After a short rest in our hotel, we set off to Ben Thanh Market which was about 10 minutes walk away from our hotel. We had to use our umbrella as it was still drizzling.
I bought myself a t-shirt and a couple more t-shirts for my family at 850,000VND (or S$48.57). While the items were not exactly cheap or legit, I wanted to get something back as souvenir. With age, my taste has changed, I felt myself less fancy towards items from the market.
The rain became heavy by the time we finished shopping, we hurried our way to search for the pastry shop that we used to get our traditional snacks from during our last trip which was 5 minutes walk away from the market.
We were so happy that the shop was still around and I gotten 256,000VND (or S$14.63) worth of cookies, crackers and sweets from here to distribute back.
The best part of shopping overseas lies in the satisfaction we got from buying something cheap and burning off calories through the constant walking.
Bảo Hiên Rồng Vàng
167, Ly Tu Trong, Ben Thanh Ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh Operating hours: 7am to 12pm daily, 1.30pm to 8pm from Mon to Sat and 1.30pm to 5pm on Sun
It was already 4.15pm by the time we finished shopping, we decided to find a cafe to seek shelter from the persistent rain. Wet weather made us want to get indoor, so spending time sipping a drink and enjoying some dessert seemed to be a good idea. We chanced upon Café Amazon which was 8 minutes walk from the pastry shop.
It was only 5.15pm and we set off for an early dinner. Linda craved for the lotus fried rice from the restaurant we had from our previous trip, so we made a revisit back. After 10 minutes of walking, we found Nam Giao Restaurant tucked in a back alley, you will be surprised to see a stretch of restaurants lining up.
The restaurant remained unchanged from our visit 5 years ago, the familiar charm from the minimal interior, decked with wooden furnishing and tall ceiling.
We ordered Banh Beo at 52,000VND (or S$2.97) for sharing. It was a traditional Vietnamese appetizer, steamed rice cakes topped with dried shrimps, crispy pork skin, scallion oil, and came with dipping sauce. The harmonious blend of textures and tastes made this a delight flavour.
We overestimated our appetites by each ordering a serving of lotus fried rice (no photo since the fried rice was a repeated dish). Both of us found ourselves unable to finish half of the portion. We should have ordered one plate to share, we were not hungry since we came straight from Cafe Amazon. The total bill was 202,000VND (or S$11.54).
Nam Giao Restaurant
136/15 Đ. Lê Thánh Tôn, Phường Bến Thành, Quận 1, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam
Operating hours:8am to 9pm daily
The sky was slowly turned dark when it was just 6.10pm. The journey back from Ben Thanh Market to our hotel posed a challenge when we were at the complex crossroads with multiple roads involved. We went back to hotel early as I was deprived of rest and needed some Panadol to relieve my cough and slight fever.
Returning to the hotel after a day filled with sightseeing and shopping felt so welcoming.
While we were in the room, we took a moment to look at the canvas art on the wall, we cleared almost all the attractions in the bubble speech except for Cu Chi Tunnel and Mekong River which was both two hours away from the city. A return to Ho Chi Minh City might not be on my travel list for the next few years.
Day 3 had came to an end and I am ready to go back home tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment