Ho Chi Minh City trip
Planning a Ho Chi Minh City trip will take you to a metropolis on the move, and this isn’t a pun related to the throngs of motorbikes that populate the streets.
The interesting thing is that most of its inhabitants still call it Saigon, and it is Vietnam’s most dizzying of experiences. The city is a high-octane city of culture and commerce that has driven the entire country forward with their energy.
The name Saigon evokes a thousand images at the same time, images of wandering through ancient alleys to see ancient pagodas or likewise teeming markets, images of going past ramshackle wooden shops selling silk, spices and baskets, while a few streets beyond these you can look up at the future beneath sleek skyscrapers and window shop at designer malls, and go into gourmet restaurants and minimalist bars.
There are still many signs of its troubled past, those ghosts living on in the churches, temples, former GI hotels and government buildings that witnessed that turmoil. It’s a part of its history and it shouldn’t be overlooked, but the real beauty of Saigon is that it is a wonderful collage of two worlds blended together.
It’s great that whether you want to stay in the finest of hotels or in the cheapest of guesthouses, or if you wish to eat in the ritziest of restaurants or try out the most humble street stalls, Saigon has all of those and more.
As far as Ho Chi Minh City trip sights go, there are several to choose from but one that you should not miss is the Giac Lam Pagoda, what is widely believed to be the oldest pagoda in greater HCMC, dating from 1744. It’s a great place in which to experience the local atmosphere, featuring gilded statues, colorful wall panels and one of the country’s most impressive stupas.
There are obviously many more things to visit and experience in such a major city, and we’ll talk about it in the future, till then keep some Vietnam car rental services in mind for your trip.