Honeymoon trip to Hong Kong, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Japan

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May 19th, 2013

After the grueling bus ride, we checked in to our hotel, Nikko Saigon. This was a very nice place, probably with the only downside being that the bathroom was surrounded by see through glass door and the bathtub was in the middle of the room. Not much problem for a couple but probably not a place to stay with a coworker - or your parents. Ho Chi Minh city is a much different place than Hanoi. It's like night and day. Hanoi is basically what I imagined Vietnam to be like. Ho Chi Minh is a modern metropolis on par with Hong Kong. It has a very busy night life, with young people out in bars, something we didn't really see in the more traditional Hanoi.

In Nikko Saigon. Notice the bathtub in the middle of the room.

Enjoying the bustling nightlife in Ho Chi Minh City

May 20th, 2013

We spent the entire day sightseeing, before having to catch a late evening flight back home.

The next morning we went for a sightseeing walk.

Among other things, we found cupcakes! These came with coffee in a weird apparatus that I managed to spill all over the table.

The General Post office was nice to see. We also visited the Jade Emperor Pagoda, which looked nice from the drawing in the guidebook but was really a let down.

Not quite sure what's going on here. I am assuming the dogs are off to be adopted to some nice family.

We also visited the War Remnants Museum, which probably should be called the "Americans are bastards" museum. But it was interesting to see the war from the Vietnamese perspective and also photos of the disturbing disfigurations and birth defects caused by the chemical warfare used by the American forces.

We had lunch at Cyclo Resto, which at that time was ranked as the #1 restaurant in the city by Trip Advisor.

Later on we visited the rooftop garden in the Rex Hotel. This place was popular with diplomats during the war. Just outside is a street full of famous brands.

Few more pictures of the modern architecture. Compare this with the capital of Hanoi.

May 21st, 2013

And the trip has (almost) come to an end. We took an 11pm ANA flight to Narita, in the outskirts of Tokyo. We landed in the morning and had 8 hours before catching the direct flight to Washington, D.C. We spent this time taking the express train to downtown for lunch and a short stroll. Well Sandra was the one to have the lunch. My stomach was cooperating for the entire trip until this day. I was feeling pretty sick and couldn't really think of eating anything. No despair, we are planning on being back in Japan in 2015 for IEPC.

On the NEX express from Narita to Tokyo.

The menus here consist of plastic replicas of the dishes. Even the beer and soup. Ingenious!

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