News
25 June, 2025
Marching to the beat of Vietnam
By Mitch Gaynor BY sheer luck rather than careful planning, my long-awaited trip to Vietnam placed me in Ho Chi Minh City (commonly called Saigon) for the 50th anniversary of national reunification.
The fervour hit us like a tidal wave, seeing crowds swell in District 1 until authorities closed the centre for the main parade, forcing us to check out a day early and reshuffle plans at the last minute.
Upon arrival, we dived headfirst into Saigon’s organised chaos. That first afternoon was devoted to the War Remnants Museum, whose stark photographs and military hardware on display insisted upon our silence.
“Are you protecting me or yourself?” my partner quipped as I guided us through a torrent of mopeds, taxis and cyclo drivers to reach the entrance.
With four nights booked, we resolved to follow a tried-and-true itinerary, but not before sampling a street-food crawl.
On day two, we traded memorials for markets, joining a Street Eats tour that introduced us to the city’s nocturnal epicentre.
Perched on the backs of scooters, we toured six bustling stalls: messy bowls of stir-fried bò kho simmered to rich perfection, plates of bánh xèo—crisp rice pancakes folded around prawns and bean sprouts—and charcoal-grilled escargots dripping with buttery garlic sauce.
Local guides taught us to seek out the busiest, least tidy vendors as an indicator of quality.
Our most memorable stop was on Bui Vien Street, at a seafood stall run by an apparent mobster man whose gold chains and growing social media following, of course, proclaimed him a local character.
We were encouraged to dispose of shells and empty beer cans without fuss, with our guide declaring that a clean floor was the enemy of authenticity.
Value here borders on the absurd.
A Saigon beer can set you back as little as $1.50.
Dinner for two in a lively backstreet eatery rarely exceeds $10.
By contrast, hotel dining will see you paying typical Australian prices.
We had booked two half-day tours with Les Rives, whose sleek speedboats ply the Saigon River.
Our first outing whisked us mornings into the Mekong Delta: village markets, schools where uniformed children were having a siesta in the stifling heat, and humble family homes where we tried some homemade whiskey.
Clusters of hyacinth choked the narrow waterways, a vivid reminder of environmental challenges facing the region.
The second morning took us to the Cu Chi tunnels.
Hearing supply and trap-building anecdotes in the briefing room felt distant until we crouched into claustrophobic passageways stretching beneath the earth.
Ingenious traps—camouflaged pitfalls concealed by palm fronds, sharpened bamboo stakes hidden in shaft pits and tripwires linked to improvised grenades—revealed a guerrilla resourcefulness that contrasted sharply with the mechanised armies they resisted.
Even the simplest innovation, thong-style sandals fashioned from tyre treads, baffled trackers by disguising footprints forwards and backwards.
I seized the chance to fire an AK-47 at a nearby shooting range, an experience I would politely decline to repeat.
We set out one evening for the backpacker haunt of Bui Vien only to be thwarted at every turn by roadblocks as security prepared a practice run for the anniversary parade.
We finally admitted failure and sore feet which was quickly noticed by two strangers who offered a moped ride for a reasonable price.
They weaved us through hundreds of thousands of expectant onlookers to within shouting distance of our hotel.
Ultimately, the inability to return to our accommodation that evening became a highlight in itself—a vivid reminder that travel’s most memorable moments often arise from unplanned detours.
Crazy but electric. A must-visit world city
Stay:
Myst Dong Khoi Hotel – rates start at $210 per night
An Lam Saigon Retreat – from $220
Fly:
Singapore Airlines – flights from $880 one-way
