Saigon!

We had a pleasant one hour flight from Danang to Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon.  The city looked massive from the air - it seems so vast!

This city is so different from Hanoi!  You would really think that Saigon is the capital and that Hanoi is just another city.
Saigon is still busy, but the streets are a lot more modern and wider, so it doesn't seem as hectic.  Also, whereas Hanoi was about 80% scooters and so few cars, Saigon seems to be a lot more cosmopolitan, with more cars on the streets and Versace, Louis Vuitton,  Prada and dozens of other designer stores everywhere you look.  There seems to be an absolute energy about this city.
The standard of driving is just the same though and we are still fascinated with watching the traffic!
We had already upgraded to a better hotel - the five-star Caravelle Hotel in the heart of the city centre (District One, which is the only part to be still formally known as Saigon).  Our problem was that our flight home is at 10pm on Friday, so we wanted to organise a late check-out.  It seemed that the best way to do this was to upgrade to a superior room, which allows us certain privileges, one of which is to check out in the evening, but we are also allowed into an exclusive lounge for our breakfast, free cocktails etc.  So we upgraded our upgrade!

Our room is fabulous!  We are on the 23rd floor in a colossal room with fabulous views!  It's going to be a great finale to a wonderful holiday!
We had a wonderful lunch and a couple of cocktails on the rooftop bar, before having a quick explore of the city.

There are some stunning buildings and the skyline is amazing, especially at night when the neon lights are on.

This is the view from our bedroom window!

We had our evening meal at the hotel and it was one of the best meals any of us had ever had!  I wish I had time to post pictures and explanations of all the dishes, but we need to get out and about as our time in this marvellous country is running out.

I will try to add a bit more to this post later, but things will be a bit manic now.  Tonight we go on a "foodie" tour of the city on the back of scooters (heaven help us!), then in the morning we leave at 7am to get a speed boat to the famous Cu Chi Tunnels - so much to do and so little time!

Just a quick "Happy Birthday" to Jane from Louise xxx

And a picture of some orchids for Sue - they are just everywhere- you'd love it!