What to eat on your holiday to Vietnam and Saigon
During my holiday to Vietnam and latter to Laos and Cambodia i arrived and then departed in and out of Vietnam from the Ho Chi Minh city, this is a city that never sleep, peoples are welcoming and friendly and you always need an extra excuse to stay for longer exploration, the local cuisine may come a bit different to the taste that I liked all my life but trust me Vietnamese cuisine now become one of my favorites and I am sure if you travel to Vietnam you will be agree
with me at least in some points. Ho Chi Minh City is the economic hub of the country and where tourists will find several activities to do, one could enjoy the day trip to Cu Chi Tunnels along with the Tay Ninh Temple where the Cao Daism is worshipping, or, for an excursion, travelers can join the daily tours to Mekong delta and enjoy the hustling and bustling of this every alive lush greenery waterways, for an instant, I and my friends took a 4 nights luxury Mekong river cruise and I would say that it was a very unique experience, if you have short time then I suggest to visit the floating markets in Cai be and Cai Rong. I should also mention that homestay in the region is one of the most popular activities that a tourist could expect to experience and after my deep exploration I admit that a two day trip is really essential if you want to enjoy the real Mekong Delta as most tourist (generally back-packers) are joining the day trip to Can Tho to see the floating markets, but that’s not what Mekong Delta is all about. However, after my exploration in the Mekong, I get back to the Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) to cheer up and stay a few days more to learn more about the city rather than doing the tourist activities, I was then thinking to write an article on the top eating in the city, well, I must admit that claiming the top eating is a bit difficult because this is something that is pretty much depending on your own taste and style, by the way, my list is what I explored out of the ordinary of the tourist area.
Go beyond a Holiday to Vietnam and explore the authentic cuisines I went to Nguyen Trai Street and found a series of 4 restaurants each with nice and extensive menu both in English and Vietnamese and while i was paging the menu I realized that almost 70 % of the foods are for seafood lovers (including me) however, there are an extensive option for the foods which makes it difficult to decide what to eat. The place is a little austere, but authentic Vietnamese food is eaten in a unique environment, the foods are also not that costy, we ate for two and paid around 250.000 VND
Down the Vo Van Tan Street and I found a vegetarian bistro that has a very zen atmosphere to acre your eating, its menu is based on vegetarian dishes and comes with both international and Asian cooking style. The atmosphere in this little restaurant is very relaxed and ideal for an evening dine with friends. Dinner for two cost us 220,000 VND and the dishes are very complete. Again in the Nguyen Trai Street, I tried the Pho Noodle Soup; this is one of the most typical dishes in Vietnam and recommended in any travel magazine and the trip advisories. The pho is a bowl of soup with rice noodles accompanied by strips of meat (chicken or beef, or pork) and herbs. It is very typical for breakfast, but also you can eat at any time of day. The Banh Xeo is a typical dish of the south of Vietnam and in this matter I really wanted to go ahead and find an authentic place to try this recommended food, it is a thin and crispy crepe with shrimp, shredded pork and bean sprouts. It is served with lettuce leaves and herbs, and eaten while rolling the crepe and some herbs leaves with a leaf of lettuce. Once we have the burden, we put it in a special sauce and we eat. Well, another authentic experience was a dinner on Saigon River while cruising down the waters; this was booked through Luxury Travel Vietnam the tour operator based in Hanoi, the capital.
Ho Chi Minh City, Former Saigon It is the main port of entry for flights from Europe and the economic capital of Vietnam. Life is a constant coming and going by peoples, motor-bikes driving everywhere honking and businesses open late, but it was the least that I enjoyed my trip. However there are some useful tips that I want to share with you and I hope it will be useful for planning your trip, it doesn’t matter you holiday to Vietnam on your own or through an organized vacation packages.
Getting to Airport from the center of Ho Chi Minh City it depends on where the hotel is, but there are several bus services connecting the airport with the center, In my case, I have been vacationing with an organized tour and everything was planned well in a head of time, but if you’d like to know the best way and if you travel on your own then you must took the bus 152. A single ticket costs 5,000 VND and you have to pay another 5000 if you carry a suitcase that occupying a seat in the small bus. Bus 152 runs from 6 am to 6 pm and departs every 20 minutes. From the airport to the hotel it might take up to 25 minutes, although it may be longer depending on traffic. Another more practical but more expensive option is to take a taxi: the Taxis are metered, but you may ask to negotiate a price before. However, you an always ask your hotel to help you book your taxi in advance with a better price.
Things to see in Ho Chi Minh City in one day This is pretty much depends on your itinerary and the type of Vietnam vacation packages you are traveling with, in my case, I have started the sightseeing at 08:30 in the morning the tour guide picked me up and we visited the following places: Ben Thanh Market, The Independence Palace, The Notre Dame Cathedral and the central post office as well as Jade Emperor Pagoda which was my favorite Pagoda in Saigon, we had our lunch in a nearby restaurant.
Make your holiday to Vietnam with an excursion to Mekong Delta Before traveling to Vietnam we had heard all kinds of opinions about the tour to the Mekong delta. Latter I found that I had more time in Delta I could enjoy more in this beautiful region in southern Vietnam, since the idea was to experience the delta on a luxury Mekong river cruise, and to see the famous floating markets in Cai Be n a 3 days. There are other activities which will
be included on your cruise itinerary in such you will experience My Tho and Ben Tre. If you are fancy to visit the floating markets (like me) ii suggest taking a two or three day trip to the Delta.
Excursion to Cu Chi Tunnels If you are interested in everything around the Vietnam War, then, you should not miss the trip to Cu Chi tunnels. My holiday to Vietnam it was very interesting as I did a visit to the underground systems of tunnels that reminds from the American war, the area is become a museum to show the grandeur of Vietnamese forces to protect themselves in the lush tropical jungles, the tunnels are a systems of 250 Kilometers well designed and includes library, kitchen, hospital and so on, it is interesting and I recommend it.
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