Is it family orientated and how did you get there ? Thanks


Lots of flights from BKK to SGN.

Family place, definitely. If you have young kids, you'll need a light pushchair/stroller. Otherwise the kids are safe if you emphasise that they must not cross a road without you, and watch for scooters on the sidewalks (as in much of Thailand).

I'd recomment a hotel in the middle of District 1 - such as Tan Hai Long 3, on Ho Tung Mau Street. About US$ 50 per night, room for parents and one or two kids.

Check on visas before you go. There is an airport visa avaiable for US$50, but you may do better for family - I don't know. ASEAN citizens are visa-free, for a 21-day visit.

Plenty of places within walking distance, even for little kids, and the hotel I mentioned will fix you up with guided tours if you want.

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## Up2U

> Originally Posted by Butterfly
> 
> 
>  
> Sadly, the Russians have arrived about 3 years ago and started to build money laundering properties like this huge modern tower, completely empty in the middle of Saigon
> 
> 
> 
> FYI - The tower is called "Bitexco Financial Tower" and is built by Bitexco - a Vietnamese textile company. The tower is empty because it has just been finished in Dec 2010
> ...


Bitexco are branching out into a lot of property development - the Mansion development (high-end residential blocks) is another of their investments.

There is a lot of development going on - in a few years the concept of a capital city as laid out by the French will have been messed up by a lot of new office towers sinking slowly into the mud.

But that's progress, folks!!

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## Up2U

> Originally Posted by kupopopo
> 
> The tower is empty because it has just been finished in Dec 2010
> 
> 
> what about Vitcom Center ? it has been built for quite a while and it's empty despite the big brand name shops there,
> 
> total waste of money in a third world country, shameful for a communist country


It has caught on over the past month or two, not as crowded as Parkson's on the other side of the road, but with a lot of basement eateries it attracts a different clientele. I go to the local stores, rather than these fancy places for most things, but when I want a designer-brand suit, there is nowhere better.

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## Otis

I'm new to this site and I'm really impressed with the quality of photos and messages here.  

I've been back to Saigon twice since 1970.  Everything in Saigon seems to be changing so fast.  Many of the buildings look the same but I just feel older.  :Smile:   :sexy:

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