4/17 – 4/19 Ho Chi Minh City (Siagon)
The short version via pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/mpquinn/Asia2010
The narrative version:
4/7 – 4/8 Dallas to Singapore
4/9 – 4/10 Singapore
4/10 From the Ritz Carlton to the Seabourn Pride
4/11 – 4/12 At Sea
4/13 – 4/14 Laem Chabang
4/15-4/16 Ko Kood and at sea
4/17 – 4/19 Ho Chi Minh City (Siagon)
4/20 Da Nang
4/21 – 4/23 Halong Bay
4/24 Hong Kong
4/25 Homebound
Service Specific Comments on the Asia trip
4/17 Ho Chi Minh City day one
Brook goes shopping with Wendy and Barbara. Brook reports she had an amazing time learning the ways of international bargaining from Barbara.
Virtuoso dinner – We sat with the Prothro’s. Driving to dinner and driving back from dinner with Siagon all lit up was probably the highlight of the tour, although it was a short bus ride, we drove through district 1, the original Siagon, and district 3 (?) where the ambassador’s mansion was. The night started with several traditional dances including a fan dance. Each dance was traditional to a different region or ethnic group of Vietnam and the dancers (always the same six) skill varied individually by dance. Interesting, but nothing amazing. The best dance was probably the royal tea dance where the dancers clicked tea cups while they completed the dance. Apparently, during the real dance, they also pour tea for the royalty.
The food was pretty mediocre. The appetizers were probably the best dish, a fried spring roll served with hot mustard. On the way to dinner, our tour guide told us that the local beer was 333, pronounced ba-ba-ba, so I ordered that with dinner. The beer was also quite good, and I believe we were served the export version, which has a higher alcohol content. There was one dish that I have had at home, beef wrapped around a spring onion. The dinner’s version also included cheese, but was a poor substitute taste wise. I question the authenticity of the evening’s dinner, as Asians tend to be lactose intolerant and don’t eat cheese. Over all I was happy with the evening, just not the food. Brook ate almost nothing as she did not want to risk a glutening.
4/18 Ho Chi Minh City day two Mekong delta tour
The Mekong Delta tour was great. Our tour guide was very informative and was full of interesting information when asked questions. This was the most informative tour I have been on, either because I already had an interest in the subject and paid attention, or the tour was just that good. There were three food breaks during this tour, which was interesting. The first food stop was at a Vietnamese candy shop where they make puffed rice and other candies. Everything was good, but I especially liked the ginger based candies because of their bite. Puffed rice is very similar to popcorn in taste and rice crispies in size and texture, and it is used to make a treat that is a less sweet rice crispy treat. Lotus and jasmine tea was served with the candy and was quite good.
The second stop at the ancient house the snack was just fruit, jack fruit, pineapple, grapefruit and baby bananas. I don’t really like jack fruit, but it was a little sharper in flavor compared to the night before. The grapefruit was a bit dry, but I am sure it must be late in the season and they are drying out. The flavor was bitter, but not strongly sour. The pineapple was a nice example of a ripe fruit.
The final meal was the lunch. Lunch included elephant fish spring rolls in rice paper, spring rolls filled with some meat wrapped in rice noodles and deep fried (quite good), steamed or boiled shrimp (over done by my taste), seafood hot pot soup (fish balls were great, squid good and shrimp overdone), rice and bananas. Almost no one in my group cared for the food, so I was able to indulge in what I liked. This hot pot is a communal bowl of soup over a flame at the table, which is different than the hot pot at the end of the trip.
The boat part of the tour was a little disappointing just because my expectations were different than what I actually experienced. The Mekong is a very wide river with a lot of traffic, but I was expecting that traffic to be forced down to a much narrower space. The floating market was especially disappointing because I think we were too late. Almost all the boats were selling sweet potatoes and it was completely uncrowded.
The candy store stop was very interesting. The rice is puffed to make the candy and the husk that falls away is used as fuel for puffing the rice. It is very efficient.
The ancient house is kind of like a museum, but considering the group we were with, a museum like experience was probably more appropriate than actually seeing a real house of someone living on the Mekong. The back of the house is a restaurant, to one side a café and the house sits on a garden containing examples of many of the locally grown fruits, including durian. Sadly, durian was not served for us to try.
The lunch stop was at a large restaurant, at the time was serving mostly tour groups, but was also serving several local families. The restaurant was interestingly decorated, 3 walls were open to the canal and the back wall was a fake (concrete) rock wall. Leaving the restaurant, there were fake (concrete) oversized bamboo plants. This had a very Six Flags quality of construction and I wonder now if the restaurant was a chain and this was part of the theme.
I was very happy I took this tour.
Brook took the Chef shopping tour, and I have heard more about the tour from people other than her. (Brook edit: I did tell him about the large amount of herbs purchased – 10k of cilantro is something to see – the live fish, killing frogs by whacking their heads on concrete then ripping them off, the fact there was no refrigeration other than a bit of ice here and there and how one fruit stall ripped off the Chef and so now he no longer shops there) None of it has been enough to write about, other than it was a very interesting tour and quite a few people weren’t really hungry after shopping in a open market and witnessing the fresh meat. The Chef only purchases live fish and crab as well as fruits and vegetables. To maintain consistent quality, beef and lamb are purchased from Australia, New Zealand and the US only (for the Asia itinerary).
4/19 At Sea
Probably worked out and slept.