Monday, October 02, 2006

#50 Yes, we have no McDonalds.

In Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City is our first McDonalds-less port. And that’s not the only exotica in Vietnam. Not many visitors arrive here by ship. Our captain spent four hours navigating upstream from the mouth of the Saigon River passing a bewildering variety of boats along the winding river route through seldom seen mangrove forests to reach this crowded city of over 5 million residents formerly known as Saigon.

According to our guide book, “To cross a busy street in Vietnam all one has to do is step out into the coming traffic. The motor scooters, cars, and buses will maneuver around you until you have reached the other side. Do not run as they will not be able to gauge your movement; just keep a steady pace.”
1532f Saigon scooter mania

This alien behavior that would ensure injury in most places is absolutely required here. Volunteer tourist assistance police have the job of encouraging visitors off the curb and into the traffic vortex. It’s a little like Frogger. We saw first timers jump up and down with euphoria upon reaching the safety of the opposite curb unscathed. With some experience, it becomes second nature to take a quick glance toward oncoming traffic, time your departure to take advantage of a small gap, and then walk without looking toward the traffic. It’s only when you look that you question your sanity and are tempted to stop or run. That would be bad since the drivers have subconsciously already adjusted their speed and path. This works in part because drivers make absolutely no attempt to stay in any marked lanes, so they weave about as needed to avoid pedestrians and other motorists. In practice, this seems to work beautifully since pedestrians never have to wait for traffic to clear and drivers never have to stop to wait for pedestrians. However, the 1,000 traffic fatalities per month lead us to question the system.

After a day in Saigon, we travel to the east coast for 3 days of R&R and to experience the “Hawaii of Vietnam.” In 2003, Time described Phan Thiet as “unspoiled Vietnam”, and three years later we don’t see much evidence of spoiling. The 16 students we lead on the trip enjoyed the sand dunes, the cyclo tour of the city and the sampan ride among the fishing boats in the picturesque harbor. 
1593f Js on the Phan Thiet beach

Back in Saigon, we meet Erika for drinks on the rooftop garden at the Rex Hotel, a haven for foreign journalists during what was known in Vietnam as “The American War.” Mary’s uncle lived in Saigon in the early 1970s and we are successful in locating his hangouts. (We have lots of photos to share with you, Lillard.)

Before my visit, I thought “war” whenever I heard “Vietnam.” I now have other images. There’s no attempt in Vietnam to hide the war, but the local interpretation is through the communist lens.

Today, Monday, we are back at sea for a few days, headed for a quick refueling stop in Singapore before continuing to Myanmar.

Yours in moving forward beyond “Vietnam,”
Kelly

Our location: 7 degrees 53 minutes North, 107 degrees 9 minutes East. 

5 comments:

  1. Dear Mary and Kelly,
    I am trying to get caught up on the blog. We have been busy since your departure planning for and taking our family vacation to Walt Disney World, on a Disney Cruise and back at WDW before returning home. AHHH--the ocean. Someday we hope to experience some part of the Pacific but if we ever have the chance to live on board as you are, we will be greatly surprised. Our trip netted us a soon-to-be-daughter-in-law. The engagement became official on the ship and a small immediate-family and intimate-friends only wedding is to be held on Fire Island, south of Long Island, New York on May 19. We are delighted. Sarah is a CHARMER. Our son Tom has chosen well.
    I am enjoying the blog. I love the humor included and the clever sign-offs. Some days I suspect you were bored and perusing an unabridged dictionary for the words however.
    HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!! What a place to spend it--Hawaii!
    I noted that the photos in the September 4 (#25) entry seem to have identical cloud formations at breakfast and lunch…………………. !~!~! I love the curvature of the earth that is evident on the horizon.
    I checked out Erika’s blog and have read parts. I appreciate the photos she included.
    I am sorry to learn that you missed September 7th. We had a lovely day although it marked the end of our all-too-short cruise. We dined at the Polynesian luau at Walt Disney World so were with you in spirit! Sarah informed us that the Polynesian Resort equaled her experience of Hawaiian resorts and that the Luau surpassed her experience when her family visited Hawaii a couple years ago. We are sure we did not experience the same vistas or rainbows you did however.
    I too want the Royal Diamond Shellback. What is the chance that you will get that?
    Ahhh--the wisdom of the day “Maybe life is CNF.”
    I too would assume the stars shine brighter mid-ocean since the lights of cities are far away and unable to constrict the pupils (not the student kind). However, our experience is that the lights of the ship on the top deck (which are on to prevent sailors from missteps) constrict the pupils and thus dim the visibility of stars. What is your experience?
    I love the photo of the two of you on the bridge. I am amazed to learn that there are no cup-holders. I wondered if the Disney WONDER and the Disney MAGIC have cup-holders for the Captain, so I asked friends who have cruised Disney 52 times and been on the bridge several times. They have no recollection of cup holders and think that may be due to the inadvisability of liquids spilling on the equipment. Given that the lighting is low for night travel, spills might be more of a likelihood.
    I am delighted to learn the title of the book you have chosen for your Library Search. “You chose well.”
    I have enjoyed the writing and the photos. I have one question--Lillards Apartment???
    Travel safely--now that I am caught up on the blog, I hope to stay with you day by day.
    My comments may be shared with the rest of your fan club as you see fit, but I decided to mark it anonymous as I don't have a password.
    Jan Easterly, Lockerbie Square

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  3. Hi Jan,
    You're right, the breakfast and lunch panoramas for Sept 4 are the same photo. For several days in the middle of the Pacific, it seemed the only thing that changed outside the ship was the clouds.

    Our route on this voyage will not get us to Royal Diamond Shellback territory, so that will remain on our life lists. And we came within 1 degree of the equator near Singapore before heading back north toward Myanmar. So no crossing of the equator on this trip either, unless there's a major change in our itinerary.

    As for star gazing, we've found the 7th deck forward the best vantage point on the MV Explorer. That's away from our ship's lights and the stars seem remarkably bright.

    Mary's uncle Lillard lived in Saigon in the early 1970's. We were excited to find the building where he lived and took several photos of his old neighborhood.

    Thanks for the update on your WDW trip. Sounds like a big success!

    It's good to hear from you.

    Kelly

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  4. Hi Jan,
    You're right, the breakfast and lunch panoramas for Sept 4 are the same photo. For several days in the middle of the Pacific, it seemed the only thing that changed outside the ship was the clouds.

    Our route on this voyage will not get us to Royal Diamond Shellback territory, so that will remain on our life lists. And we came within 1 degree of the equator near Singapore before heading back north toward Myanmar. So no crossing of the equator on this trip either, unless there's a major change in our itinerary.

    As for star gazing, we've found the 7th deck forward the best vantage point on the MV Explorer. That's away from our ship's lights and the stars seem remarkably bright.

    Mary's uncle Lillard lived in Saigon in the early 1970's. We were excited to find the building where he lived and took several photos of his old neighborhood.

    Thanks for the update on your WDW trip. Sounds like a big success!

    It's good to hear from you.

    Kelly

    ReplyDelete
  5. I have been laughing out-loud at your traffic story of Vietnam! Have you read Dave Barry's book on his visit to Japan? (We listened to it on tape, narrated by Arte Johnson and it was hysterical!!

    yours in loving this blog,
    Donna

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