Coming from Europe, where, as a German citizen, one is frightfully aware of not using the wrong, maybe expansionistic old name for a town, we were puzzled as to wether it is alright to use the old name of the town, Saigon. Since the end of the War against the USA, the town was named after their late great leader. But, as we learned, the old name lives on in hundreds of shop names, brands, and advertisements for travel companies to and from the city.

Ho Chi Minh City (or just HCMC) is the biggest city in Vietnam, and the economically the most successful. And it is growing: More and more (mostly young) people are moving from the countryside to the big city, to find better jobs and education. To us, it seems as Vietnam in HCMC is where China maybe was 10 oder 15 years ago. The center is populated by a well of elite, which roams the cafes and corner shops in their fancy office dresses around noon, while next to them the old lady carries her produce on a traditional shoulder stick thing through the traffic, looking for customers. Besides all the fancy business people, the city is more like the rest of the country, as we now know it. Streets filled with shops, all selling the same type of product, street stands with little plastic chairs selling coffee or Pho, and always a motorbike lurking around the corner.

The only other, different, part of the town is the walking street just down the alley of our little hostel. Here, the full effect of tourism in the country becomes achingly visible. At night, the streets are crammed full of people, either already sitting in an overpriced establishment, or working in front of it and urging you to go inside for some cheap cheap beer or good good food. And in between the ladies offering the best massage in town.

The traffic here is another tourist attraction of its own. You can find loads of blogs, where number 21 on their "25 top things to do in Saigon" list is - crossing the road. The traffic consists of 90% motorbikes - each typically loaded with two people, but sometimes more, sometimes a whole streetfood stand. The rest is cars, buses, and old ladies with traditional shoulder stick things. And it never stops. The trick seems to be to just keep going - slowly, but steady. The traffic can't flow as fast as in we may be used to it anyways, and so the little motorbikes just wind their way around you. The main problem and biggest threat seem those you don't expect, like driving on the (seldomly free to walk on) sidewalk or just simply coming the wrong way. But this was not much different than in other parts of Vietnam.

What was more special to us in HCMC was, no surprise, the history. The city is rich in colonial buildings, with the french main post office, still in use today, and the cathedral Notre Dame being the most prominent. Also the opera, the city hall and adjoining boulevard are remnants of the colonial past, with the close Pasteur street the only street still bearing its old name. And of course, more recent history: The former presidential palace of the Republic of (south) Vietnam, built in the sixties by an award winning architect, is now a museum and sports two tanks in the garden, which had ram down the gates and hoisted the flag of the north after accepting the surrender of the south

The most stomach clenching building is the War Remnants Museum just around the corner. Here, while outside a few captured American war machines are displayed, the inside has detailed information on the atrocities which the War against the USA brought to the country.

To lighten the mood, we turned to the nice side of Saigon: street food and street markets. Strolling around, trying grilled stuff and sweet tea shakes, we can conclude: This city has a lot to offer. But no peace and quiet.