Wrap up of Saigon

I am currently really psyched because it is finally sinking into the depths of my blood cells that I am flying on Friday! Holiday! Yay!!!

I've been pretty nose-deep in work lately so I haven't had much time to think about this trip. Hence here I am at home looking up things to eat in.. Taiwan! 

We'll be spending Christmas and New Year's in Taiwan this year. It'll be our first time in Taiwan :D

I still have plenty to blog about my last trip to Saigon, but I guess I will let the pictures do most of the talking now :)

On our trip, we visited a lot of historic and religious buildings and sites (exactly my kinda itinerary!)

Ho Chi Minh Central Post Office

Normally, you wouldn't expect a Post Office to be a tourist site.. But in Saigon, that is exactly what the Ho Chi Minh Central Post Office is! Beautifully preserved from the French colonial era, the Post Office has been around since the 19th century. The post office is a functioning one- meaning you can send letters or parcels there. I bought a couple of post cards there and had them mailed to some friends!

I was paranoid that the baby-doll dress made me look pregnant.. Hahaha

 Such beautiful, intricate details! For many a split seconds in Saigon, I felt like I wasn't in Asia.. But here, the large portrait of Ho Chi Minh made sure that I don't even for a split second think I wasn't in Vietnam!

Notre Dame Cathedral, Saigon

Conveniently right opposite the Central Post Office is the Notre Dame Cathedrals. If you know me or follow my blog (which I would be so surprised but so honored to know such a person exists, say hi!), you would know that I am a HUGE cathedral/ temple enthusiast because I LOVE the details and I always feel a sort of calamity and a washing-machine kind of whirl that I cannot explain when I am in a place of worship. It is a kind of rush that I am still trying to figure out.

Anyway.

The Cathedral was unfortunately under renovation when we were there, meaning that we could not enter the premises. /cries 

We could only admire the cathedral from the outside and view the statue of Virgin Mary, which is infamous for apparently shedding tears back in 2005.

Does make me look pregnant doesn't it?!

OK random photos now I took while walking. Here is the Saigon Opera House, built in 1897 and still functions as a theatre showcasing cultural performances, bamboo cirque, contemporary dance, orchestra concerts and government events to up to 800 people at a time:

 Broken rice :9

A cuppa latte before we hit the road early in the morning

On our last full day in Saigon, we had no plans so I suggested we leave District 1 for District 5, where Chinatown (Cho Lon) was. We took a Grab and it was a 15 minute ride.

We got dropped at the Binh Tay Market.. At least that's where I think it was. We never really found out because it was quite hectic and crowded in District 5 and we got slightly flustered.

We learned that District 5 was not exactly a tourist spot and it was more of a local area, and the Binh Tay Market catered mostly to locals.

I remember Cho Lon particularly (fondly) well because a random man walked pass, did a double take and exclaimed "wah, hou leng ah!!" (wow, so pretty!!) I have repeated this incident multiple times and I think I will pass on this story to my grand kids one day.. Hahaha

We visited 2 temples and a cathedral in District 5:

The St. Francis Xavier's Catholic Church

 One thing that particularly struck me was that it was right where I sat (pic above), was where the South Vietnam President Ngo Din Diem and his brother were captured by the North. They were later executed and Vietnam was "unified".

Shot in the heads and stabbed 15-20 times, while being tied up.

I wonder what were their last thoughts while they were seated there at the pew.

Random stall for Pho! It was good! My BF was anticipating a tummy ache but he was FINE! lol nobody could speak any English so we just kept pointing at the "PHO" and nodding. Our food came with only beef balls and no beef slices, oh well :(

This last cathedral was nearer to our hotel but I cannot remember the name.. Still such a gorgeous place..

West Side Story and Fo Guang Shan Temple in Auckland

A week or two before we were due to fly to Auckland, I found out that West Side Story was in the city! The musical cast from New York was in town for 2 weeks-ish, and since we had quite a few days in Auckland and little planned, I managed to convince my BF (and his mum!) to catch the musical with me. It was going to be my 4th musical.

 We got our tickets online. Seats weren't great cos they were the cheaper ones lol and tickets were quite limited because we had 3 pax and you're not allowed to leave one seat empty. Nevertheless, I was rather excited.

 The musical was in the CBD, held inside the Civic.

 The Civic amphitheater was a rather small one, compared to the ones I've been to in Singapore and the UK. I liked how they made the interiors look like exterior- it was as if we were in the outdoors with lovely stars in the sky!

Sadly to say, West Side Story turned out to be my least favorite musical. I felt it was dry and draggy :( I was expecting so much more of it and myself to like it. I don't regret watching it. I am just glad my BF gave in to my incessant whining and pleading. Also felt bad for his mum because it was her first musical. Haha. Don't think we all enjoyed it too much. The cast was crazy talented though, thumbs up!

The next day, we went to the Fo Guang Shan Temple in Auckland because my BF's mum wanted to go check it out. I must say it was rather impressive to see such a huge and beautiful temple in New Zealand, but then again, I think Auckland is super duper Chinese-infused, what with an Asian and Asian eatery in every corner.

I am fascinated by temples and cathedrals, so this was rather pleasing.

The Fo Guang Shan temple's headquarters is in Kaohsiung, Taiwan and was founded by Hsing Yun. 

The temple was around half an hour drive from our place down in Albany.

 One with my BF's fam

The temple also acts a community centre that runs programmes like meditation classes, Tai Chi lessons and Dharma classes for children. There is also a Fo Guang Yuan Art Gallery which displays arts and masterpieces on the religion, culture and knowledge. There is also a "Tea House", the Water Drop Vege Cafe which serves vegetarian foods.

 It was a rather gloomy day as it started to drizzle shortly after we arrived

 Majestic

A pretty good selfie-stick selfie, I must admit. We had to quickly snap these as it was starting to rain and we had to run for cover!

The Fo Guang Shan temple was the only Buddhist temple we visited on our trip. In case you were wondering, we didn't see any other ones through the entire trip. We did see cathedrals (we didn't actively search for them) but they were not like the grand ones we saw in other places like Europe or even Seoul. But then again, we did not actively search for them. I remember seeing a Jewish Community house in Wellington though! Not something I see everyday (or ever) :P

xxx