MY overview:
Once romantically referred to by the French as the Pearl of the Orient, Ho Chi Minh City is still called Saigon by almost everyone who lives there.It has more of a cosmopolitan feel than Hanoi,as compared to the pictures my bro had taken. and only in ho chi minh city can u see teeming markets, tropical fruits, king cobras, barbecued dogs, and a hundred other such items for sale.Sidewalks are crammed with noodle stands, cafEs, and vendors selling fresh glasses of beer or black coffee; roads are often gridlocked with motorbikes, scooters, bicycles, cyclos (pedicabs), buses, and a few cars (for now). All kinds of people travel by bicycle or motorbike: women in traditional ao dais, long gloves, and conical hats; different kinds of masks and whole families -- mother, father, and two children -- all squeezed onto one seat,just like as mentioned before,one whole family begging for money. united in a way of their own i guess...Combined with this vivacious street life,world's famous vietnam war stories,and their traffic congestions at all times, the city cannot be forgotten. BUT, it is their people even more than the city that i will remember most.