Sigo Journeys-- Where to Next?

I can't say what made me fall in love with Vietnam - that a woman's voice can drug you; that everything is so intense. The colors, the taste, even the rain. Nothing like the filthy rain in London. --Thomas Fowler

I am writing this on our flight home from Asia. We spent four days in Hong Kong and four days in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), which I will be referring to as Saigon. We have always wanted to go to Asia. Saigon specifically, since that is where I was born. My parents were going to going to Saigon for Tet, or Vietnamese New Year, similar to Chinese New Year. We thought this was a great opportunity to go.

Fri, 2/15- We arrived in Hong Kong at 9:00 PM. We took the convenient Airport Express train to Kowloon, where a free shuttle brought us to our hotel. We were staying at the Sheraton, across the street from Victoria Harbour and adjacent to the Peninsula Hotel. It was a perfect location in Tsim Sha Shui, and only one block from the MTR, Hong Kong’s public transit rail.

Sat, 2/16- We headed out to Victoria Peak, also called the Peak. At the top of the Peak, you can see the city skyline, Victoria Harbour and Kowloon, laced with peaceful green hillsides. And if you think the top of the Peak is amazing, getting there is just as unforgettable trip. The Peak Tram climbs 373 metres (about 1,200 feet) in only 7 minutes. It's so steep that the buildings you pass look like they're leaning at a 45°angle. The tram has been operating since 1888, and was initially constructed to transport the wealthy to their residences in the Peak. We just soaked in the view at the Pacific Coffee shop that sits at the top of the Peak. This must be the best coffee shop location in the entire world.

We took the MTR to Tung Chung on Lantau Island. The Ngong Ping 360 experience starts at Tung Chung, where you board a cable car for a stunning ride up a mountainside offering 360-degree views over the sea, lush valleys and rugged terrain, leading up to the awesome Giant Buddha.

The Tian Tan Buddha Statue is the world's largest, seated, outdoor, bronze Big Buddha statue. Constructed from 202 bronze pieces, the Tian Tan Buddha Statue weighs over 250 tons and soars 34 meters into the air. Sitting atop 268 steps, the Tian Tan Buddha Statue is positioned on a lotus throne, surrounded by eight smaller bronze statues representative of the gods. The statue is so named as its base is a model of Tian Tan, the Temple of Heaven in Beijing. The Buddha Statue's right hand is raised, representing the removal of affliction; his left hand rests on his knee, signifying human happiness. While most Buddha statues face South, Tian Tan casts his serene gaze towards the North.

At Tung Chung, there is a huge outlet mall. We had lunch at the Food Republic, a food court that has stations featuring various Asian cuisines, from Thailand to Vietnam. There were over 10 different countries that were represented, but for some reason, E & I both feasted on Korean food! We returned to Hong Kong and walked along the harbor.

For dinner, we headed to Frites, a Belgian restaurant in the heart of SOHO (South Hollywood). The décor was warm and reminded me of a place that we would see in the US-- a ceramic Dalmatian sat on the bar. We enjoyed some Belgian beer with some Thai mussels (steamed with lemongrass, coconut, and chili) and fish & chips. It was not the best fish & chips, but the Asian twist mussels were yummy. We made it back to the harbour just in time for the nightly Symphony of Lights, a synchronized building-exterior-decorative-light-and-laser multimedia display, featuring 44 buildings on both sides of the harbour accompanied by symphonic music. The technology was developed by Australian firm Laservision and cost approximately 44 million HK dollars. Guinness World Records has named the Symphony of Lights the world's largest permanent light and sound show.

Sun, 2/17- We had Sunday brunch at Alain Ducasse’s SPOON. Our seats overlooked the harbour; we enjoyed Alain Ducasse’s champagne while watching the boats go by. SPOON’s brunch featured an appetizer buffet that consisted of little portions of SPOON’s appetizers from lobster Caesar salad in shot glasses to seared foie gras. There was also an antipasto station where we were served hand carved meats and cheeses with a selection of wines. Five specialty entrée dishes were offered as our main course. I chose black cod and E had Wagyu beef tenderloin with truffle sauce. To end our meal, we were invited into the kitchen to choose from a beautiful display of various desserts. The ambience, service, and food was wonderful-- it was easily the easily the best brunch that we have ever experienced.

