My Visual Travel Experience: Ho Chi Minh City

In 2015, I spent a day in Vietnam's largest city, Ho Chi Minh City. It was totally unplanned, and I managed to do it without a visa!! I was traveling from Siem Reap (Cambodia) to Hong Kong, and I had to change planes in Ho Chi Minh City. My flight from Siem Reap to Ho Chi Minh City was a couple of hours late, so I missed my connecting flight, as did three others. It was mid morning, and the next flight to Hong Kong wasn't till the evening, which meant we had the full day. I got excited and made inquiries about whether we could go into town, so that I could spend the day exploring its main sites. There was disappointment in store, because I was told one had to apply for a visa at least 72 hours in advance.

A little later, Vietnam Airlines approached us and said we had the option of either waiting in the airport lounge, or they could take us to a hotel in town, where we would be given rooms, and we could have lunch at the restaurant, but they would be taking our passports away till the evening because we weren't allowed to leave the hotel. We chose this second option. So we were put into a bus and taken to a four star hotel in the city. We were told to assemble in the hotel's lobby at a certain time in the evening, and we would then be given our passports and taken back to the airport.

I went to my room and freshened up. I grabbed an early lunch at the hotel's restaurant. I can never forget my lunch experience. Those days, I was vegetarian. I had grown up as a non vegetarian, but two years earlier, after my father passed away, I had turned vegetarian. There was a wide buffet spread at the restaurant, with some 50 items on offer. I went around and checked out the spread, and to my utter horror, I found that not a single item was vegetarian! Even the salad had sea-food. I would have practically starved that day, but I went back on my resolve and I ate non vegetarian food again after a gap of close to two years, because I didn't want to survive on just plain bread and fruit!

After lunch, I said to myself that I had an opportunity to see the main sites of Ho Chi Minh City. Yes, we had been told that we couldn't leave the hotel, but there was no security, and as long as I was back in the hotel lobby at the designated time, I didn't see what harm there was. I checked with my fellow travelers, but they had no such desires, and weren't comfortable leaving the hotel when they had been told not to. Feeling fairly nervous because I was technically breaking a rule, I stepped out of the hotel. I found a motorcycle taxi, I paid the driver USD 10, and I told him to take me to the main sites of the city and bring my back to the hotel by the designated hour. He couldn't understand a word of English, but I had a book on Vietnam with me, so I showed him one photograph after another, and that's how he took me to the main sites of the city!

Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon, is Vietnam’s largest city and commercial capital, with a population of 8.9 million (as of 2019). Located in the southeastern part of the country, it lies along the Saigon River. From 1955 to 1975, it was the capital of the Republic of Vietnam, also known as South Vietnam. The unified country's capital is Hanoi, a marginally smaller city with a population of 8 million.

There was a Buddhist temple in the region in the 4th century AD. In the 11th century, the Champas formed a settlement. The Cham Empire was invaded by the Khmer people, who lived there for centuries. In the early 17th century, Vietnamese settlers took over from the Khmers. In 1698, Nguyen Huu Cahn took over the administration of the region and cut it off from Cambodia. The area was colonized by France and Spain in 1859, and it was handed over to France in 1862 through the Treaty of Saigon. French influence is evident in the city’s architecture even today. The Viet Minh proclaimed independence of Vietnam in 1945. The Viet Minh were led by Ho Chi Minh.

Bao Dai, the former Emperor, made Saigon the capital of the State of Vietnam in 1949. In 1954, the Geneva Agreement partitioned Vietnam. The Viet Minh under Ho Chi Minh got control of northern Vietnam, and Saigon went to South Vietnam. South Vietnam was a capitalist state, and North Vietnam was communist. The two fought the Vietnam War, with South Vietnam supported by the USA, and North Vietnam backed by USSR and China. In 1975, Saigon fell to North Vietnam. In 1976, the unified communist Socialist Republic of Vietnam was established. Saigon was renamed Ho Chi Minh City, after the communist leader who died in 1969. Hanoi, in North Vietnam, became the capital of the unified nation.

Notre Dame Cathedral was built by the French and completed in 1880. It was initially called Church of Saigon. The large church has two bell towers that stand  at a height of 58 meters. The original building materials for the church were all brought from France. The church is known for its exquisite stain glass panels.

Notre Dame Cathedral

Statue of Our Lady,
Notre Dame Cathedral

Notre Dame Cathedral with the
Statue of Our Lady

Central Post Office lies next to the Notre Dame Cathedral. It was completed in 1891 and has Gothic, Renaissance and French architectural styles. 

Central Post Office

Interior, Central Post Office

Ho Chi Minh's Portrait, Central Post Office

City Hall was completed in 1908 in the French colonial style of architecture. It is not open to the public, but is a popular tourist attraction because of its splendid architecture. Outside City Hall, there is a statue of Ho Chi Minh.

City Hall

Saigon Opera House was built in the French architectural style in 1897. It has 500 seats. After 1956, it was used as the Lower House Assembly. It was used as a theatre again only after 1975. It is a smaller counterpart of the Hanoi Opera House.

Saigon Opera House

Facade, Saigon Opera House

Pillars, Saigon Opera House

Bas Relief, Saigon Opera House

Reunification Palace is on the site of the former Norodom Palace, completed in 1870 and named after the King of Cambodia. It was the Governor’s Palace from 1871 to 1888 for the French Governor of Cochinchina. From 1888 to 1945, it was the palace and office of the Governors General of French Indochina. It was the home and office of the President of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. A North Vietnamese tank crashed through its gates at the end of the Vietnam War. 

Reunification Palace

Close-up, Reunification Palace

Ben Thahn Market is a famous market, popular with locals and tourists. The current structure dates back to 1912, and it underwent major renovations in 1985. The large market has close to 1,500 booths. 

Ben Thahn Market

Interior, Ben Thahn Market

There are four gateways to the market. The southern side has garments, shoes, jewellery and cosmetics. The northern side has fruits, fish, poultry and street food. The eastern side has packaged food items. The western side has arts, ceramics and souvenirs. 

Flowers, Ben Thahn Market

Masks, Ben Thahn Market

Souvenirs, Ben Thahn Market

Lamps, Ben Thahn Market

Bitexco Financial Tower is a 262 meter (861 ft) tall skyscraper with 68 floors, and it was completed in 2010. At that time, it was the highest building in Vietnam. The tower is owned by the Bitexco Group, which is into real estate. The tower has offices, retail outlets, restaurants and entertainment, and it also has a helipad on the 52nd floor. On the 49th floor, there is an observation deck for the public.

Bitexco Financial Tower

I certainly didn't have enough time to do justice to the city, but those few hours gave me a flavour of Ho Chi Minh City, as I managed to see several of the main attractions! I do hope to return one day, this time with a visa, and spend a few days exploring the city in more detail!