Taking a break from domestic goddess duties, the kids, Itoy and I headed to the Dong Khoi street in District One yesterday morning. The most prominent area in the city is around this street that has a wide array of shops, museums, and dining places.

We decided to take in the sights and sounds little by little so that we could eventually “master” the District slowly. Our foray into the city began with lunch at
the food court of the Diamond Department store on Le Duan street. This is sort of the equivalent of Rustan’s Department store in Manila (though walang food court sa Rustan’s). We feasted on, what else, hot, heaping bowls of beef pho, fried and fresh nem (spring rolls)– from a place called “Wrap and Roll”, and fresh fruit shakes (I had one called “Miss Saigon” made of papaya, soursop and melon (yum!!)

After lunch we checked out the prices at the supermarket and were very happy to find familiar products we needed for home. We then proceeded to take a leisurely stroll on Dong Khoi by the areas of the Notre Dame Cathedral — where Filipinos gather every Sunday for the 9:30 AM mass which is the only English language mass in the city — and the General Post Office.

Our first stop was a bookstore, across the PAL office to buy some English language story books for L who was starting to get antsy from an almost week-long stay here. The thing is that you really need to find ways to amuse and entertain your children when you are new in a foreign land. Travel, and living overseas is a wonderful blessing and an even greater learning opportunity not only for oneself, but for the children as well. It has been said that a week of travel to a foreign land is often the equivalent of learning gained from one semester in college. I digress…

After spending half an hour in the bookstore, we walked back in the direction of the Diamond Plaza where Mr. Vu, the driver was scheduled to pick us by 4PM. No, we haven’t met Mr. Ha yet, so we use Mr. Vu, who is always on time and whose English is good enough to get us to and from our destination, on our forays into the city.

First tourista moment was to stop and take the requisite photos by the Notre Dame Cathedral which is an awesome presence here in the Dong Khoi area of District 1. It is a tall, late 19th century cathedral, built of locally quarried stone and covered with red ceramic tiles that were shipped in from Marseilles, France. The statue of the Virgin Mary, made in Rome and named Holy Mary Queen of Peace, was added to the lawns fronting the cathedral in the 1959s, in the hope of bringing peace to a strife-torn country. The Notre Dame Cathedral is the largest church ever-built in the French Empire.

From the Notre Dame we went to the General Post Office (GPO)– one of the most handsome, French Colonial buildings in the city designed by French architect Gustave Eiffel between 1886 and 1891. The GPO or Buu Dien Trung is one of the most attractive buildings in the city. It’s massive facade is coral colored and features the faces opf famous scientists and philosophers. The building, they like to say, is a “temple to the art of communicating by mail” — an art that is slowly dying in the age of email.

On my first visit here in January, I was immediately struck by the interior’s resemblance to the King’s Cross Station from the Harry Potter series :0 The GPO’s inetriors are vaulted and supported by wrought-iron pillars painted in greeen , with gilded capitals. The tiles on the floor are intricate, and huge maps adorn the the walls. Wooden writing benches are available for people who are waiting. I like coming in here because the cool interiors and benches provide a wonderful, momentary respite from the heat. I also like looking at the phone booths that have clocks depicting the time in different parts of the world. It’s like I am transported, briefly, to a different moment in time.

Truly, Vietnam is awesome in her beauty and resilience and Ho Chi Minh is a city that fascinates. My life here is so different from the one I keep in Manila but I love it just the same. As each new day unfolds, I discover different aspects of myself, strengths I never knew I had.