Well here's my first post from Vietnam. After a long 30+ hour trip, I have finally made it to Ho Chi Minh City. I have been here for nearly 24 hours now and I am still adjusting and getting myself into the right circadian rhythm. Today was pretty relaxed. I got to explore a bit of the neighbourhood I'm living in and get a feel for the surroundings and learning where all of the important places would be. We then picked up the rest of our crew at the airport and came back to the guest house. I passed out because I had been up for a while and still had not adjusted yet. We went out for dinner tonight to a very nice place and I have just gotten back.
The weather has been quite hot and humid a stark contrast to back home. The high this afternoon was 40 degrees celsius.
Overall, however, I am quite happy and excited to start this journey. It has already proven to be quite a culture shock ever since I got off the plane. Ho Chi Minh City cannot compare to any city in Canada. It is incredibly huge and busy. With a population of over 7.5 million (according to wikipedia, a.k.a. the gospel of truth), Ho Chi Minh City is a bustling city full of fast-paced lifestyles it appears. Driving in the city would seem like a nightmare to me as the streets are filled with people on motorbikes and the etiquette on the streets is something I'm still trying to wrap my head around. Walking is just as tricky with specific rules to follow when crossing the street and if you don't follow them, you'll likely get run over by someone.
The organization of the city is very scattered it seems to me. There is much infrastructure development that has or is taking place, however, it appears like it is all taking place behind schedule and reacting to urban growth and development as opposed to anticipating it. That said, as a Canadian, I don't think I could ever relate or compare the rate of urbanization that has taken place here to anything that has taken place back home. Urban growth is on a whole other level as compared to urban growth back home.
Anyways, those are my first impressions so far of my host country. I am looking forward to getting pictures up here soon so I can show you where I'm living. The video below is just a quick one I did this morning of the room I'm temporarily staying in at the guest house.
Noah
Its such s small room, where will you plug in your xbox? Oh right, I have it lol. Glad to see you got their safe and are liking it. Take pictures of all the stuff you eat so ill know what to expect in cambodia.
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ReplyDeleteThanks for posting, Noah!! We are loving the blog!
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