Ho Chi Minh City - crazy place!

After a long wait at the Visa desk (over 200 people waiting in the end) I was successfully picked up by my taxi and driven to my little hotel.... The heat and humidity, the lust green vegetation and the MILLIONS of scooters and mopeds and motorbikes!!

They drive without hesitation, without looking in their mirrors, sometimes on the wrong side of the road and they rarely take any notice of the traffic lights or the pedestrians!  I now understand why so many wear face masks - the traffic pollution and the smoke from roadside vendors cooking creates quite a nauseous mixture!  I took a tour of the city on the back of a scooter with Khanh from XO Tours (all female drivers!) and it was a really great trip and I wasn't even scared!  She also took me to the market to taste some really good yoghurt but I said "no thank you" to the frog - it was to be skinned alive so I didn't want to watch that!

live frogs ready to be skinned

This man is about 84 and has worked at the Post Office since he was 17, translating to French and English, we had a lovely little chat!

My hotel "Madame Cuc 127" in a "quiet" street!

Madame Cuc 127 Hotel

To get out of the city noise, a day trip to the Mekong Delta!  Only problem was that it took 3 hours to get there, with the driver hooting his horn the whole way!  The floating market wasn't very visible but the trip in a rowing boat up one of the small rivers was fun as there wasn't enough water but everyone had a good time!