Ho Chi Minh City

It was sad to bid farewell to Hoi An. It is easy to see why it is becoming a popular holiday destination for Australian and New Zealand tourists. Amazingly we bumped into two lots of kiwis from Dunedin - small world. We drove to Danang Airport and the flight to Saigon was quick and hassle free. Saigon is much more cosmopolitan than the other cities we visited. There are 10 million people and seven million motorbikes.

Once we had checked in, we walked down the road to a relatively new shopping mall. The shops are very up-market but there is a fantastic food hall. Huge range of options from local Vietnamese to Karl's Junior burgers. There are also lots of ice cream, frozen yoghurt and sorbet options. Mocha frozen yoghurt is Devine. 

After lunch we went for a short walk to some of the significant buildings nearby.

Norte Dame Cathedral.

Tr Post Office complete with the most interesting ATM machines ever and amazing mosaic tiled floors.

Last stop was the opera house, another beautiful building.

Another classic sign.

Last activity for the day was to attend a cooking class at the Saigon Cookery Centre. Unfortunately our group did not win, but we made some interesting Vietnamese dishes and had lots of fun in the process.

The final product.

Saigon is certainly a city of contrasts.