10.1.09-cyclo thru the city

Nancy had one last commitment this morning so I took the opportunity to travel via "cyclo" throughout the city. Yes I could have rented a scooter...but I have 2 children, a wife, and an undernourished dog to help support so...rent the cyclo. (images below)
My driver , named Mahn, must have been the only person on the road not wearing a bandana kercheif over his mouth...which became evident as I heard his coughs above my head the entire ride. Other than that supreme exposure the ride was like being a slow moving heavy piece of dust caught up in a cyclone...not quite riding the main swirl of movement. Nonetheless we made our way in slow motion to a few destinations I wanted to see. First was the US Embassy where in 1968 the Vietcong attacks during Tet in broad daylight brought to light the extreme resolve of the North Vietnamese's intent to make known their business was not to lay down and die during our occupation. I was hoping there was a US Marine at the front gate but that was not the case.
Next...not planned...was a quick right turn to watch a soccer match we happened to stumble upon. Just a small caged-in field where a small sided match was taking place. I was ready to join in but players were wearing official shirts...figuring an official match taking place.
All soccer players know you usually can join in, especially if you are from outside the norm...but this time I stayed a spectator.
On to the Ben Thanh market for a stroll through. My route began in fabric areas , very narrow pathways and all women at their stalls grasping my hands and arms to keep me at their station trying to convince me what I needed to buy. It was the normal "confrontive" market approach all foreigners must get used to. I do wish I took some photos here as I made my way through but sometimes that too is all too difficult to undertake. I proceeded to the food area where the assortment and display of raw everything was about as "ripe" of an experience as I've ever had. By ripe meaning the combination of smells of raw meat and fish in the tight environment almost knocked me over. I'm not a "skiddish" dude but now I had one mission...I needed to get out in the open. So much for the market today.
A few more stops in the park for a walk, checking out the famous Hotel Rex, then several back street alleyways off the beaten path then back to the hotel. The 2 hour excursion cost 100,000 dong= 6 dollars. By the way we cashed some travelers check early and realized we were millionaires for a day. Do your math...1 dollar =17,834 dong.
I find it interesting that the hotel personnel when exchanging money are commonly counting in the millions...it's an everyday mathematical occurence.

Now back to the hotel to finalize our change of plans.