Ho Chi Minh City - Ho Chi Minh Attractions

¤ Ho Chi Minh Travel Guide » Ho Chi Minh City

It's used to be called Saigon. HCMC is a center of commerce. Stylish stores bursting with famous international brand names down to the wicker baskets of fruit and the trays of lighters and shoelaces carried by humble street sellers: something for everyone and prices for everything. Modern office blocks house the many trading and financial businesses that have their headquarters in the southern hub.

It's also a city with a chequered history and a rich culture. Its pagodas, museums, public buildings, parks and boulevards make it a magnet for international tourists who arrive in increasing numbers at Tan Son Nhat, Vietnam's busiest airport, or by road, train or ship.

The War Remnants Museum

It presents a partial, but riveting, view of the Ho Chi Minh City

American War, as it is known in Vietnam. The horrors of warfare, aptly demonstrated by a large gallery of graphic pictures and deformed embryos, and a grisly display of some of the hideous booby-traps used by the Viet Cong to protect the Cu Chi tunnel network, are counterbalanced by a room concerned with international opposition to the war and the American peace movement.

The Fine Arts Museum

The building housing the Fine Arts Museum is worth a visit in its own right as a fine example of French Colonial architecture. Inside, there are some interesting exhibits, notably a large display of propaganda posers and images from Vietnam's 'social realism' period, and a good collection of Cham and Oc Eo artefacts. Unfortunately, the galleries seem to arranged more of less at random, and lack interpretation, so it's very difficult to gain an understanding of the development of Vietnamese art.

Ben Thanh Market

In District 1, not far from the main tourist area, Ben Thanh is the largest market in Saigon and one of its main attraction. It sells almost everything - food, clothes, jewellery, live snakes, vehicle spares, medicine, and much, much more. It's popularity means prices are higher than elsewhere, but the experience is worth it.

More Ho Chi Minh Guide:
- Cu Chi Tunnels
- The Cao Dai Holy See
- Phu Quoc Island
- Vung Tau

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