We planned to spend about a week in Saigon staying with Patton’s cousin David, who graciously let us use his guest room. In our first couple of days, we had dinner with more than a dozen of their relatives, went out to Bui Vien Walking Street and a nearby gay bar and then explored some shopping and downtown areas.

Saturday, August 3

Our flights from Phu Quoc via Hanoi went smoothly. We each added a checked bag again, and I think I didn’t bother with the 2kg carry on addon this time.

VietJet Air flight VJ1326 from Phu Quoc, Vietnam, to Ho Chi Minh City, AKA Saigon. It's a 1 hour 5 minute flight, this one departing at around 13:00.

View of Vietnam's tallest building, Laandmark 81, from VietJet Air flight VJ1326 from Phu Quoc to Ho Chi Minh City.

We took a Grab car from the airport to David’s apartment. It took about 30 minutes.

Going to meet our Grab car driver at Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City AKA Saigon, Vietnam.

David’s apartment was modern and nice. He had just moved there three days prior from elsewhere in the city and was only in Vietnam since December, from Australia. The unit was on the 37th floor of one of the towers in a complex known as Vinhomes Central Park, which is the same neighborhood as Vietnam’s tallest building, Landmark 81. It’s kind of like a gated community, where you can drive in and out during the day from I think two entrances, but at night you have to show ID to enter. I was told security was higher since there was a case last year of a stabbing with a medical needle.

View from our apartment at Vinhomes Central Park, Saigon, Vietnam.

That night we got in, we went to meet 16 of David’s relatives for a vegan buffet at a place called Buffet Gánh Bông Sen Hotel. They had more vegan options than I’ve ever seen before, including what looked like fake fish and sushi rolls, various other fake meats, and just about every vegetarian dish I could imagine. I ate quite a lot, and could easily be vegetarian for good if I had these options every day!

We met about a dozen of Patton's relatives at a vegetarian buffet place called Buffet Gánh Bông Sen Hotel, Saigon, Vietnam. It was pretty good!

We met about a dozen of Patton's relatives at a vegetarian buffet place called Buffet Gánh Bông Sen Hotel, Saigon, Vietnam. It was pretty good!

Then Patton and I went back out to explore downtown and near a very fascinating place called Bui Vien Walking Street.

Patton was looking for some art for his friend back home.

Ho Chi Minh statue in front of social security office called Cổng Thông Tin Điện Tử, in Saigon, Vietnam

Apparently the 'social security office', Cổng Thông Tin Điện Tử, in Saigon, Vietnam

Bui Vien Walking Street, Saigon, Vietnam

There's a lot of stimulation and very loud music all along Bui Vien Walking Street, Saigon, Vietnam

Streets of Saigon, Vietnam. Sign reads 'Aware!!! Tourists who look affluent have targets of thieves and robbers. Beware of the robber!'

We then made our way over to a gay bar either owned or managed by a guy Patton knew from Instagram. They had live music, and we had a pretty good time! The vocalist was good, though it did seem like some of the guitarists were a bit sleepy.

We checked out a gay bar called Thi Bar Saigon. They have a live music cover band that takes requests every night apparently. It was a pretty lively atmosphere.

Patton and I found a small free space near a table and ordered some drinks. We eventually started chatting with the guy at that table, a tall guy named Wade who lived in LA for 20 years before recently moving to Atlanta. He’s traveling now with his straight friend, where they hang out during the day and then do their own things at night. Pretty cool!

It was a pretty lively atmosphere at Thi Bar Saigon.

At one point a very young girl came into the bar and pushed through the crowd and started asking people for money. The bartenders quickly noticed and escorted her out. It was not something I’ve seen before.

We checked out a gay bar called Thi Bar Saigon, Vietnam. We got the slightly more economical pitcher, which they called a jug, of mojito.

This display was hidden away on a wall in the dark upstairs at Thi Bar Saigon, Vietnam.

A couple of hours later maybe we were getting close to leaving for the night when we met two local guys, Collin and Quân, who initially told me his name was Matthew, so that’s what I was calling him. They both had recently become friends, possibly the week before. Both were very nice, and I’m glad we met before Patton and I left! I think we got a couple more beers at Thi Bar and then we all went outside to get a change of scenery. I think the live band had ended by that point and people were leaving. At the next place, we just sat outside on the street. I ended up knocking a glass off the table, but the lady there didn’t let me pay for it.

After Thi Bar, we went to get another beer down the street with our two new friends, Collin and Matthew.

I had a pretty good time getting to know Quân. He also had some nice tattoos, which led to a discussion of how I’ve wanted to get a tattoo for many years and wanted to finally do it here if I could. Quân took the task of finding a place we could get tattoos later in the week. Then we all went to sleep!

After Thi Bar, we went to get another beer down the street with our two new friends, Collin and Matthew.

Sunday, August 4

I did a short run home incidentally the next day, as I was not yet using the Grab app myself and figured I needed to get more running in. It was only about 3.3 miles, but I got caught in the rain for most of it. Not a big deal, just got soaked!

I did a bit of a run back from Bui Vien area to our apartment in the morning, and got caught in a downpour.

Just one small example of why I constantly needed to run in the road in Vietnam. The sidewalks are heavily used!

