I'm a little bit behind with entries so on the eve of leaving HCM City I had better let you know we have been up to.
Helen, would tell you that I discovered a new cocktail that I really like..... not served in a tny cocktail glass but in a large tumbler, packed with ice. Sorry, James, but this one surpasses your "shaken,not stirred!" A Surfer's Iced tea is it's name and I would now recommend it.
No I didn't spend all my time at the bar..... but Happy Hour was good with 2 for 1 cocktails.
After rolling in on a flight on which 30 plus different languages would have been spoken, we booked up our trips, after a wander around our hotel block trying to look inconspicuous and find some lunch. Which we did at a cafe.... a simple meal of noodles with beef for about $2 for both of us.
On Saturday we headed down to the Mekong Delta. The floating markets we disappointing because the traders who had sold out had gone by the time wew were there..... but not to matter the time on the water was really good..... looking into people's lives and being agast at this river soon to be in flood and already massive.We had a taste of rice paper making, confectionary making, local song and dance, being paddled up a back water in a traditional canoe as well as a lunch of elephant fish and other local foods. The two hours each way was worth it. We used Hoi An Express again and Duc was a great guide.
Sunday we slept in, had late breakfast and then had a city tour with Anh(Anne). Joshua had warned me about how the War Museum etc could be and it brought many tears to me to read about how bad we were as a satellite nation siding with USA in the American War. In the grounds we met and shook hands with, which makes no sense, with a man who had lost both arms from landmines. The time in the Museum, though brief was emotionally draining. The reunification palace, temples and finally the beautiful Post Office and Notre Dame Cathedral were worth the visit in the torrential rain. We also visited an Art Studio involved in lacquer art using egg shells and mother of pearl. Beautiful work and the artists so skilled.
 Anh was another great guide and recommended we visit the museum of natural medicines, which we did the next day. An incredible building buit in the 19th Century. The interior took 4 years to carve and the carvings even in the lift we amazing.
 We ventured out onto the streets and eventually decided the area around the museum held nothing of great interest for us...... but crossing the street.......Oh boy. HCM City has 11 million residents and 8 million motorbikes. Our mercy dash was observed by a security guard who gave us the advice to just walk calmly and everyone will swerve around us. Being like panicky rabbits was not helpful.
Today was an early start to the Cu Chi Tunnels. As I commented earlier about knowing very little about Asia History.... how little did we understand about the war in Vietnam. Helen and I managed to go underground, but just being where we were was unnerving with a rifle range where you could fire AK 47 and rifles for a price. The final film we saw there was propoganda at its best and our guide (Seng) warned us that the language was anti- American. The soundtrack did not let us down.
Tomorrow we fly to Thailand........a twelve hour day of travel vis Singapore (No.2)