Today I had a bit of a lay in as I had no trips booked for early in the morning and the whole day was mine to do as I pleased. So out came the Lonely Planet and I planned a few places to visit in the town. I set off with all intentions of walking over to the War Remnanats Museum but as per usual I was asked if I wanted a tuk-tuk or a moto at every corner. I refused the first few but as it was so hot today and I was starting to sweat, I decided to see how much it would cost to get there. As the cost was less than £1, I got a xich lo (cyclo), a bicycle rickshaw with the chair on the front, the bicycle at the back.

The War Remnants Museum documents the atrocities of war but is not for the faint hearted as it displays the relics of war and a heartbreaking array of photographs of the victims of war and also a preserved baby in a jar born with birth defects which they put down to the chemical weapons that the Americans dropped in the area. On the brighter side of things, they also had a collection of American aircraft, tanks and armoury which were left behind after the war.

After my visit to the museum, I walked over to the Reunification Palace. This is where the communist tank crashed through the gates on 30th April 1975, the day Saigon surrendered. Apart from the repaired front entrance, the palace has been left just as it looked on that momentous day.

As I walked through the city I was approached again by a moto driver asking if I would like to be shown around the city. We agreed a price and as it was still so hot, this would be the easiest and coolest way of seeing most of the sights.

I had a flying visit of the following places:-

Notre Dame Cathedral

The Opera House

Parliament House

Saigon Riverside

While by the riverside I also took some photos of the crazy motorbike riders that will carry anything and everything on their bikes. I think the most that I saw was 5 people on 1 bike.