I did have to wade through some ankle deep water to get into the Vinhomes Central Park neighborhood, as the sidewalks are totally insufficient around here. Not to say the roads should be flooding like this, either. I didn’t have a key, so Patton met me outside after he got pho at a place nearby. It was pretty hard to coordinate since my phone was almost useless in the pouring rain. I had nothing to dry the phone or my fingers with to be able to use the touch screen, so my strategy was basically to blow on it very hard and try to dry it off using my head to block further rain. It didn’t work very well, and there were lots of typos, but we managed.

There are about two entrances to Vinhomes Central Park in Saigon, Vietnam, and they are not pedestrian friendly at all, especially during a downpour. The sidewalk ends at the gate and you need to walk into the busy street to go around.

We rested a bit and spent some time figuring out plans for tomorrow. We settled on booking a tour of the Mekong Delta. Then we went to check out Ben Thanh Market, which was kind of similar to a market I went to in Thailand back in 2013. You bargain for everything, and basically have to say no and walk away a few times to get to the lowest price, which might be half or a quarter of what the vendor initially suggested. It’s not my favorite style of shopping, so I mostly just looked around and didn’t buy anything. Patton was looking for sunglasses and bags. He ended up bargaining for a long time to get some knockoff Prada sunglasses for around $3 I think. I was nervous to make my Nikon camera visible for fear of being revealed as someone who shouldn’t pay the lowest price. In fact, I tried to avoid being seen near Patton at all when he was negotiating, as I am white.

We went to Ben Thanh Market, Saigon, Vietnam. It's a large building with dozens of vendors selling everything from clothing to bags to trinkets to housewares. For everything but the food, you bargain, as the initial offer is sometimes 4 or more times what the vendor would actually sell for.

We went to Ben Thanh Market, Saigon, Vietnam. Patton was trying to buy some sunglasses for cheap, and we got some food.

We went to Ben Thanh Market, Saigon, Vietnam. Patton was trying to buy some sunglasses for cheap, and we got some food.

We went to Ben Thanh Market, Saigon, Vietnam. Patton was trying to buy some sunglasses for cheap, and we got some food.

There is a central area with many food vendors, with overlapping dishes. Patton ordered some (I think) Banh Khot, or Vietnamese savory mini pancakes, made from a batter of rice flour, corn starch, turmeric powder, water and coconut milk. He also tried to get a carrot juice to help his eyes, though they didn’t have it, so he got strawberry I think. I also tried an avocado smoothie. It was good but very thick and a lot. I should have split it with him.

We went to Ben Thanh Market, Saigon, Vietnam. Patton was trying to buy some sunglasses for cheap, and we got some food.

I think these are Banh Khot, or Vietnamese savory mini pancakes, made from a batter of rice flour, corn starch, turmeric powder, water and coconut milk. At Ben Thanh Market, Saigon, Vietnam.

I think these are Banh Khot, or Vietnamese savory mini pancakes, made from a batter of rice flour, corn starch, turmeric powder, water and coconut milk. At Ben Thanh Market, Saigon, Vietnam.

Avocado smoothie at Ben Thanh Market, Saigon, Vietnam. It was very thick, too much for one person.

Patton bought a possible knockoff Patagonia duffel bag. And then we left, promptly finding a store selling that same bag even cheaper.

After buying a bag at Ben Thanh Market, we found a store nearby selling the same bags even cheaper.

Anyone into Scat? Not sure if that's what they were going for naming this place Scat Hotel, as seen in Saigon, Vietnam.

Next he took me to Bánh Mì Huỳnh Hoa, apparently an Instagram famous sandwich place. There was a separate location catering specifically to the Grab drivers, who can be seen in green here. We ordered one sandwich, costing about $2.75. It was huge. It could easily be a meal for two people, and it was.

Patton took me to a somewhat Instagram famous sandwich place called Bánh Mì Huỳnh Hoa. The prices were decent though, less than 3USD for a pretty huge sandwich.

Patton took me to a somewhat Instagram famous sandwich place called Bánh Mì Huỳnh Hoa. The prices were decent though, less than 3USD for a pretty huge sandwich.

Patton took me to a somewhat Instagram famous sandwich place called Bánh Mì Huỳnh Hoa. The prices were decent though, less than 3USD for a pretty huge sandwich.

At Bánh Mì Huỳnh Hoa, you can eat sort of next door to the store where you buy the sandwiches. The place was overrun with trash when we visited, as the single employee on this side could not keep up with the evening crowd. But it was fun!

We walked around the area, checking out the main post office, which is apparently a big hangout scene at night.

Streets of Saigon, Vietnam.

Streets of Saigon, Vietnam.

Apparently the Saigon main post office grounds are a hot late night hangout.

Trash management is an issue in Saigon, Vietnam. I did see people pushing around these carts occasionally sweeping the street, while others throw trash into the street.

I think this was at a Circle K convenience store, in Saigon, Vietnam. Packaged chicken feet!

And then we went home to sleep before our early morning tour!

Entries in this series

1. Touring Phú Quốc, Vietnam, by motorbike! (July 31-August 3)
2. Saigon shopping and nightlife (August 3-4)
3. Touring the Mekong Delta, Vĩnh Tràng Temple, Saigon Skydeck (August 5)
4. The Củ Chi tunnels and a messy Saigon run (August 6-7)
5. My first tattoo, in Saigon, and a gay party (August 8-11)
6. Biking, boating in Tam Coc, climbing Mua Cave (August 12)
7. My first X-ray, in Hanoi (August 11-13)