Everyone needs a break. In my case, I needed one badly! I had the hunger not only for food but for traveling. There came a point to my nights wherein I couldn’t help but imagine myself visiting another Asian country. Series of daydreams came up about my ‘cultural’ visits to other Asian countries. Seriously speaking, I was ‘craving’ to travel. It was an expensive hunger so I had to pray really hard. The good news is I was able to accomplish my mission. (Thank God!) Just a month ago, my mom and I had the chance to visit the land of Vietnam. 

The airport was unexpectedly clean and “modern”. I imagined Ho Chi Minh Vietnam’s airport to be similar to the Philippines’ NAIA Terminal 1, shabby looking. Guess I was wrong. Coming from a traveler’s point of view, I can’t help but judge a country by its airport. Based on what welcomed me, Ho Chi Minh airport went above my expectations. As you can see from my photos, it really looked ‘modern’. 

After the 2-3 hour trip, we went straight to our hotel. Mom and I decided not to waste time and go explore the city right away. For me, my mom is always the perfect travel buddy. She never fails to choose the best hotels. This means, wherever we go, she always select the hotel near the commercial/shopping area. In Vietnam, the best shopping place is the Ben Thanh Market. Thank God, our hotel was just a 2-minute walk away from the Market. 

I expected this, a bunch of motorcycles outnumbering the cars in Vietnam! 

This street shot was taken outside Ben Thanh Market. I had to keep my camera while I was inside the market because I was scared that it might get snatched. I better be safe than sorry. 🙂 

The shopping experience on our 1st day wasn’t bad at all. But definitely our stomachs were growling due to hunger. Thus, we randomly selected a restaurant to visit. So our first choice was Mon Hue. 

Why I went to Vietnam? Not only for shopping but for FOOD! I wanted to try authentic Vietnamese cuisine. Mon Hue was just near Ben Thanh Market, so I gave it a shot to try their Vietnamese food. 

Banh Beo (VND 35,000), an authentic Vietnamese, is also what they call “water fern cake”. One order consisted of several small saucer plates. When I tasted it, I remembered our Filipino food, “kakanin”. But for me, kakanin is so much better! I honestly raised my eyebrow when I tried out a spoon of Banh Beo. It wasn’t sweet, sour, salty, spicy, etc. It tasted blank. The sauce or its soup gave a little salty taste, and that was it. Nothing special at all. 

Bun Bo Hue or Beef Noodle Soup (VND 37,000) was a sure order when I saw the dish from the menu. Since it was Vietnam, I wanted to eat noodles, noodles and more noodles. I grabbed the opportunity right away and ordered noodles on my first day in the city. What can I say? Hmm.. the dish was suitable for someone who was tired of walking. Haha! I loved how it was a bit sour because of the lime taste and the spices which complemented everything well. My first Pho encounter in Vietnam would put a mark on my taste buds. 🙂 

Chao Tom Cuon Banh Trang (VND 99,000) – Those two photos above are the two main ingredients of this dish. You don’t eat the shrimp pated on sugar cane rolls alone. Well at first, I thought it was like eating Chicken Drumsticks. However, I was wrong. You have to use a thin wrap to put the ingredients in it. Imagine making a pita wrap, that was how they made us eat the dish. Just check out the waiter doing it for us since they saw us eating Chao Tom Cuon Banh Trang the wrong way. 

Learn from the Vietnamese waiter! I hope he washed his hands before serving us. Hahaha! 

I was trying to make my own wrap without the help of the waiter 🙂 

My beverage/dessert. We ordered their best seller, Suong Sa Hot Luu. Vietnamese style of Filipino Halo-Halo. They used different kinds of beans, layered it evenly, as you can see. Refreshing taste and something new for me to try. The green medium-sized jelly type of beans was practically new to me. But if you compare it to our local Halo-Halo, their dessert is no match at all! Yes, Filipino pride I’ve got. 🙂 

Visiting Vietnam for food is one of the best ideas. For a budget-conscious type of person, you would enjoy the fact that great meals come with affordable prices. 

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Cheers,

Budget: $5.00++

Rate: 8/10