After the Skype session I got a workout in (back to it after a 3 day break) and got myself ready for a long day at the pool. We got to the pool around 11 AM to have our breakfast/lunch which ended up being pizza,,,, nice. Shortly thereafter we met up with Carrie and Michael and hung out at the bar until about 4 PM. On our way back to the room we stopped at the hotel boutique, picked up a few things and then returned to the room. We were surprised to see that our butler had already packed our bags and had everything laid out so that we could easily inspect it,,,, nice. We showered, dressed and at 5 PM we were served dinner in our living room. After dinner we hopped in a buggy and headed to the main reception area to catch our ride to the airport.
Our guide was so sweet to present Katie with a wrapped present with the words “Happy Honeymoon” on the outside. The present was a box of Katie’s favorite pens (some local brand she is in love with) --- two of the pens have our names custom written inside the pen ---- so nice! We got to the airport about an hour earlier then we needed to be. It was nice to move on to our next destination but sad to say goodbye to Quah,,,, great guide! With time to kill we just hung out in the lounge until our flight started boarding. The boarding process was a bit different then in the US,,, here the business class goes last. It seemed we were the only ones in business class but as it turned out there were 3 others that had snuck on the crowded busses to get to the plane early. I was surprised and happy to learn we were flying a 777.
Our bus arrived at the airplane where they had two staircases up against the front and back of the 777. Our first time on a 777 was the Tokyo to Hong Kong trip however we boarded on a regular gangway. Standing next to a 777 is much like standing next to a high-rise building in the middle of the city. This thing is huge. I took a few photos but I’m certain they don’t do it justice. Look at the photo of the man standing near the engine,,,, he’s probably 5’10” and he can barley reach the engine. As we walked up the stairs to the airplane we stood in front of the fan blades of the engine in complete awe.
On board we were very disappointed by the substandard Vietnam Airlines interior. The plane was very dirty and many things were broken or just otherwise filthy. We learned later from our Saigon guide that Vietnam Airlines is run by the government and their concern for comfort and cleanliness is null. After landing our guide Tri was waiting with a big smile holding a “The Biters” sign. He quickly got us in the car and off we went to the hotel. We talked about our trip thus far, the good, the bad, etc. Then we learned he has been reading our blog,,, I was surprised to hear this,,, pretty cool, huh? Katie and I noticed right away that this town is much different than what we’ve seen in Vietnam thus far. There are neon lights, wide open streets, tall buildings, etc. It reminded us of what Hong Kong probably looked like 20-30 years ago (some parts of Hong Kong look like this today).
We arrived at the hotel about 30 minutes later. We’re staying at the Park Hyatt which we’re told is the nicest in town. The hotel is very nice but overall very typical of what we’re used to in the US. The suite we’re in is on the 7th floor which is close enough to the street to hear everything that’s going on. The common sounds of scooter horns can be heard throughout the night. We’ve learned to tune them out the like the roosters in the Bahamas. It was about 10 when we arrived at the hotel. After a day at the pool in the hot sun followed by travel we figured we had enough. We called it an early night and headed off to bed. I added the photos from the day to the Hoi An album (which is a few posts below) and the new photos I added to the Saigon album here:
More to come from Saigon tomorrow….
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