GOOD MORNING VIETNAM!!!!!

Sorry, I couldn’t help myself.  It’s actually evening here, but it’s morning where most people are reading this.

I knew immediately that I was going to love Vietnam.  It’s chaotic, friendly, crazy and laid back all at the same time.  It might have an identity crisis if it cared.

I just walked around Ho Chi Minh City today to get a feel for things.  I have a tour starting day after tomorrow, so I think I will see the sights then.  It was great.  The air here has the scent of overripe tropical fruit with a hint of motorbike exhaust.  The streets are organized chaos.  There are motorbikes, vespas and mopeds everywhere…they are like bees in a wildflower field.

Even taxis operate on motorbikes (they do have 4 wheel taxis also).  It’s called Go-Bike and they have an extra helmet for the passenger.  Locals seem to carpool.  These two ladies where getting ready to brave the streets when I saw them.  They let me take their picture.

Deliveries also seem to be made with motorbikes.  The Culligan man in the USA has it really easy.

And so does the FTD guy

Crossing the street in Ho Chi Minh City is a bit like being the mole in Whack-a-Mole.  Every time you think you find a safe hole, something comes out of nowhere to try to take you down.  I noticed some locals waited to cross “en-masse” with arms linked together.  I decided that just makes you a bigger target.  Take a close look at this picture.  What is the one thing missing from this intersection?

There are a few signs left of the French colonial past.  The country has the best coffee I have had in Asia so far and I saw one old cathedral.

When the heat became too much,  I stopped in at a cafe.  It was too hot to try the life-changing coffee, however.

Now, if anyone out there has been to Vietnam and can explain this next picture, I would be grateful.  The questions are both why and how?  Do people not want to litter or are they going to come back later and finish their beverage?

I have signed up to take a cooking class tomorrow.  We are supposed to start at the market to shop for ingredients and then head to the kitchen to cook.  Should be a blast!!!

Au Revoir!