We packed all of our souvenirs, our extra water purifier and a few articles of clothes into a backpack and a bag and hired motorcycles to take us to Ben Thanh Market. We walked around the market, a super-sized version of the Old French Market in New Orleans. There were stalls selling just about everything, fresh flowers, tea, candy, shoes, belts, lacquered bowls and vases, silver jewelry, clothes, cooked foods, fresh vegetables, raw seafood, and luggage. We stopped at a stall selling North Face backpacks and negotiated the purchase of 3 for $24.00. The North Face factory is in Vietnam and North Face items can be purchased cheaply.
G- I'm so excited that this backpack is designed to sit off my back so it does not have to always be covered in sweat.
P- I know my little freak. You're just happy to buy another bag.
G- I can't have enough bags of various shapes, colors & sizes. Now that you have one too, you can help me shlep around some of the stuff.
P- I always offer to carry the backpack.
G- Yes, I know you do.
We walked from Ben Thanh Market to the post office, located in a beautiful building obviously built during the French occupation. The interior resembled an old train station, vaguely similar to the one housing the Musee d'Orsay in Paris. This post office was fantastic! It contained a long counter of windows offering every conceivable way to ship a letter or a package. On the left side, FedEx, UPS, DHL, and even the USPS (WTH???). Across the back was commercial shipping. On the right side, several windows for the Vietnam Postal Service and one selling stamps. In the middle you could buy stamps or sit at counters to complete paperwork. It was quite impressive!
P- I cannot believe this. This is better than any American post office.
G- I am speechless. This is turning me on. It is the epitome of efficient and that man is packaging our box better than I could have.
P- Oh, I figured you were getting the Big-O over it.
G- I don't like the way he squished down our stuff, and I hope the paintings are not getting crushed, but the way he cut the box to make the top shorter is genius.
P- I can't believe the way he's wrapping the entire box in packing tape.
G- It certainly won't come open or get wet.
P- He's doing it so fast. If I put a box on a chair and spun it around while I tried to wrap tape around it, my tape would just keep going on top of the last piece and get all clumped up.
G- He's obviously been doing this for a long time. He is perfect. Every successive line of tape goes up just enough. This is the best thing I've ever seen.
P- And Smiley had us worried about sending a package from Vietnam.
G- So far everything has been infinitely better than USPS!
While it drove a knife through our hearts to pay $150.00 to mail home a 32 pound box, it had to be done. Conveniently, about 10 Vietnamese banks had an ATM in the front of the post office. The place was packed with tourists, including a large, European, woman with cottage cheese thighs, wearing thin, white spandex pants. She seemed intent on punishing anyone with eyesight. We tried to capture this atrocity on film, but she was with a tour group that closed ranks around her in an apparent attempt to shield the rest of the world from her visual assault.
Feeling relieved that we had rid ourselves of the souvenier albatross, and because this was our last day in Saigon, we strolled around the city and through the park where we again watched the badminton playing kids and the exercising old ladies. The park was nicely manicured and bright red flowers bloomed in the gardens.
Crossing the street is a special art in Vietnam and Saigon raises this art to it's highest level. We had been warned about the unbelievable number of motorcycles in Saigon and had been coached to cross individually and not together. One must pick the time that seems appropriate and begin walking at a slow and steady pace. Never dash across the street or change the cadence of your walk. Even though the motorcycles and cars seem to be headed directly for you, they will either go in front of you or behind you. This is the proper way to cross the street in Vietnam. At first it is terrifying, but we quickly adjusted and not once did we see someone hit.
As we sat in the alley and drank a cold Saigon we discussed that, much to our surprise, we had really enjoyed Saigon. It's just a big city, noisy, chaotic & buzzing with traffic, but there is something quite exciting about it. Contrary to what we had heard, the Vietnamese had been nothing but friendly & welcoming.
