Day 42 - Final Day For Hi Chi Minh City

Truth be told we had a "regroup" day today with no activities planned. We had a chance to work out and catch up on some e-mail, so we don't have too much to report.

However, we do have a few final photos and thoughts about this intriguing city. We have talked about the scooters a lot and they still amaze us ever day as they swarm the streets. One interesting practice, despite the sweltering heat, is that the vast majority of people are covered head to toe with long sleeves and pants for men and long sleeves and pants or long skirts for women. In addition, especially the women, are wearing hoodies (hoods up), coats, masks and sometimes gloves (see photos below). We have been told this is to protect them from the sun and also the exhaust fumes from busses and trucks. We sweat just looking at them!

We also snapped a few street shots. Photo #1 shows a typical shot of a group of women sitting in low chairs on the streetside. They are selling food but also eating their lunch together. This happens everywhere up and down the streets. Photo #2 is of a guy taking a siesta on his scooter. This is also very typical where they use the seat as a lounger and take a nap. The last photo is another shot of a scooter hauling "something", this time it looks like some sort of tubing. We have seen so many crazy things being hauled: huge flower arrangements, aluminum boxes, bubble wrap, all kinds of food etc. But the babies still scare us the most!

This is just a lovely colorful picture of a merchant lady on the street selling fruit while taking a nap:

We had a great evening with Bert and his lovely friends. Bert told me this type of casual gathering is called "yao" (phonetic spelling) in Vietnamese. He gathers often for meals with these guys. It was great to see him, meet his friends and enjoy some yummy food together in Saigon.

Our trip would not be complete without having seen Ho Chi Minh City (and Bert) as it holds an important place in history and is rich with culture, great food and lovely people.

Vietnamese Fun Facts:

• There is a shopping mall in HCMC. When you are in it you feel like you could be in the Natick Mall! It was really weird because everything else is so different here.

• There are very few American chain restaurants. We have only seen the occasional McDonalds, Burger King or KFC.

• We have not seen a Walmart in all of Sout East Asia! Yay!