Arriving at Tan Son Nhat[Ho Chi MInh Aipport] is one thing - but leaving can be harder. The taxi-drivers know that you don't have any alternatives or so they think. They'll tell you a price which can be up to ten times more than the actual price on the meter. So what you should do is turn left and head towards 'Departure' cause the taxi-drivers down there are not part of the scam. Jump into to a taxi and tell them your destination.
And your destination if your budget is less than 5 starhotels and so on should be the "Pham Ngu Lao' area also called the backpacker zone. Here you find hotels/dormitories from $5 and up. A nice little room with aircon, fridge, tv and bathroom goes for around $10/12 and up.
Don't get stressed there are plenty of options in the area. Some people will most likely try to tell you that all the rooms are gone but just you keep looking until you find what you want.
If you need
a break during you desperate search bars/cafes like Cafe Stella and Go2 and many others are open till late and from there you move on with your search.
The whole area is not that big it is actually more or less one block so take a round and then you kind of know the place already.
Bui Vien is somehow one of the main streets and there you'll find the best Pho in the area and it is cheap too. Pho is a local dish which comes with a few variations but the most popular is Pho Boa. It is a kind of noodle soup though the locals do not quite agree about that it is a soup - it's PHO!!
In the evening a nice little spot to observe life is the Sinh To place at the corner of Bui Vien in front of Go2. Sinh To is something in between a fruit shake and a smoothie - they are really nice, but sometimes a bit too sweet.
If you feel all this vietnamese lifestyle is too much you can go to Bobby's Breweries and sit in a comfortable chair and watch a movie for free. A nice little break.
After the movie the local park is good way to socialize with the vietnamese who are more than willing to have a chat with you in order to improve their English skills.
The next day if you wake up a bit too early again the local park is an experience no doubt about that. The air is cool and refreshing and you'll have a chance to see different forms of Tai Chi and many other amazing activities.
Now if you feel more comfortable moving around the area you should try to go into the small alleys and get lost. Cause it's easy to get lost in those tiny dark alleys - please believe me when I tell you that you are absolutely safe in there. To see all the small sweatshops in action and daily life in Vietnam is an amazing opportunity. And it is right there in front of your eyes.
Food - well you have many options: Local Food, Italian, Korean, Indian and so on. But if you want to try the local food you should somehow leave the area, cause most of the places have adjusted the taste to fit the tourists which I guess is a kindly gesture but the result is not as nice as the real stuff.
The advantage of living in the Pham Ngu Lao area is the fact that the location is very central. I mean it is district 1. And Ho Chi Minh is big but not that big. So everything is more or less in walking distance when you look at the map. But HCM is not really made for walking - you got motorbikes parked all over so if you plan to walk remember that you'll have to walk up and down all the time - not to mention the heat.
On the other hand why not - If you walk you get a much better chance to see everything you want. So I'll recommend walk out and if you are more than one get a taxi home. They are very cheap - and like I said if you're more than one - maybe even cheaper than the motorbike taxies. A little thing about the taxies choose one of the bigger companies - the green one, yellow one, black or blue one they always go by the meter. Another options is to rent a bike of your own. The traffic looks scary but it's not as scary as it looks cause somehow everything is in slow-motion, which you'll realize once you get on the bike. It's fun and cheap too not to mention the flexibility. You can go where ever you want whenever you want.
Pham Ngu Lao has more advantages. One of then is when you had enough and that is possible believe me all the small tourist agencies are right there to assist you with whatever you like.
Daytrips to the Mekong, Cu Chi tunnels and so on. But a really good bargain is the open bus ticket, where you can travel all over Vietnam for practically nothing.
Even the best travelers might have to accept to overpriced once in a while and Pham Ngu Lao could be the place.
Good Luck
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great review. My latest review is not hitting the new review page so if you would like to read it (I'd be extremely greatful!!), please visit my homepage. Many Thanks and don't usually ever ask, but ciao is broken yet again!!!!!! Thank you in advance, Logan :)
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Advantages: Untouched rural beauty,breathtaking senery, cheap cost of living, friendly warm people,very little crime Disadvantages: culture shock, hygiene not up to western standards
Advantages: Untouched rural beauty,breathtaking senery, cheap cost of living, friendly warm people,very little crime Disadvantages: culture shock, hygiene not up to western standards
Mar 17th, 2009
very helpful by (100%):
