Bird’s eye view of Saigon
I had enquired about a late check-out till 1600 for half a day’s rate. Anything beyond that would he at the full day’s rate. I decided against it in the end and checked-out at 1100, leaving my pack at reception.
I took a Grab car to Bitexco Tower. I read that it was cheaper to go to the bar for a drink than pay the admission for the observation deck. True enough, a beer or soft drink at the bar was about half the price of the observation deck admission, but I opted for a mango smoothie which was a tad more than the admission.
The view up the tower gave me a good appreciation of the size of Saigon. Except for a big group of high rises, the area across the river wasn’t too developed yet. There are still many backstreets that make up the real Saigon and the high-rises are the exception.
Despite the big smoothie, I was ready for lunch. My choice of the location and the meals proved better than yesterday. Unfortunately the weather turned torrential. Many people had the same idea of staying indoors to keep dry and the restaurant filled up quickly. They placed an American lawyer from near Charlotte at my table and we had a very nice chat.
I spent the afternoon trying to keep dry and waiting for Grab cars. Ordering a vehicle in this kind of weather takes longer due to demand and slow traffic.
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- View from the Heli Bar (with helipad) in the Bitexco Tower.
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- View from the Heli Bar (with helipad) in the Bitexco Tower.
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- View from the Heli Bar (with helipad) in the Bitexco Tower.
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- View from the Heli Bar (with helipad) in the Bitexco Tower. Shophouses.
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- View from the Heli Bar (with helipad) in the Bitexco Tower. Ben Thanh market.
Flying home
I returned to the hotel area to eat, then pick up my pack before continuing to the airport. I arrived around 1830 for the 2120 departure. The queue for check-in was long already but fortunately I had done an online check-in which allowed me to use a shorter queue.
For those with luggage, they are required to wait momentarily as the bags were scanned by security behind the scenes. They do this in China too. Much better than having your bag opened and the offending item (eg. battery) confiscated in exchange for a note explaining that.
Despite not being hungry, I went to the lounge for to kill some time before the flight back to Auckland. At the gate, my paid upgrade to Premium Economy was successful. It was a centre seat stuck between people but with the extra width and legroom, it didn’t matter at all.