Today didn't get off to a good start. I had set my alarm for 7.45am and pressed snooze too many times which resulted in me wakening up at 8.25am. I was meant to leave the hostel at quarter to nine and I hadn't packed yet. Whoops. It was the quickest shower ever, I grabbed some breakfast and packed, managing to be at the MRT station at 9am! Which was pretty good going if you ask me :)

The MRT took a good hour to get out to the airport and then I had to get a train to the right terminal. I was slightly on the nervous side about Asia, as I did not know what to expect and also whether or not my Vietnam visa would be easily obtained at the airport. The flight up to Ho Chi Minh was only an hour and a half, and it was also half empty, giving me 3 seats to myself :) The visa took about 30minutes to be processed after landing, so it wasn't that bad and on the plus side my bag was waiting for me on the belt when I actually got through passport control. All was going very smoothly so far, I managed to find an ATM and get Vietnamese Dong. Plenty men were offering me taxi's but I went to the proper taxi rank and got one there.

The taxi journey was crazy, I had never seen so many mopeds or motorbikes in my life. It was only meant to be 7km between the airport and the hotel but it took forever, I still don't know whether we went the quickest way possible or we went around about way so he could get more money. The G Adventure information said the taxi should cost 100,000 dong but my one came to 130,000 so not too much over. In English it was £4 instead of £3 so I wasn't ripped off which is very common here.

The hotel was lovely, better than I expected. I was shown to a twin room but no one else was there. Adam had advised not to go out myself when I got here, as Saigon is the theft capital of Vietnam. You are advised not to carry any handbags on you while out, as people drive past in motorbikes, cutting your bag off and driving away! So I took Adz advice and chilled for an hour, catching up on Internet banking, booked my hotel for Bangkok etc etc. I was planning just waiting until 6pm for my group meeting but at 3pm Lauren came into the room, who was going to be my room mate. She was so nice, and had already been part of the tour since Bangkok so gave me some basic Asia and group information. The old group were all meeting for a walk around the town with the Tour Leader at 3.30pm so I went with Lauren and met everyone plus Charles our leader.

Everyone seemed really nice and all similar aged plus they were all very welcoming. However the walk into the town was something I had never experienced before. Crossing the roads was like playing live or die! I was still in complete shock at the volume of traffic especially motorbikes and how they drive. We headed down to the supermarket to get bottled water and snacks, on the way Charles pointed out all the main places which was really good. It was late afternoon by this time, and I headed back to the hotel with Lauren as I had to be at the new group meeting at 6pm.

I had time for a shower and get ready before the meeting as we were going out for a group dinner straight after. The meeting lasted well over an hour, filling out all the paper work with next of kin and insurance details etc, then Charles gave us a talk on the itinerary, basic Asia do's and dont's and what to expect. There were 4 other girls joining the group, all from Australia and in their early 20's. Taylor and Page were sisters, and Karee and Justine were best friends so it was nice not to be the only 'newbie' or 'fresh meat' in the group.

We went to a local restaurant for dinner. It was a goodbye meal for 5 people and a welcoming night for us five. Therefore making our group a total of 15, and making me the eldest as far as I could gather. The restaurant had a local menu, along with an Italian and Mexican section. I hadn't had lunch so I went for something that I knew I would like and be safe with. Chicken Spring Rolls and Beef Burritos it was! I was shocked at the price of everything.. Vodka was a £1 in English terms, cocktails were £2 and buy two get one free! I paid £12 in total for 3 cocktails, 2 gin and lemonades, spring rolls and burritos! Not bad at all I would say :) Why has the rest of my trip not been these prices hehe.

We then headed to Crazy Buffalos for more drinks, needless to say I was a tad tipsy after another 3 cocktails (at the same price, and buy 2 get 1 free malarkey) and ready for bed! It had been a tiring day coming into Asia and meeting the group etc, Karee and Justine were also ready to head back to the hotel but when we said we were going a lot of the group joined us in the end, including Charles so he showed us the way back :)

After today's experience in Saigon, it really makes me understand why I am travelling and seeing such amazing and different cultures . Asia is going to be an amazing experience people... I cannot wait. xxx