HO CHI MIN CITY (SAIGON)
monkey cage, and decided we’d seen enough. So there went our idea of chilling in some nice gardens for an hour or two.
Next on the agenda was the Jade Emperor Pagoda, built by the city’s Cantonese population about a hundred years ago. It wasn’t far, but we didn’t have a map, so decided we’d just get a cab. The cabs are metered so you don’t have the hassle of arguing about fares and wondering if you’ve been ripped off!! However, the driver didn’t seem to know where we were talking about, and started going on about some “lovely pagoda” an hours drive away, which he would take us to and back from for six quid!!! We decided that we weren’t going to pay six quid to go on some magical mystery tour, so decided to try and find the Jade Emperor pagoda ourselves. After about an hour of aimless wandering around we gave up and headed to the nearest café for some coffee and cream
Next on the agenda was the Jade Emperor Pagoda, built by the city’s Cantonese population about a hundred years ago. It wasn’t far, but we didn’t have a map, so decided we’d just get a cab. The cabs are metered so you don’t have the hassle of arguing about fares and wondering if you’ve been ripped off!! However, the driver didn’t seem to know where we were talking about, and started going on about some “lovely pagoda” an hours drive away, which he would take us to and back from for six quid!!! We decided that we weren’t going to pay six quid to go on some magical mystery tour, so decided to try and find the Jade Emperor pagoda ourselves. After about an hour of aimless wandering around we gave up and headed to the nearest café for some coffee and cream
cakes!!! It hadn’t been the most productive of days, and we were looking forward to getting out of the hecticness of the city and to Hoi-An, a (hopefully) more chilled out scenic place!! We had a few hours to kill, so just spent some time researching stuff on the internet, and then settled in with a couple of beers to watch Wigan v Arsenal in the pub!!!
Time to head off to our train. We’d opted for soft sleeper, not cheap, but apparently worth it. We weren’t disappointed!! We had two comfy bottom beds in a compartment which we shared with a Vietnamese guy during the night - he just got in and went straight to sleep! And from the next morning until we pulled into Da-Nang at 2.30pm we had the compartment to ourselves, so Hel managed to catch up on some photos, and we played a few games of cards!!!
Time to head off to our train. We’d opted for soft sleeper, not cheap, but apparently worth it. We weren’t disappointed!! We had two comfy bottom beds in a compartment which we shared with a Vietnamese guy during the night - he just got in and went straight to sleep! And from the next morning until we pulled into Da-Nang at 2.30pm we had the compartment to ourselves, so Hel managed to catch up on some photos, and we played a few games of cards!!!