firth1974

The Reunification Palace, Saigon. I was told before i arrived here that it was only worth about an hour's visit, as there really wasnt anything here to see. I found that to be wrong, and ebded up staying about 2.5 hours, but then again, i was fascinated y the whole place, and found it great to wonder around. Located on Nam Ky Khoi Nghia Street in District 1, it is literally a stone's throw from the War Remnants Museum, and the Catheral and Post Office. Open everyday, but closed at lunch times, the cost was 30,000VND ($1/£0.55) It was the most expensive museum that i came across in the whole of Vietnam, but thought it was actually worth the money. The whole place is free to wonder around, no guides, but then again i dont think you need any guides as it is all in English everywhere. Its an interesting insight into the life of the President/s of Vietnam during the war years.

Managed to come across this site compeltely by chancem, so managed to tick off another famous site of Saigon, that i believe not too many tourists, or board members have ever seen, so i hope i have shown you something you have never seen in Saigon. This is the site of Thich Quang Duc, the "burning monk", one of the most famous scene's to have ever have been captured onto film.!!! Im not entirely sure, but im led to believe that this tree/pot plant represents the spot where Thich Quang Duc set himself on fire..........

Stop, or my mom will shoot!!!

Tango and Cash

Im not going to lie, but i did indeed shed a tear or 2 when i saw this photo, and all the others in the Agent Orange room. Its actually quite hard not to when confronted by them........... Surviving victims from the use of A' Orange..............................

This is the plaque to the picture above. Agent Orange at its finest!!!!......................

The War Remnants Museum, Saigon. Located on Vo Van Tan Street, District 3, is fairly easy to find as you cant miss the tanks and aircraft everywhere. Entrance is only 15,000VND(£0.40/$0.75),its as cheap as chips, and is a fantastic day out, thats if you have an interest in anything Military or in the Vietnam Conflict. Obviously, its all about the American connection, but there is a section that goes into some detail about the Vietnamese torturing other Vietnamese, and reading some of the signs there, you realise they were just as bad and ruthless as the Americans and each other! ******WARNING!!!!; There are some of the more "disturbing" photos of man's inhumanity to mankind later on in this photo essay, so please be aware******

Hmmmmmmm, not sure. The lift does go down to the underground garage though, so if on a bike, i dont see what the problem would be.

A review of the EMM Hotel, Saigon. For my stay in Saigon last month, i stayed at the EMM Hotel, which is located at 157 Pasteur Street, which is actually in District 3, but is only 900m to the Reunification Palace and the War Remnants Museum. Pastuer Street actually runs side-by-side with the main road in from the airport, so its easy to get to.(As far as im aware, there is no website yet for the hotel, but the Qresidence is located in the lower floors of the building ans is owned by the same people,) http://qresidence-vn.com/ I booked this hotel through www.agoda.com, but it is also listed on other hotel sites too!! I had the Superior room, which cost me £35 a night, buffet breakfast included, which was actually quite good and extensive. You get the usual English sports channels and Cable movie channels, so enough to keep you occupied. Wifi was pretty good here too, in the room, reception and upstairs for breakfast. Safe is more than big enough for a 17" laptop and then some! There is a tour desk agent in the hotel, but be aware there are expensive. There is underground parking and a gym too at this property. The only problem i had was getting a taxi from the airport to here. Even though i had a map for the hotel, and its address written down in both English and Vietnamese, he couldnt find it at all, and tried to insist i got out off his cab at the Catheral!!(I managed to get the only Vietnamese driver in Saigon, who couldnt read Vietnamese!!! Dumb fecker!!!!). I had to ask a security guard for directions and then eventually found the place. Nice place, located in a quiet area, but with a fair number of restaurants for the more "Hi-so" Saigon locals, which did some amazing food, i would stay here again. This is the view from the "Rooftop" bar, were you can have your breakfast in the morning or come up in the evening for a drink or something to eat. I say "Rooftop", it is actually located on the 11th floor but there are another 5-6 floors above this one, but not of those flors extend over the bar area, so you are open to the elements................................................

The world famous Rex Hotel.....................................

Part 2 of my Saigon photos.................................. This is the old MACV building on Pasteur Street.....................

Tom Cruise

So many photos of Saigon, im going to split them up into specific sections. Meanwhile, im going to post a couple of general Saigon photo threads, to give you an idea of what the place looks like. In the middle of the rush hour traffic.........................

No. Nim Binh was orginally on my list as i wanted to visit Tam Coc, but this being my first time in Vietnam, i had more than enough thnigs and places to do and see. Hoping to get back there in the New year if possible, and if i do, Nim Binh and Dien Bein Phu will be on my target list this time!

After spending a long day visiting the 3 king tombs, Kung Fu show, visiting the Imperial Citadel, and finally the Pagoda, we finished the day off taking a nice leisurely cruise down the Huong River, or better known as the Perfume River.

This temple, or Pagoda, Thien Mu Pagoda, was the home to one of the most famous Buddhist monks in the world, Thich Quang Duc(The burning monk). Located on what i think is the highest point in Hue, it is only really popular because of this monk, and his car that featured in that famous photo. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thien_Mu_Pagoda This is THE car that is in one of the most famous and well-known photos in the world......................

The Imperial Citadel of Hue. Most of it is now more than a huge pile of rubble, due to the fact that the VC during the Tet Offensive hid out here, and it got turned to rubble after the Americans tried to flush them out. You can only imagine what this place looked like in its hay day of the Emperor's. The grounds of the Imperial City were surrounded by a wall 2 kilometers by 2 kilometers, and the walls were surrounded by a moat. The water from the moat was taken from the Huong River (Perfume River) that flows through Huế. This structure is called the citadel. Inside the citadel was the Imperial City, with a perimeter of almost 2.5 kilometers. Inside the Imperial City was the imperial enclosure called the Purple Forbidden City in Vietnamese, a term similar to the Forbidden City in Beijing. The enclosure was reserved for the Nguyễn imperial family. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imperial_City,_Hu%E1%BA%BF

So, after visiting the tombs, the guide made the usual tourist stop off where they make the touristy knick-knacks and try the forced sale on you. But, before that, we made a stop off at some Kung Fu school place, where they did some fighting for us. Apparently the style they practice is called Vo Kinh Van An, after their master. Its meant to be some super-duper, kick ass Kung Fu fighting, but to be honest, its all the same to me after a while.

Do keep up Forny........ More photos to follow soon.

2 weeks in Vietnam i travelled alone. I was meant to be having a friend travel with me, but long story short, she was told to fuck off before i arrived.