Saigon…shit. I’m still only in Saigon.
Well, I figured this might happen. Mixed emotions about today. Went to the former presidential palace, scene of the iconic last chopper out of Vietnam in ‘75.
today…
Now it’s called the Reunification Palace. Fascinating visit, lots of interesting history of the events leading fall of South Vietnam.
Then I went to the War Remnants Museum. Pretty sobering and graphic, war truly is Hell. Felt a little awkward being an American even though I wasn’t old enough to be a part of the conflict. So I get outside and a double amputee (arms) comes up to me and asks me where I’m from. He probably was old enough to fight but certainly could have been a child during the war. After I tell him I’m from the US he invites me to shake his nub. I do and then the sales pitch. He wants me to buy two books from him, I don’t want to. I offer to give him some Đóng (money you sick fuckers) but he says he doesn’t want my donation, he wants me to buy the books. So I give him $20 US (he wanted $40).
I need a beer at this point so I go to a craft beer joint about a six minute walk away and sip on a pale ale.
Time to go back to my Airbnb. So I book a Grab scooter (Grab is Vietnamese Uber). Now unless you’ve been to SE Asia, it’s hard to appreciate how insane the traffic is. Most people travel by scooters and conventional traffic laws here in the US don’t mean shit in Năm. Red lights? Stopping is only a suggestion. Driving on the sidewalk? Sure, why not! When I got to Hanoi last week and rode on the back of a scooter for the first time, I was scared shitless at first. Driver said “Wait till you get to HCMC!” He was right…
I get on the scooter, holding the books I didn’t want to buy in one hand, and grabbing the back of the seat with the other hand. The helmet is too effing small and I can’t fasten it properly. After two minutes of starting and stopping abruptly in Saigon traffic, my driver t-bones another scooter and I go flying off. How I stayed on my two feet, I’ll never know. Wasn’t injured, just a mild boo boo on my right knee. My driver learned some English curse words at that point. The two drivers just sat on their scooters, staring at each other for about 10 seconds, nary a word said. Then we continued on.
I didn’t leave a tip…