Long Weekend in Ho Chi Minh

The last time we were in Ho Chi Minh, WJ and I managed to get stuck in the toilet of our hotel room. And he had to kick a hole in the door for me to crawl through to get help.

Thankfully, nothing epic happened this time. We just had simple fun exploring the city!

Where we went

Ho Thi Ky flower market

Mini pancakes, skewers, bong bong

After 2 years of not visiting night markets, this was one of our most anticipated sites this trip. And it did not disappoint.

We took our time ogling at the whole stretch of stalls before going back to try out the ones which caught our eye. We should have gone earlier as there were some stalls that closed while we were still not done with our feasting! I think going down at 8pm would be the perfect time, since they seem to start closing from 10.30pm.

Ben Thanh market

Pre-covid, there were stores open at night around the main building. But sadly, when we went, it was quiet after it turned dark.

Luckily, it was still bustling inside the market during the day! As we’re not fans of pushy salespeople, we didn’t walk through the entire market as every store we passed, they would call out and ask us to buy things. We decided to just focus on the food, and found a quieter spot at the edge of the food area where they didn’t shove menus into our faces.

If you’re looking to buy magnets as souvenirs, I recommend heading to the post office to get them. The same design cost 50k VND in Ben Thanh market (which dropped to 30k as we were walked away), and 20k at the post office without having to bargain.

Ben Thanh market is very touristy, so I recommend going there just to take a look around. And since there’s a collation of different Vietnamese food stores, to try a wide variety of food in a short time – especially if you’re only in Ho Chi Minh for a few days!

The Cafe Apartments

This was a pretty interesting concept where a whole block of apartments was transformed into cafes. And most of them have pretty good views looking out over a bustling street too.

We walked up to the top floor of the 8-storey building and realised that some of the apartments were still occupied by residents! I wonder if they feel annoyed by strangers peeping into their houses every day like they’re animals in a zoo!

After checking out the cafes on every level, we decided on teatime at the cosy Partea cafe. It’s a cute concept where you get to choose your own teacup from a selection hanging on the wall.

Post office

It was a pretty busy spot, even though the Notre Dame Cathedral nearby was under renovation. Buskers were singing cheery songs at the corner of the pastel yellow building. And just outside, graduating students were taking photos.

And the photogenic building is not just a place of history, it’s a functioning post office! We saw several tourists queuing to send the postcards they bought to their friends and family back home. And we bought a few to contribute to our expanding collection too!

War Remnants Museum

We spent a much longer time at the War Remnants Museum than anticipated, and we were starving when we left. The building might look small, but it packs a ton of information.

Some images featured are very graphic, and it was quite depressing to look at them. And even more depressing to think people did this (and continue to do this) to other people just to gain land or power. It’s also a reminder that war affects people on all sides, and the negative effects linger on after the end of the war.

But the War Remnants Museum is a great place to learn some of the recent Vietnamese history. And a good point to reflect on how we have been treating the people in our life, and how to improve on that if we haven’t been kind lately.