Crossing to Safety

I left my apartment just after 9:00am Monday morning. ~27 hours later I arrived at our hotel in Ho Chi Minh. Some words of advice for anyone planning a similar trip. First, if you are flying ANA and are taller than 5 feet, you will not be comfortable in economy class. (I think I was spoiled by the economy class in Thai Air). Second, ANA seems to have a weird aversion to dimming the cabin lighting so the 14 hour flight to Tokyo was all spent in bright fluorescent light (not very conducive to sleeping). On the positive side, arriving at midnight meant I had a full night to sleep and have thus hopefully avoided jet lag.

I have been told many things about Ho Chi Minh City, especially about the traffic here. None of them adequately prepared me for actually walking around in this overcrowded, over polluted city. The government for some reason has decided not to invest in traffic lights, so crossing the street is an art. Real advice from the locals: "Step off the curb and walk at a slow yet steady pace directly into all oncoming traffic and trust that the hundreds of motorcycles, cars and buses will swerve around you" As for one-way streets, if you're on a motorcycle and want to go down a one-way street, no big deal because you can just drive the opposite way on the sidewalk. Tonight we will be a part of the traffic since we are taking motorcycles to dinner with one of my mom's former colleagues who happens to be teaching history in Vietnam this summer. (Mom - don't freak out - there is a law mandating helmets)

Emily and I have definitely lucked out having our own personal tour guide (and history professor) who pointed us to the must-see tourist attractions. While navigating the streets of HCMC, we managed visit the Reunification Palace (official "White House" of the South until 1975), and the War Remnants museum. The real fun should begin tomorrow on our first excursion outside the city... let's just say shooting an AK-47 will be involved.