Saigon’s Straw Skyscraper

Overall, Vietnam made an astonishing recovery since the end of the American War (as it is called there). From being an insignificant producer of coffee before the war, it became in year 2000 the biggest producer of Robusta beans; its population more than doubled, pampered children are ubiquitous. The population growth and the economy boom accompanying it forced the reconstruction of the country and few marks are left of the barbarous destruction during the war.

That is true with the clear exception of Saigon, which became District #1 of Ho Chi Minh City. It is impossible to visit the city without noticing the war scars. Another straw skyscraper of militaristic imperialism, Saigon offers an invaluable history lesson to its visitors. This is not Paris, not even a tropical version of it. However, the setup, the buildings, and the Notre Dame Cathedral leave no doubts regarding who built the town.

The Politics of Names

Prey Nokor is the khmer name of what was the main Cambodian port to the South China Sea. In the seventeenth century the area was annexed by Vietnam with the official name of Gia Dinh, though in 1862 the French colonized Cochinchina and began using the common Vietnamese name of Saigon. With the fall of South Vietnam, Saigon was merged with the surrounding suburbs and the metropolis of Ho Chi Minh City was created. Saigon remains the official name of District #1 – the central one.

Pham Ngu Lao Street

On the southwestern side of Saigon is this street, where many travel agencies, budget accommodations, restaurants, curio shops and internet cafes cater for travelers. This is the place for purchasing the bus-tours crossing the country; Sinh Cafe is the most reliable tour operator.

Dong Khoi Avenue

Touching the Saigon River, a tributary to the Mekong Delta, is the Dong Khoi Avenue, which hosts many cafes and bars catering for tourists.

Reunification Hall - Dinh Thong Nhat

The former Independence Palace of South Vietnam is one of the main attractions in town; it was the seat of that pseudo-country president until April 30, 1975. On that day, at 10:45am, a North Vietnamese Army tank crossed the main gate and ended the war. The southern president – a "democratic" general - bravely left the place shortly before that, leaving his soldiers to deal with the mess alone. Another South Vietnamese Army general awaited his northern peer and attempted to handle him the power. "You can’t give what you do not have," was the proud and correct answer of the northern general. After that it was renamed the Reunification Hall and remains one of the main political symbols in the country.

French invaders built the original palace amidst a wide park from 1868 onwards; however, the low but wide building has an unusual look, not Colonial French at all. The first palace was named after Norodom – Cambodia’s king; from 1871 to 1945, the palace was used by the French Governor of Cochinchina.

On March 9, 1945, Japan defeated France and Norodom Palace became their government house until September 1945, when France returned to its colonial role. However, on May 7, 1954, France surrendered to the Viet Minh after its Dien Bien Phu Battle defeat. Afterwards, France violated the Geneva Accords it signed in 1954 and refused to hold free elections in the south, creating thus the illegal Republic of South Vietnam, which was ruled from this palace.

A reconstruction of the renamed Independence Hall began on 1962. It was inaugurated on 1966 and became the presidential palace until 1975. After the liberation of Saigon, it was renamed the Reunification Hall and was transformed into a museum.

City Post Office - Buu dien Thanh Pho

Located at 2 Cong Xa Paris Square, near the Notre Dame Cathedral, the City Post Office is one of the most attractive structures in Saigon. The building was designed by Gustave Eiffel and built in 1886.

This grand colonial building features high, curved ceilings and exquisite decorations which include beautiful maps of the Cochinchina era. Names and sculptures of inventors who contributed to the fields of electricity and telecommunications such as Morse, Ampere, Ohm, Bell and others adorn the place

Notre-Dame Cathedral - Nha Tho Duc Ba

The Notre-Dame Basilica was constructed between 1863 and 1880, with materials brought from France; if it wasn’t by the adjacent City Post Office building which features a similar style, it would be here completely out of place. Vietnam feature one of the biggest Christian minorities in Asia even in modern days, justifying thus the structure.

The structure was designed by J. Bourad in Roman style mixed with Gothic elements; resulting in the most beautiful church in South East Asia. The outer wall was built with red bricks brought from Marseille; fifty-six glass squares were brought from Chartres. In a fashion forgotten to the architects of modern skyscrapers, the cathedral foundation was massively designed to bear ten times the weight of the cathedral. Inside the main entry is a granite plate commemorating the blessing ceremony held On Easter Day, 11 April 1880. In 1895, two bell towers were added to the cathedral, each reaching almost fifty-eight meters and featuring massive bronze bells. Crosses 3.5m high were installed on each tower.

