Vietnam, Part 3: Saigon History and a Last Splash Down the Mekong

Karen Cristello

Jul 2, 2025

5 min read

Heavy history in Saigon, a slow boat down the Mekong, and a 100-year-old grandmother making rice crisps by hand. Vietnam's contrasts continue.

Ho Chi Minh City: History, More Phở, and Good-Luck Geckos

After the Ha Long Bay & Hoi An segment of our tour, we flew from Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) to start Day 6. The first stop was lunch at the famous Phở 2000, which earned its “Phở for the President” nickname after Bill Clinton stopped in during his historic 2000 visit, the first by a sitting U.S. president since the war ended. I was growing weary of phở so had spring rolls with vermicelli. They were great, and I found yet another soy sauce to love.

From there we had free time to choose our own adventure. Most others went shopping, but I wanted history, so I went back to the War Remnants Museum, which I'd visited briefly in 2001 but barely remembered. I spent about two hours there and honestly could've used three, as there's a lot to take in. Like the Hanoi Hilton, the framing here leans hard into one side of the story, but I still think it's worth seeing how the “other side” tells it. Fun fact: We call it the Vietnam War, but they call it the American War. (Side note: I saw a documentary series on Netflix — Turning Point: The Vietnam War — that I thought did a pretty balanced job of presenting both the American and Vietnamese perspectives.)

A statue of Thích Quảng Đức; Independence Palace, where a North Vietnamese tank crashed through the gates on April 30, 1975, ending the war; and shots from our Saigon cyclo tour. (© 2025, Karen Cristello)

Next, a cyclo tour through historic and modern Saigon stopped at several places, including the Đài tưởng niệm Bồ tát Thích Quảng Đức (the Thích Quảng Đức Monument). This marks the intersection where, in 1963, a Buddhist monk named Thích Quảng Đức lit himself on fire and died in protest of the South Vietnamese government's persecution of Buddhists. The resulting photograph became one of the most iconic images of the era (President Kennedy reportedly said no news photo had ever generated so much emotion) and it's credited with helping turn U.S. opinion against the Diệm regime. Such a sad story, but at the same time, so much passion for one’s beliefs.

That evening we took an evening cruise down the Saigon River with lots of snacks, which was beautiful, though I'll admit I'd picked up a mild stomach bug by that point (damn my sensitive gut!) and couldn't do the food justice.

We stayed at the historic Hotel Continental Saigon, built in 1880 and famous as the setting and the real-life haunt of Graham Greene while he wrote The Quiet American in room 214. As a bonus, I had a couple of geckos gracing me with their presence on the balcony ceiling (more love and good luck!).

Down the Mekong on the Last Day

Our local guide on the first, bigger boat; me and cute grandma; grandma's kitchen; banana-leaf and peanut jam on a toasted rice crisp; jackfruit, which to me tastes like a cross between banana and coconut; and the adorable kitten I wanted to take home. (© 2025, Karen Cristello)

Our last full day took us out of the city and down to the Mekong Delta. Our first stop on a small boat was a cute 100-year-old grandmother's house, Bà Năm Bánh Tráng, where she showed us how she makes dried rice crisps by hand, plus a seriously delicious banana-leaf and peanut jam, which I bought to take home. We also had tea and fresh jackfruit, and I fell in love with a sweet little kitten.

From there we split into two smaller boats and wound through a narrower canal to the Lò Cốm Kẹo Cửu Long sweets factory, which makes puffed-rice treats and other snacks. They were good, and not too sweet, which I appreciated. Lunch was at Nhà Dừa CocoHome, a veritable feast complete with whole fried fish and a side of musical entertainment.

We had the option to bicycle to a pottery village in Thanh Đức, part of what locals call the Mekong Delta's “Kingdom of Bricks.” Vĩnh Long province has been a hub of brick and pottery-making for over a century, using clay pulled straight from the riverbanks. It was way too hot and humid, so we drove instead, and I was glad the group decided to go to the factory rather than shop in Saigon, because watching the makers hand-build these heavy, several-feet-tall vases and pots was impressive. They sold smaller pieces in the shop; I didn't buy anything, but I was happy others in the group found some souvenirs.

We closed out the trip with a goodbye dinner at The Long @ Times Square — stylish, delicious, and complete with fancy-schmancy cocktails to toast an unforgettable week, which our guide, Son, was a key part of. We played “Two Truths and a Lie;” mine were (a) I once stood 10 feet away from Donald Trump at a Met Museum event, (b) I have a guitar pick from Keith Richards, and (c) I smoked a cigarette in Iggy Pop’s trailer. (Answer below.) And two G Adventures staff wrote poems for each of us and cracked up the entire time they read them to us. I thought I wrote mine down somewhere, but I can’t find it. Something about Japan and being sweet (I think that’s an interpretation of my being an extroverted introvert, or of being well-behaved).

I was sad to leave Vietnam, but I was heading to Japan for a few days, which I was also excited about. And I’d had enough of the group for the time being. It was fun to see some of them at a later conference, though.

And that's a wrap on the Vietnam tour! Now read more about What It’s Like to Travel With G Adventures.

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Two Truths and a Lie Answer: C! Although it’s actually partly true — I didn’t smoke a cigarette, but I drank a beer. Is that cheating?

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Are you up for a group tour? Interested in experiencing G Adventures yourself? Contact me.

The Talefeathers Blog

Vietnam, Part 3: Saigon History and a Last Splash Down the Mekong

Ho Chi Minh City: History, More Phở, and Good-Luck Geckos

Down the Mekong on the Last Day

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