My first bowl of real Vietnamese pho was disappointing, but then again, it was from the hotel restaurant. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t quite what I was hoping it would be. I fared better later in the day although I didn’t go for pho but had carmel pork instead.

Walking through the streets of Saigon is a whirlwind of sights and sounds. Motorbikes carrying all sorts of things that shouldn’t be carried on the back of a motorbike. So far, the strangest being a pole at least three times the length of the motorbike (carried by a guy who winked and flirted at me through the window of our van – much to my companions amusement) and a big round sheet of glass for a table that a guy was sitting on while driving his bike.

It is HOT here. Humid like Minneapolis at the end of summer. My hair is just long enough to stay back in the ponytail I put it in, which helps. We went to the silk shops. My sister tried to buy the whole store. I settled for a few shirts – light flow-y ones which I plan on wearing while I’m here and two currently being made to my measurements – because I couldn’t come here and not try to have something made.

Everywhere there are people trying to sell things. Fake magazines, fresh coconut juice, delicious smelling street food that I’ve not tried yet because my sister would throw a fit. (Tomorrow I’m wandering off on my own for a bit, street food here I come.) They sell the oddest things in carts here. The best being a cart that sells doorknobs which sits about a block away from the hotel.

I like it here. It’s loud, crazy, and I don’t understand a word people are saying most of the time, but everything is so interesting because it’s so different. (Yet the same too with it’s Pizza Huts and KFCs – no McD’s yet, but I’m sure if I keep my eyes open I’ll find one)