The Target of Saigon

The Co-Op is the Target of Saigon. It's got all the shampoos, snacks,
drinks, clothes, utensils, pillows, etc. under one roof. Not to be
confused with the Sams or Costco of Vietnam, that would be Metro.

The Tall House from outside

This is a typical house in Saigon. OK- it's typical for wealthy people. Why is it soooo tall and so narrow? Land is very expensive and everyone wants to be on the main street. By the way, I recounted, and it's actually 10 floors straight up and 11 if you count the back area off the first floor. Not pictured is the massive outdoor iron gate and the massive "garage door" that lowers in front o the doors at the bottom. Each person has a remote control keychain to operate the "garage door" in case we get home and it's shut.

The local market

They just put up a new sign on the market the other day. The red paint looks as fresh as the veggies, fruit, fish, meat, you name it, it's here, dead or alive. Notice that almost everyone, buyers and sellers, are women.

Da Man with da sandwich stand

Here's our local mobile sandwich stand. OK, all sandwich stands are mobile in Saigon, but this guy has one on his motorbike. Two words: That's awesome. Another two words: That's lunch today.

Eggs and Jelly stuff galore

What kind of eggs you want? Some are specially marked because those have the baby fetus inside. Personally, I find that kind of sick. Ok- really sick. But they like it, just like you might like beef and vegetarians won't touch it. And licorice. Yeah- I like licorice, but no one over here seems to be able to stomach it. Chocolate's another story.

Here are the jellies. This is paradise. I have no idea what they all are. Some you mix with other stuff, like water and sugar. Others you can drink alone. The bag of jelly balls that I bought cost 2,000 Dong. 10 cents? Someone's got a sweet tooth, and it's not just me. All the dessert places in town are packed 24/ 7.

The prettiest Yam I ever saw.

I guess this is what yam is supposed to look like? It's called a "fatty potato" here.

What happens when the electricity goes out?

When the electricity goes out, and believe you me, it does- regularly, a guy in a blue uniform climbs up on a ladder and fixes the problem. Who cares how he does it? It gets done, don't it? And this is one of the more organized ones I've seen.

Moto lesson #2: How to Text and drive at the same time

So, your running low on credit? Just text 'em. Who cares if you're riding a motorbike? Not the passenger. She's your eyes, after all. What do you do if you're alone? No one to back you up? No vision? Who needs it? If you've got the guts to ride a motorbike in Saigon, you've got to believe you're invincible. And if you're invincible, you can ride while texting. Simple as 1, 2, SMACK, DANG I'M DEAD.

Instead of PB&J or chips, I like Bon Bons for snacks

One of my favorite things about Saigon and the rest of South East Asia
is the fruit. The Bon bon has no US equivalent, but has a texture
similar a lychee. I could eat these all day long, and sometimes I do.
PB&J who?

Morning coffee scene

My new coffee joint. All men, with one or two lady friends, and the
women who work here of course. It's almost always ladies working in
food, retail, lottery and recycling. Aside from the noise and the
smell of petrol it's a great people watching spot. Motorbikes zipping
past on the sidewalk, food vendors, men passing time smoking, reading
the paper, drinking coffee, communicating silently together. One
coffee is hot (nong) and the other is on ice (da) but both have
condensed milk in them. There's a kettle of warm tea on the table
which is included. Total is almost $1. If there was just wifi and a/c.
That would be the bomb.

Banh Coun, breakfast with fish sauce

Not as tastey as the one by our old place, but half the price, twice
the size and only a short walk down the street, this banh coun has
lots of dried and friend onion on top and that makes me go gaga. The
fish sauce is on the right in a bowl to pour on top (go easy on it
first timers). Notice the far plate has prcossed pork slabs on top and
mine foes not. What's inside? Real ground pork, so why the fake stuff?
The more meat the merrier here.

The tall wall at the house

This should give you an idea of the height of our 10-story house.
That's a human head and a treadmill down there and there are two more
floors up above.

Old fashioned Noodle stand on feeder/ sidewalk

These old noodle stands are real charmers, but unfortunately they're
not too common anymore.

Tofu that looks like pork at the non-denominational veggie restaurant

There is a killer vegetarian place nearby. This dish is actually tofu,
and if it doesn't look enough like pork, there is a drawback- the
fatty-looking part tastes just like fat. I'd have thought they might
make it taste "better" than fat but turns out people like the fat
here. The restaurant is also non-denominational it seems as there ate
three photos on the wall: a Buddha, Mary and a Third Eye. I also liked
one of the poems on the wall: your soul is an inner light; don't get
bogged down by material possessions.

Coffee in a shot glass

Today I stopped into a typical coffee shop on the corner of a busy
intersection where the goal seems to be to sit as close to the street
exhaust as possible- as that obviously offers the best views. For
7,000 Dong I had a coffee out of a shot glass and a kettle of tea.
The tea comes with whatever you order as it's expected that you'll not
want to order a lot, but like everyone else (mostly men) you'll want
to spend a good part of the day there. My waitress was surprised that
I was leaving after only 10 minutes so, but it was too difficult to
explain that it was because I was sweating profusely and had already
inhaled the equivalent of 12 cartons of Lucky Strikes. Good coffee
though. I'll be back earlier tomorrow.

Rooftop view of Saigon

Out house is 10 stories. Count: 10!

1) entrance and shoe/ bike parking

2) only a few steps up but i still count it- a room that no one uses
except there is a large wooden bed/ chest and lots of water bottles

3) tv room with fridge

4) kitchen and permanent renter who plays online poker all day

5) my bedroom

6) 2nd bedroom

7) online poker player's bedroom

8) 4th bedroom

9) washing machine, hammock and outdoor patio

10) rooftop with water heater, water tank/ tower and This view.

Amazingly, this view is blocked from levels 9 and below because all
the other homes nearby are the same height! I'm guessing 100 feet to
the top, but that could be an under estimate.

Sidewalk Street

Sidewalks aren't really meant for walking on here. They're access
roads, or perhaps more akin to feeders, most commonly used when
construction makes roads too narrow and when traffic just bites. One
benefit to driving on sidewalks is that food is more accessible.
Another is that it's easier to run over people, and the more people
you run off the sidewalk, the more points you accumulate. If you
accumulate enough points, you get a US passport.

Breakfast chicken noodles (mien ga)

Chicken noodle soup, Vietnamese style. Condiments include lemons,
veggies, bean sauce, chilli sauce and of course the source of
Vietnamese national pride, fish sauce.

Dessert after breakfast

To Hu Nong (hot tofu with sweet cocnut milk, boiling Ginger juice and
tapioca) is getting addictive at 8am after breakfast. 15 cents per
serving. The lady who sells it says she gets up at 3am everyday to
make it and finishes at 6am. She stays out until she sells it all, if
she can. My guess is her tub has at least 500 servings worth. Next
time I'll ask her. That will be tomorrow.

Sweets in Saigon

Yummies made fresh, daily. I'm not too keen on the soft spongy cakes,
but do indulge the banana cakes and pineapple pastries.