Aussies in Saigon

We took a tourist bus from Phnom Penh across the Vietnamese border to Ho Chi Minh City, commonly known as Saigon. We were very lucky to be there at the same time as a couple of friends from back home, Chris and Judy. We spent a day together swapping stories, dining on local food and hitting a few bars. One place offered a litre of home brew for only 30 Aussie cents which was unsurprisingly rough around the edges. We couldn't resist shooting some pool in a pub named Guns n' Roses!



Saigon is a relatively modern Asian city, with 12 million people and about as many motorbikes! As we arrived into town, we instantly became aware of the traffic chaos when our bus clipped a motorcycle and knocked the rider relatively unharmed onto the ashphalt. The sheer volume of motorcycle traffic was something we have not encountered in any other city and makes crossing the street a very interestnig experience. Pedestrians are forced to walk out into the torrent of motorbikes and the riders expertly weave around.

The city is fast-paced and has a tourist area with many Western restaurants and street hawkers pushing everything from books to heroin. We ended up spending more time here than we wanted because Marty's toe became infected after the stitches were removed. He spent several days becoming familiar with local cable TV whilst Georgia explored the city and surrounding tourist drawcards.