Pho, Pho, Pho! Merry Xmas!

After a restful sleep, I woke up at around 7 ready to begin my day of exploring Saigon. The honks and motors outside got me out of bed. Wandering aimlessly through the streets near my hotel I searched for anything resembling the cafes that Brandon mentioned. He wrote in an email about lounging outside a cafe, drinking coffee and eating a chocolate pastry. That's what I wanted. Unfortunately I found nothing of the sort and was bombarded by men in rickshaws or on motorbikes asking me where I wanted to go. To escape this, I ducked into this little side street.

I looked around and found a street vendor with stout plastic chairs and tables. I looked at the two men smoking and drinking their morning coffee. Next to them, a young boy was slurping down a bowl of pho. The lady approached me and I pointed to the coffee. Pleased with my find I sat down and waited for my coffee to drip.


I love this stuff!! After enjoying my first cup of Vietnamese coffee, contemplating if I should have another, I relished this feeling of being in a new place, having no idea what to do or where to go. For the better part of my travels, I had been in the mindset of knowing as much as I could about my destination, carrying a guide book in hand. Vietnam has been the first place where I was a true nomad. I knew what I should check out, but I'm so glad I chose to aimlessly wander the city versus "touring" it. I do feel that these two types of exploration will give you two very different impressions of a city.

Biting at the bit, I started to trek the streets. Saigon reminded me of the French Quarter, especially in the old district. Strolling the streets, I noticed these banners lining the sidewalks. I had to keep reminding myself that Vietnam was communist, or as Mikey likes to say, "Mini-Communist." Nothing says Holiday Cheer like the Hammer and Sickle.

Lunch time! I liked the spring rolls but not the dipping sauce (too fishy) and then came the time to eat my first bowl of pho. I had high expectations because friends have basically given me the impression that I would love it. Stephanie likened it to galbi-tang (which I looooove). Liz compared it to a beef chicken noodle soup.

The waiter brought it out, ok well it looks delicious. So I grabbed my spoon and took a big mouthful. At first, I didn't taste anything. Then I tasted beef. Then I tasted.... cilantro. Blech. Some people love cilantro. I am not those people. I can tolerate moderate sprinkles of cilantro in salsa or whatever but a mouthful of cilantro made my gag reflexes start to act up. Discounting the cilantro, the aftertaste of the pho was not too pleasant either. A little too salty? Personally, I was disappointed that I didn't like pho.

It was like, "Hey! Vietnam! You're awesome! I like you a lot! But. listen. I really can't stomach your food. Really, I wanted this to work out, but I don't think it will."

So coffee: + 10
spring rolls: + 5
dipping sauce: - 5
pho: -15