We walked along the winding streets of Tsim Sha Shui. E definitely stood out. Every five minutes, someone would approach him and offer to make him a suit or show him some replica watches or sell him some phone cards! It was actually quite hysterical. He bought a watch from a local jeweler (not a fake one!), but we did get a substantial savings compared to what was saw online. I was desperately looking for a place to get a foot massage (Chinese reflexology). With all the walking, my feet were desperate for some TLC. But every place that we passed by, you had to go down to the basement or something, and I was uncomfortable with that. Walking though one of the shopping centers, I saw a sign for a nice, legit spa, or so I assumed. We walked down the marble staircase to the counter and I asked to see a service listing. She apologized and told me that this was a men’s only spa! We high-tailed it out of there!

In the evening, we returned to the Peak and had dinner at Café Deco. The restaurant was named by Frommer’s as the restaurant with the “Best View”. We had a great table overlooking the city and enjoyed the light show once again.

Mon, 2/18- We were leaving for Saigon tonight. We had scheduled a tour to some outlying cities of Hong Kong, the “Land Between.” At the last minute, we decided to cancel the tour and take an independent excursion to Repulse Bay, a beachside resort area just 15 minutes from the city. We spent the morning reading the history of Hong Kong. For lunch we went to Spices, in The Repulse Bay hotel overlooking the beach. They also offered some creative cocktails; I had a lychee margarita and E had a concoction with mango and coconut.

The Hong Kong airport is huge! We saw a Popeyes tucked in the corner (can you believe it?) and decided to get some N’awlins cooking. There were several people enjoying their chicken. In fact there was this Caucasian guy there that bought like a 10 piece box and he was eating it all by himself! We were thinking he was headed to Saigon, and this was his last “real meal!”

We arrived in Saigon at 10:00 PM. Customs was a breeze. Mom and Dad were waiting for us at the baggage claim area. They received special permission to receive us inside the airport. It was the first time I met my oldest uncle, or Cuu 10 (my mom’s brother and the eldest of 10 children) and my cousin in law. Outside, there was a mob of people waiting to receive passengers! We would not have found them in the mass of people. We were staying at the Sheraton. What a perfect location, right in the center of everything. The hotel greatly impressed me. The people were very service oriented, and the rooms were quite comfortable and spacious. There was a “master control” that was beside the bed that controlled at the lighting and the curtains. It even controlled the Do Not Disturb light indication, unlike most hotels that use a plastic placard card that hangs from the door knob. The bathrooms were large and had a separate tub and shower. The shower had three showerheads that were separately operated--- so invigorating after a long day of sightseeing.

Tue, 2/19- After breakfast at Pho 24 (a bowl of pho was only $1.50!), we walked around the local streets. We began to get accustomed to the skills of crossing a busy intersection. The traffic is total chaos! There is no “right of way.” Everyone just goes where they need to: right, left, reverse, U-turn. It was insane! We tried to take pictures to capture this insanity, but nothing could do it justice!

We went to the central Post Office, where mom worked for six months. The building was constructed by the French colonists in early 20th century during French Indochina. This post features the Gothic architecture style and was designed in well harmony with the surrounding ward. Today, this post office is an attraction for tourists in this city. Built in the French colonial style, it has high arches, reminding me of a church.

Afterwards, we visited my uncle’s house in the heart of Saigon’s market place, where the vendors sell everything from chickens to moped helmets. My mom used to go the marketplace everyday, to get the freshest ingredients for cooking the evening’s meal. We also visited our old home in Saigon.

We went to Maxim’s for lunch. We had fresh giant prawns that were grilled, fried whole tilapia, fried rice, and some stir fried greens. The meal was delicious! We all went to get massages at a local hotel. The 60 minute body massage was only $7! I also got a 90 minute facial for $35. We decided to come back every day!

For dinner, we went across the street to Mekong, serving French food. E and I are not fans of French cooking, but this meal was truly exceptional. It was definitely the best French dishes that we have eaten, even compared to Le Bouchon in Las Vegas, which is the sister restaurant to the acclaimed French Laundry in Napa, which requires at least 2 months to get a reservation and can require eating ramen noodles to save up for the experience. In addition to being delicious, Mekong’s entrees were only $12!

