SAIGON:

Before we left for Vietnam we were told that Saigon is a loud city with crazy traffic that would give us a culture shock.
Although traffic - meaning motorbikes, busses, cyclos, bicycles, taxis and very few “normal” cars - was heavy, crossing the road without being run over hard to get used to and the air full with the noise of the 4 million motorbikes (Saigon has around 7-8 million inhabitants and 4 million motorbikes) we really enjoyed Saigon.
As it was our first stop in Vietnam we chose to stay in a small (and very skinny) hotel in the more “upscale” part of the city.
“HoChiMin”, as it is usually referred to, is a nice mixture between French colonial architecture, modern buildings and the bustle and chaos of a South Asian city. Instead of taking “public transport” we hiked all around town in order to take in as much as possible. We made a walking tour through the main part of the city, visited markets and the Chinese quarter, got an hour long traditional Vietnamese massage, looked at temples and pagodas, spent an afternoon at the zoo/botanical gardens and had great food in little restaurants and cafes.