In 1959, Bishop Joseph Pham Van Thien, added a granite Peaceful Notre Dame statue made in Rome; after its placement, the Cathedral was renamed the Notre-Dame Cathedral. In 1960, the Vatican founded a Roman Catholic diocese in Vietnam, assigning archbishops to Hanoi, Hue and Saigon. The cathedral was renamed then Saigon Chief Cathedral. Shortly after, in 1962, the Vatican anointed it, transforming it into a basilica.

War Remnants Museum

The War Remnants Museum contains horrible exhibits related to the USA-Vietnam War. It was inaugurated in 1975 as "The House for Displaying War Crimes of American Imperialism and the Puppet Government." Later it was renamed the Museum of American War Crimes, but the normalization of the relations between the USA and Vietnam caused the last name to be changed into the War Remnants Museum.

Some displays are in the themed rooms scattered within several buildings, while others occupy the big inner yard; the last includes a M48 Patton tank, an A-1 attack bomber, a UH-1 "Huey" helicopter, an F-5A fighter, and a BLU-82 "Daisy Cutter" bomb.

The most shocking displays are indoors. They include tiger-cages used by the South Vietnamese government for torturing political prisoners and an impressive and extensive display of items related to the illegal use of Agent Orange - dioxin - and other chemical defoliant sprays by the Americans. The effects on unborn babies are described - including deformed fetuses kept in jars - in excruciating and hard to watch detail. The use of napalm and phosphorus bombs and events such as the My Lai massacre are a shameful display of what is sometimes immorally done in the name of democracy and Christianity.

Located seventy kilometres northwest of Ho Chi Minh City in an area called the "Iron Triangle," the Cu Chi Tunnels were more than two-hundred kilometres long. Most of that have been preserved by the Vietnamese government, though very short parts have been expended to "Tourist Size," as local guides like to joke. The tunnels were the base of operations of the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam Tet Offensive in 1968. For years they were part of communication and supply routes, hiding spots during combat, hospitals, weapon caches, intelligence operation bases and living quarters. The Ho Chi Minh Trail ended here its tortuous rout that commenced in Northern Vietnam and crossed Laos.

The tunnels history began already in 1948 while the Viet Minh was fighting the French; each village built a segment and those were eventually united into a large, comprehensive network. They included disguised entries and kitchens capable of hiding the cooking smoke, using filters of wet leaves. The Americans were mostly unable to detect the underground communities, but the cost of security was dear: poisonous insects, parasites and malaria posed real threats to the tunnels’ denizens. In spite of that, the National Front for the Liberation won several campaigns against the American conscripted army, in the face of its technological disadvantage.

The Americans launched Operation Crimp (1966), Operation Cedar Falls (1967) and others in order to destroy the tunnels but failed. Due to their size, the American soldiers failed to enter the tunnels even when they found them or fell prey to bobby traps; the operation was preceded by a brutal bombing of the area which destroyed the surrounding jungle. Even nowadays the jungle has not completely recovered due to the huge of highly toxic defoliant agents, like dioxin, which is better known as "Agent Orange."

Explosive booby traps and pits with boards covered with bamboo knives took care of the few soldiers who managed to infiltrate the system; the tunnels’ clever design rendered American technology ineffective. In response, the "tunnel rats" units were created. They were trained to fight within the tunnels only with a gun, a knife, a flashlight and a piece of string; but also these units turned out to be highly ineffective. However, during Operation Cedar Falls, tunnel rats captured many documents which included maps of American bases, lists of political sympathizers, routes maps, and plans for an assassination attempt on Robert McNamara; nevertheless, the tunnels were never destroyed.

From 1969 onwards, B-52 bombers began carpet-bombing Cu Chi, in another futile attempt to destroy them. Simply, they were too large to destroy; the collapse of a section meant nothing since their convoluted design always provided another path. Slowly, they became a sour wound in the American military minds, which were too technology-oriented and concerned too little about their morality. In parallel, the Vietnamese confidence despite their drawbacks, increased constantly.

Reaching the Tunnels

The tunnels can be approached through popular tours offered from Saigon by all tourism agencies. A day tour includes visits to enlarged tunnels, restored kitchens, living quarters, reconstructed bobby traps and underground conference rooms like those in which the 1968 Tet Offensive was planned.

