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Saturday, May 31, 2014

At The Gate - 15 Minute Delay

But sometimes there's entertainment for grandparents. 


He really is laughing at us. Mother asked to take a photo of the crazy couple and handed him to Kathy.

Interesting Morning

Our car service picked us up on time for the drive to SGN. The driver spoke no English and his small car stalled every time he slowed down, including in those busy - chaotic - intersections.

The domestic terminal is fairly shabby. We bought cheap upgrades on a site, and it seems they cleared. We also bought lounge access, but the young woman first denied us. After making a phone call she waved us in. It's very 1950s but it's air conditioning works better than it does in the rest of the terminal. 

Just watch the bumps on the way to the toilets.



InterContinental: What's Pho Breakfast?

HCMC InterContintental: Lounging




A Day on The Mekong Delta With Les Rives

Our tour of the Mekong Delta today was terrific, thanks to our guide Kha and the other employees of Les Rives River Tours.

The sudden downpour on the way back only added to the fun.











A Fun Evening With Barbara and Vu of Saigon Street Eats

Thank you, Barbara and Vu, for a great evening of Saigon Street Eats, for shepherding us safely across streets, for exposing us to a variety of seafood we wouldn't have otherwise tried in three joints we wouldn't otherwise have visited, and for keeping the beer (and water) flowing.

Great fun!











Friday, May 30, 2014

InterContinental Lounge: Nice View

And tasty tea sandwiches...

A Quick Wander Around The Neighborhood

We changed into cooler clothes and decided to stroll a few blocks in the vicinity of the InterContinental Asiana - as long as we didn't have to cross any major streets. It was fun. Whether in a car or on foot, it's obvious there are motorbikes everywhere.  We noticed along the sidewalks there are uniformed attendants who supervise the bike parking areas and hand out little receipts - we saw one marking a bike just parked with chalk.

We even spotted a UPS delivery man - Buster Brown on a bike, naturally...




After 20 minutes of strolling in the afternoon heat, we retreat to our cool room on the 10th floor.


Thursday, May 29, 2014

Ho Chi Minh City Intercontinental Asiana

A pleasant check-in, a corner room, a cheap and worthwhile upsell to the Lounge, eight free pieces of laundry to be returned tomorrow (courtesy of a cute little "prize draw" at check-in)... Not hard to take at all.

This is seriously one of the best hotels in which we've ever stayed. 





Good Afternoon Vietnam

By the time we finished up with our visas it was close to noon, and our driver from the Hanoi Transfer Service was waiting patiently for us with a sign outside Arrivals. For our first airport transfer of six here and in Hanoi we were very impressed.

He escorted to new-looking SUV about the same size as our own, gave us each a bottle of water, and expertly maneuvered us through the traffic to our hotel.

A good start!







Good Morning Vietnam Part One

A very nice two-hour flight on SQ with a nearly empty Business cabin and lots of service. Amazing to a United Million Mile Flyer that SQ can serve you your choice of three "snacks" (we both chose the Dim Sum selection) and before we knew it we were approaching Ho Chi Minh City.