And another hundred people just hopped on to their scooters (apologies to Stephen Sondheim). What a young, wild and vibrant city Ho Chi Minh is! We spent our second day in HCMC yesterday. Our first day was a tour of the city and dinner. We visited a Chinese market and temple, drove by the infamous American Embassy, Independence Palace, Notre Dame Cathedral, visited a Lacquerware workshop and store, and finally had a great dinner overlooking the city. A good overview that prepared us for the next day.

Part of the tour was a ride on a Cyclo (pedal cab), but there was no way for David to get onto one of the vehicles, so we stayed on the bus and met the group at the end. From the ragged faces of the other guests, I think we made the right decision. We ended up waiting a bit for the final cab to arrive. Apparently, the driver got lost, and I can understand how!

Yesterday, we had a Saigon Street Eats tour with Vu. I had arranged the tour before we left California, and we were both looking forward to an insiders view of Saigon, and that is what we got. First, we had to get from the ship to the meeting place, and that was not as easy as it should have been. I tried using the Vietnamese version of Uber (grab), but we found out on our return that there was restricted access to the port, so we had to take a shuttle to a mall outside downtown and then find a cab. I contacted Vu to let him know that we might be a little late. When we got to the mall, we shared a cab with another couple from the ship, and arrived at the meeting spot just in time, and the rest of the evening was perfect.

Our first stop was in District 3 for Banh Xeo (a kind of lettuce wrap). They were great, but it became pretty clear that we were going to have too much food! Then around the corner to grab a Banh Mi sandwich. Then on to seafood – mussels, prawns and clams – at the gangster’s place. David was in heaven. We had seen from the bus, people sitting on short stools at little tables, and now we were there. I wish I had taken a picture of him, but we even got the chance to see the proprietor (the gangster). Covered in tattoos with what looked like two gold bars around his wrists and another hanging around his neck.

Our last stop was for free range chicken with noodles and broth. The restaurant that we visited was part food service and part parking garage for motorbikes. There is a huge business in storing and guarding motorbikes. You will often see people pull their vehicles right into shops. That did make it a little easier for us to get around in the wheelchair.

The food was great, but the best part was hearing Vu talk about life in Vietnam and Saigon. His father was with the south Vietnamese army, and suffered under the reunified government. He talked about Bill Clinton’s visit and the opening to the west in the 90’s. Now, there is a blend of communism and capitalism. The post war regime tried to restrict buying and selling, except through the government, which, particularly in Asia, seems unnatural to me. There is a strong tradition of trading in Southeast Asia that long predates the Silk Road and colonialism. It’s human nature and impossible to stem.

Our last stop with Vu was at the walking street and an ATM to get some cash. The best way to describe what I saw was Times Square on steroids and a mile long. I felt ancient next to the throngs of young Vietnamese enjoying life. I was worried about getting back to the ship, so Vu explained to the driver what our destination was. The best way to describe where the ship was docked is, if HCMC was NYC, we had to go to Elizabeth, NJ. I am still shocked by the cost of the cab, and in a good way. It was about $20 US, and the driver was a bit overwhelmed when I gave him a $5 tip.

You might think that the adventure ended there, but when we arrived at the port, they wouldn’t let the cab drive us up the the ship, so we got out and started the long trek to the ship. After walking about 50 yards, someone started shouting at us, and we walked back to see what was going on. There was an ambulance next to the gate, and he wanted to load us in and drive us to the ship. We declined the offer, because the last thing David or I wanted to do is get out of the chair, climb into a vehicle and then have to climb out again. We had done that enough. Better to just walk the three or four football fields. He had the back door open, and I hope he didn’t want to put David or me on the gurney!