Good morning Vietnam
Through hotel walls seemingly thinner than the finest Mekong Delta rice paper, the morning in Ho Chi Minh City starts as it always does - noisily.
Even in the city streets there is the unmistakable rage of the roads, where motorcycle engines and rooster crows entwine in an incongruous mix. It is constant and has a certain beauty.
There could hardly be a better way to enliven the senses for the day to come than with a steaming pho bo, or beef soup, from the local corner shop. But to really earn a taste for it, it is truly a must for visitors to follow the locals into the central Tao Dan Park for a piece of morning recreation.
The scene at the park makes the human traffic travelling around Lake Monger in the morning seem very pedestrian.
A group of middle-aged women, some strangely dressed in casual function attire, stretch themselves through some funky aerobic patterns with music ranging from Herb Alpert to Shakira and even Ace of Base's 1993 hit, All That She Wants. Conventional badminton is played near to others twisting the sport by using only their feet, while a group of aggressive young men hone their martial-arts skills.
There is ballroom dancing amid other forms of exercise plied by people of varying ages wielding anything within reach, including sticks, fans and their own limbs. Traffic roars by, but nothing seems to disturb the serenity. Gardeners work feverishly, sometimes being forced by a light breeze to sweep the same leaves from the same section of grass.
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A friend and I walk five laps in pristine conditions and not one of the rotations seem the same. Despite all of that, it is being confronted with the (apparently) famous bird men of the park that is the most engaging. Men from all walks wander into a corner of the park with their prized little birds in cages. They move them constantly from the ground up to hanging stations and it is difficult to decide whether it is the humans or the birds who interact more loudly.
Some of the proud owners, armed with small plastic bags filled with live grasshoppers, simply sit and stare at every move from their beloved birds, occasionally puffing cigarette smoke directly on to them in the cage as if it is their way of showing their affection. They either sip ginseng tea from their own flasks from home or partake in the strong coffee made by women dressed in rain boots. It's a nice day for white wellies.
So then it's off to Hoa Dong (found at 121 Ly Tu Trong Street, just a few hops from the Ben Thanh Markets) for a piping-hot and tasty pho bo with all the trimmings, costing just $3.25 in Australian dollars. It is a steal and a sensational foundation for the big day ahead.
Having travelled to Ho Chi Minh City five years earlier, it is notable in 2014 just how modernised the city has become - and impressively clean, too. Improvements in this area started when Vietnam joined the World Trade Organisation in 2007 and now in most places in the city you look, there are street cleaners busily going about their work.
The humble cyclo riders, always looking for a fare, have also been banned from certain parts of the city but are still at their thriving best at some of the iconic tourist attractions, such as the War Remnants Museum and the Reunification Palace.
The latter venue has something of a schools open day when I visit and I cannot help but be taken by the irony of one of the exhibitions. An Education Malaysia stall with a banner blaring, "Your Future is in Your Hands", is sandwiched between two imposing war tanks. Nothing more needs to be said.
The cattle skulls hanging on walls and display of elephant feet are also a curious addition to the inside of the palace but the winding passageways of the building's former war rooms are brilliant to behold - although maybe not for the claustrophobic.
Plush wine shops, manned by eager, mostly beautiful and always friendly staffers, also seem to be popping up all over the place. Bacchus Corner Wine & Spirits, which opened six years ago, is one of the more established stores and director Dong Khoi Nguyen Duy says his company sources its wine from 30 different importers. He says 90 per cent of his clientele are locals and they have a strong hankering for WA wines, with Sandalford his best seller.
"There are more and more and more and more coming, definitely more and more," he says of the number of shops joining his ranks.
"People here love West Australian wines. The logical analysis of their tastes is that they come from spirits like vodka, whisky and cognac in high quantity. So they are used to taking a lot of alcohol but are now moving into wines; they are moving into a more refined lifestyle.
"They like the character of the wines like the Western Australian cab sav that have of a bit more character. The global financial crisis just slowed down the process in the past two or three years but we are seeing a bit of recovery now and rebuilding."
Mr Nguyen Duy says the market would welcome greater promotion in Vietnam from WA winemakers.
Walking on a few blocks away, I am halted by seeing what I know to be a familiar view in a shopfront window. Inside the Lotus Gallery, is extraordinary octogenarian owner Madame Nguyen Thi Xuan Phuong, who says the familiar pictures at the front were photographs taken by her son, Nguyen Phuong, on a visit to the city banks of Perth's Swan River.
It is just one of many tastes of home in HCMC, including a strong football presence. Australian expat members of the Vietnam Swans, who play in competition under the umbrella of AFL Asia are often seen crowding for a drink in a pub called the Spotted Cow. This bar, and several others nearby in District 1, love their footy.
When the invariable power failure hits, it is good sport to watch thirsty fans pouring out of one pub in search of another where the current AFL telecast has not been affected. Anyway, having a drink in HCMC can be a varied experience.
There is the pure class of the rooftop bar at the historic Caravelle - which was once the city's highest building and, until 1975, an Australian and New Zealand embassy - or the nearby Park Hyatt. The 2 Lam Son bar at the latter is one of the city's hottest venues and oozes quality from the moment you walk in. The bar, the staff, the surrounds, the drink list, the clientele - deluxe.
Then back down to Bui Vien Street, where you will find the Spotted Cow, there is the cheap beer phenomenon that Vietnam holds dear. Sitting on tiny plastic chairs on the footpath in front of an equally tiny shop, it is no joke as an Aussie (me), an Englishman, an American and a Kiwi embark on a strong political debate over a freezing cold stubbie of Bia Saigon. An 87-year-old grandmother, who is helping her daughter serve the masses, takes the 12,000 Vietnamese dong for the 440ml bottle, which works out at a thrifty 60¢ in Australian money.
World peace remains unsolved but it is experiences like this that have hooked many an Australian traveller to Vietnam for good. One of those, Perth businessman and musician David Morgan, explains the attraction as we chat over a perfect squid salad.
"There are two places now in my life where I've lived that have been very spiritual and I've really felt attached to them . . . like you're meant to be there," Mr Morgan says.
"One was the Pilbara and then when I came to Vietnam, within a month I just began to feel something drawing me in. Just constant amazement of the colours and the smells and everything you see around you. You want to touch it and feel it and live it.
"That's why I've become so passionate about Vietnam. Coming into Vietnam to try and understand the culture and the people has been a really good experience. My best advice for anyone coming into Vietnam would be, to understand the culture before you want to do business."
And one last thing, before you leave the airport to fly home, make sure you head up the escalators to the food court to grab one of the best value-for-money pho bos going around.
At 170,000VND it is a lot more expensive than the streets but it is worth it for the memory to take home.
