The Second Scam

Today was one to write down in the EBJ history books. I decided I wanted to see Ho Chi Minh. This completely respected and admired past President has about 3,000-4,000 visitors every day in only a three hour period. I took a little scooter (so much fun!) to get there and when I arrived we went around the perimeter and saw the line. This line is really indescribable, but the best way to explain it is similar to the busiest line at Disneyland on the hottest day of the year with the most people. I was surrounded by hundreds of Vietnamese of all ages: war veterans wearing their helmets, families with babies, and school children. Everyone was staring at me and I got to feel again what it was like to be the odd one out.

The line took about 30 minutes and I only got to see Ho Chi Minh for 3 minutes maximum. But it was worth it (even just for the air conditioning). I’ve never seen a dead body before- it was a religious experience.

Afterwards I walked around the Ho Chi Minh museum, saw the one pillar pagoda, talked to a very nice student who just wanted to practice his english (he wants to be a tour guide), and then decided to get some lunch. I wanted something really tasty because I wasn’t thrilled with my spring roll dinner from the night before so when I was stopped by a guy who insisted on telling me a good spot to go to I trusted him and hopped on his scooter headed to the Old Quarter.

I’m not one to normally trust a stranger, but he was a great marketer! He pulled out a little booklet and showed me a bunch of testimonials from other english speaking tourists who had a good time with him and said he was safe. He told me the trip would cost $1 and drove me to a Pho restaurant.

There were about 40 people eating inside this small, narrow, cement walled place, two were french speaking tourists, and the rest were either locals or Asian tourists. One thing that is interesting about Vietnam is that whether you’re at a shop, restaurant, or somewhere else, the ratio of customer to employee is very high. This restaurant probably had 15 women running around cleaning off tables, doing dishes (squatting right in the middle of the hall), or taking orders. I had to ask the French tourists what to do and they said to just sit down and when one of the girls came by you would say “one” and they would bring you some pho. I’m pretty sure they only had this one dish, but it was tasty...beef, peanuts, pickled cucumber (I think), lemongrass, lime, noodles, and broth. This meal made up for my dinner the night before and with a Miranda (orange flavored soda similar to Fanta) it only cost me 40,000 dong, or less than $2.25.

“My friend,” Dong (pronounced Zoom), picked me up outside the restaurant to take me to the museum of ethnology. I had such a great time riding on the back of his scooter that I thought, what the heck- take me somewhere else! On the way to the museum I saw so many things I probably wouldn’t have seen without the ride. We passed a beautiful garden with probably 50 bries walking around with there photographer. I saw a young girl washing her long hair on a street corner- head upside down and running soap through her head and using a large scoop and a bucket to wash it out. I also watched a barber cutting men’s hair on the sidewalk. Even just negotiating the traffic hearing Dong say “no problem, no problem. I’m #1!” was wonderful.

The museum was educational- read about the many tribes that live outside the major Vietnam cities and saw the stilt houses they live in and the colorful clothing they wear. I also experienced a traditional water puppet show (there are only 15 tribes in all of Vietnam that still perform). All throughout this experience Dong followed me around and even fanned me when I was hot which I tried to refuse but to no avail.

After the museum I wanted to buy some Vietnamese fruit so Dong took me to the same market I went the previous day, however this time I had someone to help me navigate places I’d missed and negotiate prices. One part of the experience I never want to forget are the two people I met who sold dried fruit. The reason I stopped was because I saw dried kiwi and immediately thought of my mom, my family, and New Zealand. The two owners were sitting on child-like chairs around a box drinking tea. Next to them was a a plastic box exploding with many different types of dried fruit to sample. The man offered me a piece of which I accepted. It was more than delicious. He eventually gave me a chair as well and poured me a small cup of tea. Dong sat with us and it was as if the four of us had been friends for years. I obviously didn’t speak their language, but Dong translated. The woman was eating a strange fruit that looked like a pomegranate but colored like a grapefruit. She gave me some to try. I don’t know how long i sat there, but it was an experience that you could no create. It just happened. I ended up buying some round red fruit with chili I tried which is one of the most flavorful things I’ve ever eaten. I had no idea what it was, but later found out it was a weird form of apricot. That experience was the favorite of my day.

I finished the afternoon with a few other types of fresh fruit and rode back to my hotel on the back of Dong’s scooter. Upon arriving at Victory, I asked Dong how much and he stated 800,000 dong. I knew in my heart of hearts that he was scamming me and said that price couldn’t be right and he lowered it a bit, just 100,000. I ended up giving him 40 USD and left feeling a little cheated, but I’m trying to not let it override my experiences with him.

I rested for a bit and chatted and then went to meet my group for the start of my 18 day Intrepid tour. Just over 24 hours in Vietnam and I’d already done so much!