Ho Chi MInh City


Today was our first full day in Ho Chi Minh City, a city of 13 million people and the former capital of South Viet Nam. It is interesting what the people actually call this city.  After reunification the government renamed the city Ho Chi Minh City.  However, most of the residents still refer to it as Saigon.

After breakfast this morning our  first stop was the local market in downtown - the largest market in Viet Nam.  Everything from clothes, products, produce, fresh fish, meats and every animal organ can be purchased here. There are fixed price booths on the outer circle, everything else is negotiable. We love these colorful markets where locals come every day to purchase fresh foods.





Next we went to a Buddhist temple. Approximately 73 % of the Vietnamese people are non-religious, 12% follow Buddhism, 8% are protestant, and 7% follow Catholicism. The most popular room in the Buddhist temple was one where Millennials come to pray for having a baby.


We also visited the Saigon Post Office  that is considered to be one of the most beautiful colonial structures in Southeast Asia. Note the yellow color denoting a Government building. You can post packages to countries around the world here along with shopping for Vietnamese souvenirs and jewelry.


Our original plans called for a tour of the Reunification Palace which is now a museum.  It was formerly  in the Presidential Palace of South Vietnam.

 In 1976, in a symbolic act of the end of the Vietnam Nam civil war, a North Vietnamese tank crashed through the main gate of the palace.  The tank met no resistance.  You can see two of the original tanks used in the capture of the palace parked in the grounds.

Lastly, we saw the building where the United States evacuated 5,000 people (1,500 Americans and 3,500 South Vietnamese) during the fall of Saigon.











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