We normally find these types of tours too expensive, but we figured in a cheap country it might be more reasonable. And it was, compared to most other cities around the world, but still not good value for us.
The price was 299,000 dong ($12.25 USD, $16.50 CAD) per person.
These photos were from our walk to the opera house.
We met Blair and Susan and bought the tickets.
Kevin, Susan, Blair, Ruth.
On the top level of the bus, and ready to go!
The Saigon Opera House.
The guy in front of me stood up just as I was snapping this photo!
There are a lot of rivers and canals in Ho Chi Minh City.
The main Saigon River.
Statue of 13th century warrior.
Scenery along the way.
The French Cathedral is under renovation.
The main post office.
This lady was selling these fold out card decorations made of paper.
Above the post office entryway.
Inside the post office.
Old style long distance telephone booths.
I didn't even realize that I caught Susan and Blair in the photo!
The French Cathedral.
We got off the bus once on the entire circuit, which I'm guessing might be 10 kms (6 miles) in length. First time we got off was at the cathedral and post office, then on the second time around we got off again at the river, figuring a walk by the river might be nice, but there was very little shade, and it was too hot.
We walked up to the base of this bridge.
Old style riverboat.
Huge apartment development on the other side of the downtown area.
In the shade of the base of the bridge, these guys set up their hammocks to take a break from the sun.
Interesting building.
Kind of reminds me of some of the Gaudi architecture in Spain.
We got off the bus the last time close to Blair and Susan's hotel, and we found somewhere to have some lunch together. Then we went our separate ways. It will be interesting to see when we will get together again! They are originally from Calgary area and it looks like we might both be there sometime during late summer this year.
The bus tour was just okay. The problem is that the route wasn't very long, and if the weather hadn't been so baking hot we could have walked it and seen just as many things. Also, we all thought the audio guide wasn't very descriptive. For 299,000 dong, we thought it was overpriced. Probably won't do one again.
Ruth and I walked up to a big park and wandered around.
Then made our way back to our guesthouse where they had stored our bags since we checked out in the morning.
Still lots of time before our 9:00pm flight, but we decided to head to the airport early. we find that time passes quickly in airports, and with free WiFi and air conditioning, it seemed like a good idea. Plus, we were taking the local bus, and weren't sure how long it would take.
It's actually an airport express bus run by a private company, but it departs from the main public bus terminal and uses route number 109. Really easy to figure out, and it only cost 45,000 dong ($1.85 USD, $2.45 CAD) in total for us and our bags.
Waiting for the bus.
Our flight was supposed to depart at 9:00pm, but it was 8:50pm by the time we started to board. Then there was a long delay by the runway waiting to take off.
We were supposed to arrive in Da Lat at 9:50pm, but it was about 10:30pm when we got there. Fortunately, Da Lat airport is quite small and we quickly got our bags and got outside. Hailed a Grab taxi for the 1.5 km journey to our guesthouse and were checked in by 11:00pm.
We purposely chose a guesthouse really close tot he airport (which is located 30 kms or so from the actual city) because we knew we were arriving late. We're only here for the one overnight, and then we will make our way to our next location the other side of town.
The room is dated, but nice enough, with a comfy bed.
The facilities.
Not bad, for 445,500 dong ($18.25 USD, $24.50 CAD) for the night.
We settled in for a one night sleep, and this morning will make our way to the next location.
So... what's the "rare treat" we have for you?
We've been interviewed by various news outlets over the years, and we've even done a couple of audio radio interviews, but I don't think we've ever been interviewed by video. We were contacted by Warren and Julie who do a YouTube video blog where they interview a lot of fellow travelers regarding the different ways of doing things. They wanted to talk to us about our experiences RV'ing in Europe, so we sat down while we were in Cambodia and had a half hour chat with them.
You can view it at their YouTube channel here...
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Nice deal on this popular Klymit Camp Sleeping Pad.
And in Canada...
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