The Vinh Moc Caves

A related site is on the DMZ (the former De-Militarized Zone between North and South Vietnam). Next to the sea, the Vinh Moc Caves are much bigger than the Cu Chi Tunnels, and provide a better insight of the daily life of such a community during the war. Rooms adapted to different activities (dormitories, working rooms, meeting rooms, kitchens) successfully provide the visitor with a feeling of what meant to live underground. The hidden exits to the seashore tell of an immediate element of danger in their lives.

Very close to downtown Saigon, Cho Ben Chanh Market offers a golden opportunity to take a close look at a South East Asian market. The market is placed within a low, attractive French colonial building featuring a square clock tower. Its interior is visitors’ friendly, with ordered stalls and clean corridors. Beyond the expected gewgaws and knickknacks, the market offers wonderful food stalls offering Vietnamese food. The best bets are coffee, fruits and pho.

Coffee

Like Laos and Cambodia, Vietnam was for a long time under the French rule. Beyond the architectural styles left by them in the main cities, their signs can be seen in every single angle of human activity; they have even successfully modified the local diet by introducing baguettes and coffee.

The coffee was adopted first as a drink, especially for the mornings, and much later – in the 1980’s – as a crop aimed to tempt Vietnamese peasants to populate the mountainous backbone of the country, till then an exclusively hill-tribes territory. The Robusta beans, more suitable than the Arabica as an altitude crop were chosen; twenty years later Vietnam became the third largest coffee producer in the world and the biggest among the Robusta growers.

The problem of this approach is that all the plantations produce Robusta beans which have fewer aromas and taste than Arabica, but more caffeine and texture. Thus, this is the usual secondary ingredient in coffee blends. Persistent rumors say Starbucks is the main consumer of this crop.

A careless traveler would probably dismiss the experience even before the first cup. "A stall market in Vietnam using pure Robusta beans cannot produce a good cup of coffee," he would probably think. Yet, reality is complex. For unclear reasons, Vietnamese people roast their coffee in the presence of butter. The process adds an exquisite aroma and taste, providing one of the most exciting coffee experiences in South East Asia.

Vietnamese coffee beans are roasted to a very dark degree in the presence of butter. The aroma of the buttered coffee can be felt from the distance in the markets, even above the strong odors of tropical fruits.

The basic preparation technology in Vietnam is gravitational filtration using small metallic cups, as those used in parts of France, with a volume of a double espresso. These cups have a double bottom, both of them perforated, and the lower one, in fact the true bottom of the cup, has a screw to which the second one is attached, permitting the user to set the distance between them and choose the coffee flows' rate. Usually it is set so that the filtration process length will be between three to five minutes. The metallic cup is put over a glass one, about ten grams of coffee are added to it, boiling water are added and a metal lid is put atop.

The dark fluid flows down to the glass, usually over a white layer of condensed milk. At the end of the procedure two separated layers, black on white, are formed. The cover is then inverted on the table and the metallic cup put over it, so it will not wet the table. Some quick mixing causes the milk layer to disappear without significantly changing the black color of the coffee.

To avoid the cooling of the coffee during the filtration, the whole glass is immersed inside a bowl of hot water, creating an impressive but not very efficient structure, since the glass would otherwise drip water.

Cold coffee is produced in the same way, but the filtration is done by the seller, far away from the customer. At the end of the process the coffee is poured into a tall glass full of small ice cubes, cut off from a big ice block. Black coffee is less popular and is consumed with huge quantities of white sugar that helps the drinker to survive the drink’s strength.

Hot or cold, with milk or black, a cup of green tea always awaits the traveler at its end; "It washes the coffee taste out," I was told time and again.

Pho

Noodles soup is a popular food all over East Asia, with regional variations which take advantage from local ingredients and tastes. Thailand "watdiao-nam" is an almost do-it-yourself dish allowing the customer to choose most of the ingredients, while the Vietnamese variation usually limits the choices only to the kind of meat and the rest is determined by the region the shop is in or has originated from.

Vietnam offers the most social version of the dish; sitting on low street benches or packed as a sardine in a hole-in-the-wall shop, it is impossible to have a soup there without creating immediate and close contact with the locals. These are about the only places where relaxed Vietnamese can be spotted and thus they offer a good opportunity for socializing with them. Moreover, it is the perfect situation for learning how do they spice up the dish and the proper eating techniques.

