Traveling in Vietnam

We have arrived in Ho Chi Minh City yay!.  Didn’t eat much on the plane once I finished the goat cheese sandwich with arugula and roasted peppers I brought with me. I just couldn’t eat too much plane food.  So I only had a little bit of cheese and some melon and a few asparagus.  We finally arrived at around 10pm Sunday night; it was 22 hours from door to door.

We went out of the hotel hoping to find  some food I would be able to enjoy.  Luckily there was a restaurant on the next corner.  It was nice and busy with local Vietnamese people, always a sign of good food.  The menu was huge with lots of fish and some very unusual items like goat, sparrow and pigeon. I was not ordering that on my first day.  Since it was so late and I really wanted something light and needed some vegetables.  I ordered some sautéed spinach with garlic.  When it arrived it was not the spinach we get at home but it was a lovely green vegetable, lightly sautéed with good garlic flavor, not oily.  I was pleased.  We also ordered some Shrimp Spring Rolls but they were full of pork which I was not ready for either.  The spinach was enough to satisfy me so I could sleep.  I think I have swichted my clock around, I slept very well.  It is hard to believe I am on the other side of the world.

Our first day in Saigon (HCMC) we went to the  Ben Thanh Market . It is a bustling market with fish, meat, vegetables, mushrooms, kim chi, places to sit and eat as well as clothing, shoes everything. It was clean with no bad smells even with all the fish and chicken, I was impressed. Here are some of the highlights.

We had lunch at Hoa Tuc a fabulous restaurant located in the courtyard of a former opium refinery.  The food was excellent.  I had mustard leaves rolled with crispy vegetables and shrimp.  I asked what the crispy vegetables were expecting them to be fried with batter but instead it was lotus root and bamboo shoots fresh.  They served with a sweet/salty dipping sauce made with fish sauce.  Roger had a delcious chicken salad.

Before dinner we went to the rooftop wine bar of the Sheraton to have some wine while overlooking the city.

Dinner was at one of the most popular places in town, Nha Hang Ngon, which offers the opportunity to sample a large range of the very best street food in stylish surroundings.  The restaurant is set in a garden ringed by food stalls, each cook creates a specialized traditional dish.  It was spectacular. Here are some of the pictures of the various food stalls.  I had some rice noodles with vegetables and mushrooms.  I think I have to come back here and try more dishes.

Tomorrow we go to the Cat Tien National Park on a 5 day adventure tour of biking, kayaking, white water rafting and hiking.  It will be a little rustic but I am excited.  Please post a comment if you like these pictures.