March 8th, 2024

First off we wanted to thank everyone for their comments. We look forward to reading them and it lets us know you are still following along.

We had a late sail in today so I was able to play Mah Jongg and have our usual lunch at noon up in the World Cafe. The big excitement was that our sister ship, the Sky Princess, who is also doing a world cruise but is 3 days ahead of us, would be sailing past us at 1:30pm as we came up the Saigon river to our dock. They have been in the space for the last 4 days and now we would take the same spot. Everyone came out on deck 7 and 8 and we were all waving and yelling across the water and both ships were honking their horns.

The Viking Sky leaving when we arrived

You can see all the people out on deck

Views of the river on our sail in

We had a tour that left as soon as we docked and the traffic is so bad they want you to allow for 60 – 90 minutes to get into town. We had a great guide who told us all about life in Vietnam and he also had a great sense of humor. He pointed out several sights along the way.

One of the many markets we passed and this one had thousands of eggs.

Our first stop was to a wholesale market that was huge. They sold everything and there were hundreds of stalls. The good thing was that they did not push you to buy anything which was a nice change. Our guide bought some roasted cashews that were delicious and very fresh and the cost was 1/2 kilo for 5 USD. They had mounds of spices and dried fruit and mushrooms.

I don’t even know what most of the stuff was.

When the workers aren’t busy selling they are playing Mah Jongg

Exciting that you can work AND play Mah Jongg. I know at least 2 of my friends that would love that deal.

Like Bali Vietnam has tons of traffic and tons of motor bikes. Unlike Bali everyone has to wear a helmet and they limit the number of people that can be on the motor bike. The other thing about Vietnam is that traffic never really stops it just weaves around you when crossing the street. The guide explained to us that you have to pick your moment and just step out and do not stop for anything and look straight ahead and they will go around you. It is very daunting but it does work and no horns were blown.

Parked motorcycles Traffic

After the market we went to a Temple that is one of the oldest Chinese temples in the city. There is not much to the temple but they did have nice bathrooms.

The next stop on the tour was for us to get a Pedal Cab ride. Sort of like a rickshaw but one person at a time. They took us about a half a mile and they spoke almost no english. My guy kept tapping me on the shoulder and saying “number 1”. The fun part was being in the traffic.

The Pedal cabs in front of me Kathy being helped out of hers.

After the Pedal cabs the next stop was a lacquer shop. I was unsure what this was but they had a workshop where they showed you the process and then a showroom where you could buy. The process is quite tedious and can be painting, or using egg shells or mother of pearl. It is all hand done and takes hours and once completed it is hand waxed, like you would your car, for an hour.

The picture is drawn on the wood and then the the artist takes pieces of egg shells and uses a fine tool to crack the egg shell into the wood which causes a slight depression. Then it is painted and sanded to make it even and then waxed by hand for an hour to get it a glossy look.

They had beautiful pictures and boxes and tables and furniture. Some of the pieces were very elaborate and the prices were really quite reasonable when you consider all the work that went into it. They also gave you a 20% discount but while I saw some things I would have liked we did not purchase anything but many people did. Some people purchased things to be sent home so they did not have to carry it.

After the lacquer shop it was off to a Vietnamese restaurant where we were served spring rolls, pumpkin and shrimp soup, Pork and quail eggs, steamed rice, chicken satay, green papaya salad with dried pork and sweet & sour fish. It was served family style and there were 8 of us per table. It was a ton of food and some I tired and some I passed on. The restaurant was in an old house that used to be the vice presidents house.

The outside of the restaurant Kathy and her Saigon beer

After dinner we headed back to the cruise ship

Coffee is quite popular in Vietnam and a cup cost 70 cents. You get a coffee and then you sit on the lawn. There are no chairs or tables at this popular coffee stop.

We made it back to the boat by 10pm and there was a bunch of vendors camped out at the port so we walked around that for a bit and the crew kept coming out and walking around and shopping.

We are in Vietnam until Monday afternoon. Tomorrow we have a private guide and driver coming to pick us up and take us to the Mekong Delta. We will stay overnight in Can Tho which is close to the floating markets. The floating markets are quite famous and very busy but you need to see them early in the morning so better to stay in the area.