Saigon has street food on every corner and restaurants down every street and tight dark alley; some alleys have seemingly nothing but restaurants, not just local hole-in-the-wall spots but pleasant new restaurants. One such alley, filled with higher end eats, is 71 Mac Thi Buoi. Also known as Hem 71, the alley in the middle … read the full post

Although I love Saigon’s street food, some of the dishes that you’re served streetside can have portions on the small size; some of them are plenty for one person, but others may require a second serving. When I’m feeling extra hungry and I want to make sure that I’m going to be full, I go … read the full post

Over the past couple of months temperatures have been rising in Saigon; this usually isn’t much of an issue because there are so many ice cream shops… but now that I’m planning to run a half marathon I need to start eating a little healthier. So I’ve switched from ice cream to frozen yogurt, meaning … read the full post

If you’re a food lover, then Saigon is a great spot to spend some time, with restaurants down every alley and on every street. You may, however, struggle to find in HCMC any variety in Southeast Asian cuisine. Don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of Vietnamese restaurants around town, but if you are looking … read the full post

Saigon is a city where you can shop till you drop; plenty of markets, stores and boutiques are eager to help you part with your cash. Many of these places however have become a little too focused on tourists and visiting them may give you little in the way of a cultural experience. Add that … read the full post

The past few weeks I have written a few posts about some of the city’s more popular pagodas and temples; these focused mostly on Buddhist temples, but HCMC happens to be home to a large Catholic community and it wouldn’t be fair if I didn’t talk about another popular religious destination in Saigon, the Notre … read the full post

Everyone knows that travelling to Saigon during Tet can be a bit of a headache, with many restaurants and shops closed and transportation is limited. Tet, however, isn’t Vietnam’s only celebrated holiday that can throw you for a loop: Reunification Day on April 30 (followed a day later by May Day on May 1) marks … read the full post

Although there are plenty of pagodas in Saigon, as I’ve mentioned a few times recently, most of them are pretty quiet; which could lead to inner peace, or you might just get sleepy from boredom. Don’t get me wrong; I enjoy my temples as much as the next guy but I can only watch turtles … read the full post

Traffic in HCMC is ridiculous: it’s noisy, congested and totally awesome to navigate. To look at the traffic from the outside it would most certainly seem chaotic; people driving on the sidewalk, almost no regard for traffic lights, people swerving around people at whatever speed they desire. It’s so crazy that most people would be … read the full post

Lately I’ve been talking about a few of the more popular pagodas in Saigon. All of these temples are revered places of worship where people actively go to pray and ask for guidance. Each one has had something unique: turtles, incense, or being the oldest temple in town. One thing that they all have in … read the full post