Dalat to HoChiMinhCity (Saigon) - Day 13

Today proves to be an interesting one, as we encounter the vagaries of small time airlines (Vietnam Airlines) masquerading as one of the big guys.  We rise at 4:45 a.m., put our bags out at 5:15, head for breakfast in anticipation of our transfer to the airport for an 8:05 flight.  Upon arriving at the airport our guide does a group checkin, gets our bags checked, hands us our boarding pass and sends us to the Boarding Lounge.  Not 15 minutes later the PA announces that our flight to Saigon will not board until 10:20 a.m., a full 2+ hours late!  Needless to say Tano is visibly upset as this is not the first time this has happened to him even though he has called in advance to confirm the flight times.  Finally at 10:35 we begin boarding for our takeoff at 11:00.  About 10 minutes into the flight we are told to return to seats, fasten seatbelts, etc., for landing!  We waited all this time for a 30 minute gate-to-gate flight!!

Following lunch we take a city tour of Saigon.  It is a very beautiful city with lots of French architectural influences remaining from the colonial days.  We take in the War Remnants Museum.  As you might expect it portrays a very one-sided view of the Vietnam War, but even so, it helps us to understand how many Vietnamese felt about our involvement at that time.  We have very mixed feelings after this stop.  Our next stop is yet another lacquerware factory, but because this one is Vietnamese the designs and processes are somewhat different from the Thai shop we visited.  Quite interesting.  Our final stop includes the Notre Dame Cathedral, built by the French and completed in 1880, and the main Post Office across the street, built with leftover materials from the cathedral construction.  Both are very beautiful though quite different in design.  On our way to our hotel we convince Tano that we need an ice cream stop, so he has the bus take us to a nearby shop where we purchase some of the best ice cream in Southeast Asia.  Great way to end an otherwise challenging day.