Wed, 2/20- We went to Restaurant Ngon (meaning “delicious”) for breakfast. The concept of this restaurant is quite intriguing. In Saigon, there are multiple food vendors peppering the streets, selling everything from pho to sandwiches. The owner decided to open his restaurant to the local food vendors considered the best in the city. Throughout the restaurant are food stations that have the dish’s name painted on wicker baskets. There is a separate cooking area at each station. When you order what you want from your waiter, he goes and gets each dish from the vendor that sells that specific dish, not from a central kitchen.

We went across the street to Reunification Palace formerly known as Independence Palace built on the site of the former Norodom Palace. It was the home and workplace of the President of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War and the site of the official handover of power during the Fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975. We then headed to the Vietnam historical museum located adjacent to the Saigon zoo. Throughout the entire day, dad was our tour guide, explaining the history and significance of everything that we saw. We took a train around the local zoo.

We returned to Ngon for lunch and tried some different dishes from the food vendors.
E & I went and got another massage and walked around the city. We stopped at Mojo, a café adjacent to the hotel for some café sua da (Vietnamese iced coffee) al fresco. E was commenting on how much he was enjoying Vietnam, which made me so happy!

We were meeting my Uncle’s family for dinner. This was the first time that I would be meeting them. They barely speak any English. This would be interesting. We drove through the city to this restaurant that was on a lake. It was so peaceful and the grounds were gorgeous. Mom ordered a huge array of food which was shared family style. I understood more than I thought, and tried to translate for E. My cousin Chi and her husband speak conversational English so that helped a lot! Everyone was so sweet, and kept telling us to Eat! Eat! I don’t think they ate as much as we did!

We returned to the hotel and E & I went back to Mojo for another café sua da as a night cap.

Thurs, 2/21- We rented a van and driver for an excursion to Vung Tau, and beach area just three hours east of the city. We were leaving at 6:00 AM. Just minutes out, mom said that all of this used to be farmland. We passed some smaller (and quite dusty) “towns”. There were food vendors and al fresco “cafés” that were amid dusty roads. The cafés were mostly roadside hole-in-the-walls with plastic chairs and tables set outside. We stopped for breakfast in a larger town, which was an oasis in the middle of this barren area. The streets were clean and manicured. We continued on the Vung Tau. The roads in between this larger town and Vung Tau was again barren and dusty, but as we approached Vung Tau, the tree lined streets widened leading us into the seaside town. There were “resorts” that lined the beach. There were public places that you could pay to swim in the pools and of course pay for a beach chair. We walked along the beach and stopped at a café to enjoy a café sua da. We stopped for lunch a restaurant overlooking the water.

We returned to Saigon in the afternoon and got another massage. We walked around the city and stopped at a Pizza Hut. It was a 50 person restaurant with all the interiors of a US based Pizza Hut, but minus the checkered table cloths. In fact, the decor was a lot nicer that what we would find in a typical Pizza Hut in the states. We ordered a thin crust pepperoni pizza and some fries. The pizza was really yummy, and I would not have thought we were in Saigon eating a Pizza Hut pizza. We returned to the hotel and E&I went back to Mojo for another café sua da as a night cap.

Fri, 2/22- It was our last day in Saigon. We would be leaving in the morning. We visited several different pagodas and then went to the Diamond department store. We went to Ngon again for lunch. E & I went and got another massage and walked around the city. For dinner, my cousin invited all of us to dinner at a seafood restaurant. We had some rare fish marinated in lime (kind of like ceviche). The remaining dishes centered around crab: crab eggrolls, crab sautéed in tamarind, and crab with glass noodles. E ate everything! The meal was wonderful!

Sat, 2/23- We left for Hong Kong in the early morning. We stayed at the Habourside Hotel. We were upgraded to a suite because our room was not ready. It was a corner room with all of its windows facing the harbour. The view was amazing. It was a rainy, low key day. We made an attempt to walk around Tsim Sha Shui, but the weather was not cooperating and our hotel was not as convenient as the Sheraton. I am glad that we stayed closer to town on our first days here. Toward the afternoon, we stopped by an MTR station where we found a Chinese foot reflexology place (finally!). We each got a 30 minute foot massage. It was just a great way to end our vacation.

Sun, 2/24- We headed home. Hong Kong and Saigon surprised me in so many respects. I initially wanted to visit because of the significance to my culture. But we will definitely return for all it has to offer.