[Image Credit: Vagrants of the World Blog]

[Post-Edit Note: All pictures and written content in this post was originally created in 2014, unless otherwise credited.]

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If Hanoi is a city of romance and mellow charms, then Ho Chi Minh City is its anti-thesis, a fury of spirit and character amidst a dysfunctional, polluted, and overcrowded landscape. Fortunately for us, much of the fun of being in this big bustling city is derived from the simple pleasure of absorbing this very flurry of activity – so do not be surprised if you find yourself swept away by this effervescent city despite your best instincts. Whether you’re looking for the glossiest hotels or the cheapest guesthouses, sleek skyscrapers or scrummy markets, Ho Chi Minh City has something for everyone – even the most discerning amongst us. Think Manhattan on motorcycles: its patchwork cityscape may not be traditionally pretty, but it offers a remarkable diversity of cultures and a dizzying blend of influences passionate enough to sweep you off your feet all the same.

Featuring all the hints of growing economic success, Ho Chi Minh City is, undoubtedly, Vietnam in high gear. To be here is to be immersed in a dramatic meeting of old and new cultures, a dynamic metropolis of skyscrapers and traffic juxtaposed with a wealth of ancient temples and traditional markets – and of course, let’s not forget that deeply embedded war-torn history. For a huge portion of travellers (myself shamefully included), the War is our main frame of reference when it comes to this frenetic city; and thus, historical hotspots like the Cu Chi Tunnels, Reunification Palace, and War Remnants Museum effortlessly top our itineraries.

If anything, this chaotically mesmerizing city has always been the backdrop to momentous history. Set amidst pockets of antiquities, this sprawling city boasts exciting tales of the country’s provocative past; and is jampacked with sobering glimpses of the ghosts of Vietnam’s yesteryears, conspicuous and inescapable no matter where you turn.

If you’re a history buff with a great deal of remembrance to spare, the following are 4 colossal reasons why Saigon will not disappoint. This city’s historical splendour is indubitably fierce, poignant, and painful to bear; and is guaranteed to be an intense experience which will linger in the depths of your mind long after you’ve left the country.

1. Relive Vietnam’s Ill-fated Regime at the Reunification Palace.

Forty years after the liberation of Saigon, the Reunification Palace has become a household landmark for every inhabitant in the city. This ex Presidential Palace has personally witnessed every milestone event that led up to the eventual overthrow of the South Vietnamese government in 1975: it served the regime of at least four different Presidents in just under two years; and saw through two of the fiercest and most infamous Wars that ever took place in world history.

The innards of this Palace boasts a myriad of ornate rooms and halls designed for work and/or recreation (it even has a legit cinema theatre), and comes with an eerily cold basement labyrinth -filled with the full gear of 1960s radio equipment- that doubled as a bomb-proof bunker during troubled days.

Today, the Reunification Palace has become somewhat of a Berlin Wall monument for the Vietnamese. Just like how the Wall fell in 1989; this Palace was the iconic site of a dramatic finish to the Vietnam War as communist tanks crashed through its gates on the 30th April of 1975, marking the end of America’s failed mission to capture Vietnam under its rule.

2. Plan A City Trail.

If there is one thing you’ll love about this gentrified city, it’s how all of its downtown sights are conveniently located side by side from each other. Saigon is so knee-deep in history that you’ll inevitably walk into something history-related no matter where you turn. Do some pre-trip research and it won’t be difficult to add more historical value to your city trail. For instance, you’ll be surprised to know the Continental, Caravelle, and Majestic Hotels, were all once acommodation favourites amongst the who’s who of the city: from war journalists to diplomats to war espionages and even the elite socialites. Newsweek and Time even established their bureaus on the second floor of the Continental; and the roofttop bar on the ninth floor of the Caravelle was a particular hit amongst war reporters – it was where people could literally watch the war over cocktails.

An insider tip: if you can track down the building at 22 Ly Tu Trong Street (it’s right across from the Notre Dame Cathedral), you’ll find yourself at the very scene of that famour war photograph taken by the late Dutch photojournalist, Hugh Van Es. If you look closely, you’ll see strings of Americans on the roof of a building, scrambling aboard a helicopter to flee Saigon as it continued to fall deeper into the pit of war. Here’s a little sneak shot of how it looks like:

Assumed to be the U.S. Embassy, it was later found out that this was actually an apartment building of which the CIA had the top floor. Truly a grimly surreal time, it was.

For a lighter, less war-filled agenda, stop by the Opera House, the Notre Dame Cathedral, the old Post Office, or even Ben Thanh Market, amongst many others. Built across the span of the 1800s, all are fine examples of colonial French architecture, and will give you a tasteful experience of Saigon before its darker days.

3. Stomach Vietnam’s Sobering Past at the War Remnants Museum.

Few museums anywhere drive home so effectively the brutality of war, but this one sure does with its explicit and extremely disturbing recounts of one of the most drawn-out Wars of all time. Many of the atrocities documented in the War Remnants Museum are shocking, chilling, and graphic to the point of being offensive; and is an extensive and grisly catalog of the traumas of the U.S.-Vietnam War that live on forty years even after everything has passed. Nauseating images of the My Lai Massacre, horrific detailing of the ongoing impacts of Agent Orange, a showcase of war weaponry and worldwide human protests that will do more than tug at your heart strings; this Museum does not hold back at all when it comes to featuring the ugliness of the War – one that resulted in the death of close to 1 million Vietnamese people by the time it was over.

Granted, it is not the most stylish museum you’ll find and its contents are largely text- and photo-based, but if you love war and if you love history, then this is your place to be (I should know, it was mine).

4. Crawl Through the Cu Chi Tunnels.

You can’t say that you’ve been to Saigon if you’ve never crawled through the Cuchi Tunnels. One of the most famous battlegrounds of the Vietnam War, this is the one sight apart from the War Remnants Museum that will leave the longest lasting impact on you even after you’re safely back home in your own beds. This legendary 220km-long Viet Cong tunnel network is the very place from which communist guerillas waged their very successful campaign against the U.S. forces in the 1960s, and played a central role in their victory over the Americans when it all finally came to an end.

You’ve probably read about it, and yes, travelers may climb through a tiny fraction of the tunnels and chambers just to get a miniscule dosage of what it felt like to live weeks at a time under these tunnels back then. It is one hell of a war time propaganda; but no less interesting as a result. If anything, you’ll be blown by the various ways in which the Americans – complete with their superior weapons, technology, and forces – were effortlessly outsmarted by the very strategic and nimble Vietnamese through the simplest and most basic tactics. It’s harrowing, but enlightening to the tee.

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Enjoy Ho Chi Minh City in retrospect.

I know I did.