Cu Chi Tunnels, the Mekong, and Beyond

So I’ve provided some advice on how to cross the street in HCMC and shared my suspicions regarding the crack-spiked Pho, but have yet to discuss what I’ve been up to so far in Vietnam. Here’s a quick update.

My first several days in-country were spent exploring Ho Chi Minh City and hanging out with Anne. Anne is Vietnamese, but is just now visiting the motherland for the first time. The attractions in the city were less than inspiring, so we ventured a bit north of the city to check out the Viet Cong’s Cu Chi Tunnels. Pretty interesting to see the intricacy of the underground system and the way of life these guys adapted. It’s almost like they really wanted to win. And live...

From HCMC I bussed to Can Tho in the Mekong Delta to boat around the floating markets and weave around the canal network. They have entire villages there that can only be accessed by boat. Ventured to Rach Gia next, but only to catch a ferry to Phu Quoc Island. Definitely an up and coming resort island as everything there was brand new or still under development. I rented a motorbike to further explore the island, but the dirt roads were impassable in some areas and I had to settle for the beach. Currently heading north in route to Dalat – a mountainous town with lingering French influence. Will likely continue north to small mountain towns afterwards, and then finish with Hanoi and Sapa. May have to extend my visa to see all the good stuff – we’ll see!