The Vietnamese variant of the dish is called Pho, and the customer can choose only to the kind of meat to be used, the other ingredients are determined by the region the shop is in or has originated from.

The main ingredient, is the broth, which is prepared by simmering oxtails and marrow bones for 24 hours in a big bowl boiling over a charcoal stove, along with onions, star anise, ginger and cinnamon bark which create the wonderful mixture of flavors in the broth. Another bowl, or another partition in the former one, is filled just with water and is used to heat the precooked translucent rice noodles. Those, after being drained, are put into the eating bowl. Depending on the place, thinly sliced onions and chopped coriander leaves go in next, along with ginger shavings. Next comes the meat, which defines the name of the dish; the main variations are chicken, and then the dish is called "pho ga," and beef, which results in "pho bo." There is a spicier version called "bun bo Hue" which is made of noodles, beef, pork, lemon grass and whole chilies. Crunchy bean sprouts go atop everything.

The thin slices of meat are added raw and cook in the hot broth in front of the customer’s eyes. However, it is possible to specify the degree of cooking of your beef: ask for rare ("tai"), well-done ("chin") or fatty ("gau").

For spicing, on the table are spring onions, red chilli sauce, vinegar with garlic slices and small lemons’ wedges. Sometimes there is an additional plate heaped with different herbs that can be added to the bowl: "ngo gai" (sawleaf herb), "rau que" (Asian basil) and rau ram (coriander). A smelly sauce called "nuoc nam," made from fermented fishes may appear on the table but it is not recommended, since like its counterpart in Thailand and Laos can contain harmful parasites.

The combinations are endless and provide a good opportunity to vary the taste of the pho with each meal, which is transformed in such a way into a culinary adventure. The soup is eaten with the help of chopsticks, used to pick up the solid parts, and a deep, short, Asian spoon for drinking the soup.

Fruits

The Mekong Delta is the food basket of South East Asia and offers an incredible variety of tropical fruits, consumed natural or in awesome shakes.

Some of them would be new to the first-time visitor; others would be lush versions of known fruits. The best is not to be shy and try the new ones out. Few things compare to overcoming the pungent odor of the durian and discovering its sweet taste; the giant Jack fruit does not taste of plastic despite its shiny-yellow look and the crispy rose-apples – red or green – are an overwhelming surprise. Rarmood may not have an English name, but it is as sweet as honey, while the dragon fruit – native of Nha Trang - has a definitely sweet character despite its name.

Timing the Visit

The market may not be large, but its attractive options for meals and snacks hint for planning a relatively long visit; from the late morning till mid-afternoon is about ideal if arriving without having had a breakfast.

The Mekong Delta is one of the most fascinating parts of Vietnam. It imparts an undefined ambience somewhere between a lush jungle and busy paddy fields; old cultures hide there behind bushy orchards and traditional crafts.

Reaching the area from nearby Saigon is easy; all tourism agencies offer trips into the area in a variety of deals. Vietnamese police want all foreigners to use official transport – mainly for surveillance reasons as described in my "A Passport Theft Odyssey" article. However, it is possible to travel in the Delta region using unofficial boats departing from secluded ports; these are no less safe than the official ones and much cheaper. The key for a successful trip in the area is a good map that includes waterways; those are easily available in Saigon.

The town of Chau Doc despite being technically on the Delta, is better approached in a separate trip, while crossing between Cambodia and Vietnam through the Mekong River. The trip is possible in both directions.

The first stop in the Delta area, if arriving from Saigon, is the town of My Tho, which is two hours away from the city in the frequent public minivans used for roaming the area. By far, this is the touristiest town in the area, and despite being typical of the Mekong Delta settlements, it is definitely not enough. Yet, this is the best spot for purchasing souvenirs in the way out. The typical products of the area are rice-liquor enriched with snakes and scorpions (they float in the fierce liquid), coconut candies and other products based on the phenomenal agricultural output of the area.

Further south – on an island reached by a bridge – is the town of Vinh Long, which is the perfect departure point for exploring river islands, the hamlets there seemed taken out of "Apocalypse Now." The most recommended side-trips are to Ben Tre - the orchards village - and Con Phung - the "Island of the Coconut Monk." The ubiquitous coconut industry of the area provides many attractive sights and tasty snacks.

Back in Vinh Long, Can Thoit is just an hour south and across another river. This town justifies a stop due to its awesome riversides cafes. The coffee is splendid – as always in Vietnam – and the sights are priceless. Visiting floating markets from there – similar to the Damnoen Saduak Floating Market in Thailand - is a recommended break between coffees.

