Hi friends – I hope everyone has had a great Labor Day weekend! And happy football season! I know that some teams have closed out this weekend with a lot of disappointment (both my alma maters), but I’m glad that football is finally back! And the NFL officially starts this weekend, so hooray for that!
I didn’t get a three day weekend, but I did have an awesome one! A group of us travelled to Ho Chi Minh City (which is one of my favourites) for a surprise birthday trip for a friend! We flew up Friday night and met up with the birthday girl for a few drinks in the backpacker’s area of Saigon. Even though our surprise coordination was a bit lackluster, I think she was still very surprised to see all of us!
(Side note – on our walk over to the bar, we saw the biggest rats ever in the park. Seriously, I think these things were the size of cats! Ah, Asia!)
Saturday, we were up early to have baguettes (Banh Mi) for breakfast! I absolutely love Banh Mi, and they are the thing that I look forward to the most every time I am in Vietnam. There was a pretty good stand right next to our hotel, so it was a delicious way to start the day.
We headed out for some city exploration - about half our group had never been to Ho Chi Minh before, so we roughly followed a walking tour on Lonely Planet. We hit the market, the museum, the post office, and a few other sites around District 1.
One of my favorite things about Vietnam is the presence of French influences (see baguettes above!). I especially love to see it in the architecture and city scapes. Ho Chi Minh is interesting because you can clearly tell which parts of the city are where all the French set up shop.. look for tree-lined streets, perpendicular roads, etc.
This was my third trip to Ho Chi Minh, and I still love it and would come back again! I love that I see something different every time I'm here. Our walking tour included a stroll near the opera house, and we also went to check out some of the famed hotels. The Rex Hotel was where all the foreign correspondents used to stay during the Vietnam War, and so we headed up to the rooftop in the afternoon. Incidentally, our group ended up talking about the situation in Syria.. it was ironic to think that years ago, the same scenario would've played out on the same rooftop.. only now we were discussing American intervention in Syria rather than Vietnam...
We also had some delicious noodles and fresh juices while sitting on tiny plastic chairs..
Saturday night, we headed up to the top of the Sheraton Hotel for some cocktails and a view. Then we went to a fantastic restaurant (Lemongrass) for dinner and had a night out of drinks and dancing!
Sunday was more of the same - noodles and baguettes! Delicious Vietnamese coffee! A trip to the spa, some more rooftop action, and then it was time to head back to Singapore!
I think I've said this before, but I just absolutely love Vietnam! The food, the people, the sites, etc. It's all so great! Luckily, I am actually heading there again this weekend! We will be spending a night in Hanoi and then going on a cruise in Halong Bay! I am so super excited. And then it will be time to head to America!! Woo!!
I didn’t get a three day weekend, but I did have an awesome one! A group of us travelled to Ho Chi Minh City (which is one of my favourites) for a surprise birthday trip for a friend! We flew up Friday night and met up with the birthday girl for a few drinks in the backpacker’s area of Saigon. Even though our surprise coordination was a bit lackluster, I think she was still very surprised to see all of us!
(Side note – on our walk over to the bar, we saw the biggest rats ever in the park. Seriously, I think these things were the size of cats! Ah, Asia!)
Saturday, we were up early to have baguettes (Banh Mi) for breakfast! I absolutely love Banh Mi, and they are the thing that I look forward to the most every time I am in Vietnam. There was a pretty good stand right next to our hotel, so it was a delicious way to start the day.
We headed out for some city exploration - about half our group had never been to Ho Chi Minh before, so we roughly followed a walking tour on Lonely Planet. We hit the market, the museum, the post office, and a few other sites around District 1.
This was at the Fine Arts Museum.. beautiful building!
One of my favorite things about Vietnam is the presence of French influences (see baguettes above!). I especially love to see it in the architecture and city scapes. Ho Chi Minh is interesting because you can clearly tell which parts of the city are where all the French set up shop.. look for tree-lined streets, perpendicular roads, etc.
Continental Hotel
This was my third trip to Ho Chi Minh, and I still love it and would come back again! I love that I see something different every time I'm here. Our walking tour included a stroll near the opera house, and we also went to check out some of the famed hotels. The Rex Hotel was where all the foreign correspondents used to stay during the Vietnam War, and so we headed up to the rooftop in the afternoon. Incidentally, our group ended up talking about the situation in Syria.. it was ironic to think that years ago, the same scenario would've played out on the same rooftop.. only now we were discussing American intervention in Syria rather than Vietnam...
We also had some delicious noodles and fresh juices while sitting on tiny plastic chairs..
Obviously, I have a coconut
Saturday night, we headed up to the top of the Sheraton Hotel for some cocktails and a view. Then we went to a fantastic restaurant (Lemongrass) for dinner and had a night out of drinks and dancing!
Great dinner.. we let the server suggest pretty much everything we ate, and it was all wonderful!
Rachel never smiles for photos!
Sunday was more of the same - noodles and baguettes! Delicious Vietnamese coffee! A trip to the spa, some more rooftop action, and then it was time to head back to Singapore!
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