18. Stop Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam

I had slept for 10 hours at night and thus overcame my jet lag relatively well. After breakfast, I went out to explore the city. My hostel was in the middle of downtown, so I could walk everywhere relatively quickly. However, I definitely had to get used to the traffic. As a pedestrian, you just have to walk ahead and that requires courage. On the sidewalk, I was even honked at when a scooter was coming towards me and I didn't make way ;)

My city tour started in the nearby park 'Tao Dan'. Here I saw a lot of locals (at least I think they were Vietnamese, I have to admit that I can't tell the difference), especially many families with children who were playing here. Afterwards, I went to the independence Palace, one of the landmarks of the city. During the Vietnam War, this was the residence and workplace of the President of South Vietnam.

I took a break at the shopping center 'Diamond Plaza'. The heat was really affecting me, to the point where I was afraid of fainting. It was 37 degrees outside, and still around 27 degrees in the center. Vietnam celebrates the new year on January 25th, so many buildings are decorated and lavishly decorated.

The city of Ho Chi Minh also has a Roman Catholic cathedral called Notre Dame. Unfortunately, it was surrounded by scaffolding when I visited. In front of the cathedral stands a statue of the Virgin Mary.

The city hall is a relatively large building in the middle of downtown and was built in 1902. In front of it is a beautiful square with the statue of the President. On the other side of the street is the city theater.

The Bitexco Financial Tower is the second tallest building in the city. There is a café with a magnificent view on top, but the prices are accordingly high, so I didn't go up.

My last stop of the day was at the famous Ben Thanh Market. The market square is one of the earliest preserved buildings in the city. Here, regional food, as well as all kinds of souvenirs and fresh food, are offered. However, I didn't eat here - the hall was so crowded that the air was stuffy, and that didn't suit me well on that day.