From here it is possible to return to Saigon via a circular path through Long Xuyen and My Tho or to venture further south into the Deep South, an area which is culturally, historically and linguistically Khmer. Most of time, it was under direct rule of Cambodia.

If venturing there, Soc Trang - at the far east of the area - offers the best pagodas in the area. Traveling south of there is difficult and not recommended except for enthusiastic birdwatchers since there are no roads and the waterways are just swamps. However, to the west – facing Cambodia – is Rach Gia, the town has a few beaches nearby and nice bay views, but more important the town is the springboard to Phu Quoc Island, just in front of the Bokor National Park in Cambodia. The island was annexed by Vietnam during their military campaign against the Cambodian Khmer Rouge and was transformed since then into a sunny beach resort.

More than any other country in South East Asia, Vietnam keeps security threats for the traveler. Few visitors have neither witnessed violence directly nor know a victim of violence; being aware of the dangers can ensure a pleasant and safe visit.

The main, incessant, shock awaiting the traveler in Vietnam are the touts. They are much more violent than elsewhere in the region and they do not give up. Beyond legal commercial activities, many of them cater for the local crime scene and their approaching travelers may lead to an entrapment event. In Saigon, drugs loaded syringes are sold at the tourist concentrations; despite the fact that tourists are not approached the scene is dangerous. A traveler may fall prey to an extortion attempt where local policeman cooperate with the crook. The street crowds ease their work, and provide protection to the real danger: motorbike thieves.

I visited Vietnam for the first time with a Canadian companion. While walking Pham Ngu Lao Street – Saigon’s main travelers’ quarters - two men riding one of those ubiquitous motorbikes in Vietnam, approached her from behind and snatched her daypack. Chasing them was not possible.

Out of despair, she denounced the event at the nearest police station – not that she expected to see her things again, but because her passport was robbed. A long sheet of paper written entirely in unintelligible Vietnamese was issued, but not other warnings of the theft consequences were offered. Following that, a quick internet search showed that the nearest Canadian consulate was in Hanoi, all the way across this spaghetti shaped country.

The troubles began once out of Saigon. Simply, guesthouses and hotels did not allow her to check in without a passport. The same ritual was repeated everywhere: the police report of the theft would be shown to the receptionist; the last would call the local police station in order to get their approval. The local police station would call the issuing station in Saigon in an attempt to confirm the Vietnamese-illiterate tourist didn’t fake the official paper. Only after that she would be allowed to check in; sometimes the process took more than two hours.

Later, at the consulate, she was told another young woman was robbed the same week. She didn’t let go of her backpack and was dragged by the motorbike for half a block. Finally the thieves cut the straps and took the backpack, but her shoulder was already broken. Never fight thieves.

Violating Basic Freedoms and Legal Principles

Experiencing this odyssey, the ongoing rumor was confirmed. Vietnamese hotels and guesthouses keep the visitors passports for the first evening, so that the documents can be presented (and photocopied?) at the local police station. It must be emphasized this is not done for the travelers security, if it was so, providing non-intrusive, impersonal, peripheral security to the establishments would be enough. Moreover, this is a blunt violation to the privacy right ensured by article twelve of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Basically, it means that travelers are considered guilty (and thus the surveillance) and in need to prove their innocence in contradiction to all legal principles.

Sadly, most countries requesting identification while checking into such establishments behave in a similar way, even if usually in a more subtle way. Thailand authorities trust the receptionists list, and thus the privacy violation is easily circumvented there using simple methods. Laotian establishments are careless, but any registration problems would be investigated by the immigrations officers at the country exits, as I described in another article.

However, with no doubt, the prize in the category of institutional paranoia goes to Bolivia. In a hangover from their last military dictatorship, strict identity control on the people entering and leaving Bolivian cities is imposed by the police. A network of street-informants runs the local streets - I have Bolivian newspaper clippings confirming that. Ten-thousand policemen patrol a city of less than a million people and telephoto cameras located on the Andean High Plateau rim watch the city from high-above. And yet, they pick up travelers documents at the hotels reception desks; the fact that every year travelers disappear leaving no trace – though their bodies usually appear at some later stage – reinforces my point that this privacy violation has nothing to do with the travelers security. On the contrary, it facilitates the job of those attempting to classify easy and valuable crime targets.